Christmas Market Tour – Austria, Germany, France and Switzerland

Please note that Christmas is the new “high season” in Europe, often surpassing summertime. Occasionally, we may adjust itinerary items to meet conditions or unforeseen circumstances. Walking tours, train transfers, and visits to hilly or cobblestone streets may be difficult for older participants or those with limited mobility.

Day 1: Arrival in Vienna

Welcome to Vienna! Famous for its classical music and opera, Vienna is home to spectacular architecture and rich cultural offerings with an undeniable charm. The area is brimming with ornate palaces, traditional coffee houses, art galleries, and museums. The city is the jewel in Austria’s crown, sensationally decorated during Christmas time. Tonight we will enjoy our Welcome Dinner.

Day 2: Markets and Mozart/Strauss Concert

Enjoy a leisurely day, visiting over 150 Christmas market stalls, eating, listening to music, and getting lost in the joy. This evening we will enjoy dinner and an authentic Mozart/Strauss concert.

Day 3: Vienna

Today we will enjoy a visit to Schonbrunn Palace with an audio guide (Imperial audio ticket: 22 rooms, duration approx. 35 mins) + Schonbrunn Park. Afterwards we will enjoy the palace Gloriette, the tea house above the palace for lunch. Afterwards, we will enjoy lunch near the palace.

The rest of the day will be at our leisure to explore the Weihnachtdorf Stephansplatz Christmas Market near the hotel. These are the markets frequented by the locals.

Day 4: Munich via train

This morning we will enjoy our comfortable, 4 hours direct scenic train journey from the capital of Austria to the capital of Bavaria via first class. During our ride, you will enjoy the Austrian mountain scenery passing snowcapped mountains while sipping coffee and enjoying lunch on board.

Munich is home to some of Europe’s greatest cultural treasures, packed with lovely sights, museums, and endless steins of beer. In the weeks before Christmas, Munich pulls out all the stops. Generally, it’s cold enough to snow, so the roofs of all the fabulous buildings and churches are topped with a glittering cap. In the morning, icicles drip from gutters and tree branches and ice roses cover the windows. Munich opens her jewelry box and pulls out the best Christmas decorations to spread lavishly all over the city. Huge stars, angels, and Christmas trees decorate streets and shop windows, and you can enjoy over 20 Christmas markets, including the famous “Pink Market” – a special LGBT-oriented Christmas market.

We will enjoy dinner at the famous gay-owned boutique hotel, Deutsche Eiche. (Underneath happens to be the biggest gay sauna in Munich!

Day 5: Munich – Neuschwanstein Castle

After breakfast, we will head out for an optional tour of Neuschwanstein Castle. The castle is a 19th-century historicist palace on a rugged hill of the foothills of the Alps in the very south of Germany. Enjoy a free evening of leisure to explore Munich and it’s many Christmas markets.

Day 6: Nuremberg

Today, you may choose to have a proper Bavarian lunch at the famous Hofbräuhaus in Munich, with oompah music and a peek upstairs at the WWII-era meeting rooms.

Later, we take a 1-hour high-speed train to visit Nuremberg for the afternoon/evening. The Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt – best seen at night – is one of the oldest and most famous Christmas Markets in the world. In the wooden booths of “the little city of wood and cloth” one finds traditional, often handmade Christmas decorations and sweet treats such as gingerbread and Spekulatius.

Day 7: Strasbourg

Today we will head to Strasbourg via the TGV high-speed train. It is a direct first-class luxury train that will bring you from Munich to Strasbourg in approx. four hours.

Christened the Capital of Christmas by Strasbourg’s deputy mayor in 1992, the French city is home to about a dozen Christmas markets in different squares throughout the city. The most iconic one has been held at the foot of Strasbourg Cathedral since 1570, when the city was part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, making it one of the oldest Christmas markets in Europe. Taking pride of place in the center of a Christmas village festooned with miles of twinkly lights is a 100-feet-tall Nordic pine. Some 300 stalls sell everything from pastries and glühwein to handmade gifts and festive decorations.

Day 8: Strasbourg – Alsace Countryside

After breakfast today, we head to Colmar and several other medieval picturesque villages of Alsace. We will enjoy lunch along the way before heading back to Strasbourg in the late afternoon.

Day 9: Free Day

Today is a free day to relax and enjoy your last day in Strasbourg. Stroll the markets and/or museums. We will meet up this evening for dinner.

Day 10: Basel, Switzerland

Today, we will head to Switzerland. Lying on the border of France and Germany, the Swiss city of Basel has three main Christmas markets: the one on Barfüsserplatz in the old town is the largest with a new market next to the cathedral on Münsterplatz and a smaller one on the right bank of the Rhine on Claraplatz. The three are within easy walking distance from each other, linked by beautifully decorated streets, shop windows, and homes. The streets are lined with little wooden chalets hawking crafts, regional products, and food specialties like oozy Swiss raclette and a thin pizza called flammkuchen.

Day 11: Departure from Basel

Today you are free to depart at your convenience. Fly out of the Basel Airport, or there are convenient trains to Zurich airport (90 mins)

Please note that Christmas is the new “high season” in Europe, often surpassing summertime. Occasionally, we may adjust itinerary items to meet conditions or unforeseen circumstances. Walking tours, train transfers, and visits to hilly or cobblestone streets may be difficult for older participants or those with limited mobility.