Taking the Train for a Festive Manchester City Break
Mark Bibby Jackson takes the train from London Euston for a Manchester city break and sample the city’s festive offerings including its Christmas Markets. It’s been a long time since…
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Mark Bibby Jackson takes the train from London Euston for a Manchester city break and sample the city’s festive offerings including its Christmas Markets. It’s been a long time since…
Explore global festivals and events in December 2024, from Europe’s enchanting Christmas markets to Guatemala’s colourful Fiesta de Santo Tomás. Experience diverse cultures, dazzling lights and unforgettable traditions worldwide. Follow…
From November 29 to December 29, the enchanting Cité de Noël transforms Béthune’s historic Grand’Place into one of the most captivating Christmas markets in the Hauts-de-France region. Nestled beneath the…
The unmistakable glow of Manchester Christmas Markets 2024 is set to illuminate the city centre once again, transforming streets and squares into a wintry wonderland from Friday, 8 November, through…
From the original December market to the city that created stollen, the source of mulled wine and the first Christmas tree, let Travel Begins at 40 guide you through some…
The Strasbourg Christmas Market is a magical event that blends centuries of tradition with the vibrant holiday spirit. As one of Europe’s oldest and most iconic Christmas markets, it has…
Tallinn Christmas Market runs from 22 November to 27 December in the Town Hall Square (Raekoja plats) right in the heart of the medieval lower Old Town of Tallinn. This…
If you are thinking of a slightly alternative Christmas market in Europe away from Vienna, Salzburg and Dresden you would do far worse that considering the Vilnius Christmas market. Vilnius…
France’s fourth largest city becomes a winter wonderland each December for the Toulouse Christmas Market. The Place du Capitole is transformed from 28 November to 29 December into a European…
Neil Hennessy-Vass visits Christmas at Waddesdon Manor and declares that the festive season has officially commenced. After a hiatus of two years (we all know why) that glorious Victorian confection…
December 8 marks the opening of the ski season at the SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser Brixental in the Wilder Kaiser region of Austria. SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser – Brixental The SkiWelt Wilder…
As befits such a dynamic and cosmopolitan city Berlin has not one but 70 Christmas markets, many of which have adopted a sustainable…
Visitors to the Lithuanian capital over the festive period should ensure they take in the spectacular Vilnius Christmas tree next to the Ducal Palace in the centre of the city. …
Europe is set to transform into a winter wonderland over the next month, as cities across the continent are taken over by Christmas markets, bright lights, and festive cheer. a&o…
The medieval city of Antwerp makes for a stunning background to its famous Christmas market. Expanded now into several of the city’s prime historical locations…
Rhineland-Palatinate and the beautiful Moselle valley are situated on the western border of Germany, a mere 90-minute flight from Great Britain. The autumnal landscape…
It’s the season to be merry, but one Christmas Market stands out from the crowd – well it is the original one after all. Not that the Vienna Christmas Market is a single market, but…
In recent years stollen has become as much a feature of Christmas as figgy pudding. But nowhere do they celebrate the festive cake as seriously as in Dresden where each…
Wizz Air, Europe’s fastest growing airline, has announced the opening of its 26th base in Krakow, Poland. The airline will base two Airbus A321 aircraft at Krakow airport in May…
As 2018 draws to a close, On The Go Tours have devised an interactive map detailing those European Christmas markets that appear most on Instagram…
There really is only one place to go for some fun for the family in the UK capital in the build up to Christmas, the Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park London. The fair is free to enter…
If you are planning to take a trip to a Christmas market this year, you could do far worse than travelling to Austria’s world-heritage city Salzburg, home of Mozart. Currently…
Travel to Austria with Kirker to visit the Christmas markets in Mozart’s magical home city of Salzburg from 22 November to 26 December. Enjoy choral singing from the cathedral steps, wind…
A highlight of the festive season, Winchester Christmas Market opens on 22 November. Since 2006 the market has been recognised as one of the leading Christmas Festivals…
Come November the cities and towns of Europe join in unison to celebrate the advent of Christmas with a Christmas Market. What started off as very much a Germanic tradition has now swept across much of mainland Europe as well as in the UK.
The very first December market was held in 1298 when Albrecht I granted permission for a meat market, and the Austrian capital is very much at the heart of festive markets to this day, with 20 in and around the city.
However, it is in Germany that the markets really flourished, with Dresden’s Striezelmarkt standing out as one of the most spectacular Christmas markets in the country – where else can you see a giant stollen parade?
In the UK the trend has evolved more recently, with markets now appearing in most cities and towns across the kingdom. From Winchester to Beverley and Padstow each has its own particular take on the theme, and London even has its own Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park.
From the iconic Brussels Christmas Market in the capital of the European Union, the festive seasonal tradition has also swept across eastern Europe and Scandinavia. The Brno Christmas Market is prove that the Czech Republic is not all about Prague while in Lithuania they take place all over this small country, from its capital Vilnius to the smaller city of Kaunas. Meanwhile, the one in Helsinki called Tuomaan Markkinat, is amongst Europe’s most Istagrammable Christmas markets.