Seeing the Christmas markets in Germany has been something that I’ve wanted to do for years. Our travel plans for the end of the year changed this summer, which allowed us to fit in this trip! Something that made this trip even more special was that my parents were able to join us. Over the years, we’ve traveled with them to both Dublin and Paris, but the flight to Munich would be their longest flight ever!
We got a direct flight from Newark to Munich on Lufthansa. It was our first time flying that airline and unfortunately, like most airlines nowadays, they made the experience pretty uncomfortable. The flight crew was great – super friendly and helpful, but everything else was pretty awful. Small, uncomfortable seats, no legroom, horrible food, and to top it off, the outlet didn’t work on my seat to charge my phone (For some reason, this always happens to me.). If this was a budget airline, it could be expected, but this flight cost us $1,000. It seems like there are really no good airlines anymore and every year, things just get a little worse and prices a little higher.
Once we landed in Munich, we immediately got into the Christmas spirit. The Munich airport is one of the nicest airports we’ve ever seen. They had Christmas decorations everywhere and even had their own little Christmas market. Why are airports in the United States so ugly?
We hopped on a train to our hotel, which was a nice, comfortable ride. We stayed at the Excelsior and couldn’t have been happier. Great, accommodating staff, comfortable rooms, and an awesome location right by the train station. For the price, it was a great value.
There are several Christmas markets in Munich and we tried to see them all while we were there. The bad weather (it rained off and on every day) didn’t stop people from enjoying the markets. They were packed and everyone was having fun. When you’re surrounded by beautiful spaces and happy people, it’s hard not to!
Our favorite market was in Marienplatz Square. With St. Peter’s Church as the backdrop, it couldn’t have been more beautiful!
Mom was a huge fan of the mulled wine. She rarely drinks, but she had a wine every night!
Most of what we ate was at the markets. The food was excellent. Mark was a big fan of this dish, which was a German version of mac and cheese.
We loved how detailed all the stands at the markets were. So much time and effort goes into these markets every year!
Wittelsbacherplatz is a unique medieval-style Christmas market. We loved how the mulled wine was served in these clay cups. It was pretty cold and rainy that day and the wine helped warm us up!
Nuremberg
During our time in Germany, we didn’t just stay in Munich. Many people told us that the Christmas Markets in Nuremberg were amazing, so we spent a day checking them out. We considered several options to get there but settled on the Flix Bus as it was the most affordable. For the 4 of us, it cost around $230 round trip. The train would have been around $650 and renting a car would have been around $250 (plus parking fees) so this was the best option. The bus reminded us a lot of the Bolt Bus that we’ve taken from Philadelphia to New York City. Nothing super luxurious, but it was comfortable and had everything you needed.
The Nuremberg Christmas Markets were next level. We couldn’t believe how big they were. It was definitely a highlight of our trip.
Seeing these Christmas Markets was a bucket list experience that we’ll never forget. Travel is a constant reminder of why we value experiences over things. If you have a desire to travel somewhere, find a way to make it happen. The memories you make are worth far more than any material item.
