Tour Dresden’s Striezelmarkt, the Oldest Christmas Market in Germany
It’s hard to explain the magic that is felt at a German Christmas Market. All your senses are awakened, and you get a sense of nostalgia, happiness, and merriment by just visiting one with friends. From the hints of cinnamon and spices, the smell of warm loaves of bread, hot mulled wine being passed around to keep patrons warm, Christmas lights and decorations that can be seen in all directions, children’s choirs and brass bands playing Christmas tunes, it all comes together to form a magic that puts a smile on everyone’s face.
Dresden has the most Christmas markets in Eastern Germany, and they all have their own distinct themes and features. We had only 9 hours to see everything in Dresden, and that was by no means long enough to see everything. There are 13 Christmas markets around the city, which means we had to pick a few that we really wanted to see. The Striezelmarkt was one of them, and even with the crowd, was worth a visit. It sits in a huge square and has beautifully decorated and lit up with Christmas lights on the buildings and all over the square. This year marks the 580th anniversary of the Striezelmarkt in Dresden, making it the oldest Christmas market in Germany.
All the details at the market add to the charm and fun.
There was even a mini ferris wheel.
Gluhbier is a new one for me. I didn’t try it, but I’m curious how it tastes.
This places takes Deutsch Marks in case you don’t have and Euro on hand.
Absolutely beautiful!! I am in South America for xmas right now so I’m missing out on the massive white light displays. How far would the be from the black forest region? I am heading to Germany in February and since I am missing out on these markets I am planning on going to the black forest region where I guess they are infamous for their cuckoo clocks (source: http://www.bavarianclockworks.com/). If you have any recommendations on that area if you’ve been, I would greatly appreciate any advice on must do’s/see’s.
Hey Mel! From Dresden it’ll be a bit of a drive (about 6 hrs) to get to the Black Forest. Triberg is the town most famous for the cuckoo clocks and has a big waterfall at the edge of town you can hike. That’s really the only place in the Black Forest that I’ve visited. If you travel through you will pass Nuremberg which is worth a stop. If you have time you could head to the Alps south of the black forest and into Austria, but you will want to set aside enough time if you plan to do that. Good luck and hope you have fun!