A Christmas Market Tour of Europe
Travel | Europe | Christmas Markets | Christmas
I love Christmas. I do. And I love Christmas Markets. And I love Christmas in Europe. And I love Europe. Okay, you get the gist. We usually travel very frugally and very long. We have stayed 45 days in France and, including our Airbnb, spent less than $5,000. But this trip was different. I wanted luxury. I wanted to experience Europe on a grand scale, and I wanted to do something nice for my wife (and, selfishly, myself). It was time to splurge.
How did I come up with this itinerary and hodgepodge of locations? Well, as we do with every trip to Europe from the States, I found the cheapest entry point. Why spend $1,000 per flight when you can spend less than half? Copenhagen, surprisingly, was the cheapest port of entry. $450 roundtrip from Washington DC. Off we go: IAD to CPH. Now, where to from there? My wife has raved about how great the Christmas Market is in Munich. And, upon some internet research, the world confirmed, it is pretty awesome. Spoiler: It didn’t live up to the hype.
Karlov Vary. Karlovy who? Exactly. I had never heard of it either, but there is a movie called The Last Holiday that is filmed there and is about, the Grand Hotel Pupp in Karlovy Vary, Czechia. The hotel was pretty awesome, I must say. Poland has been on my radar for a while, but how to get from Western Czechia to Poland? A two-hour train ride and a couple of nights in Prague, duh! We have been to Prague and love it, but I only booked a 2-night stay en route to Krakow. And of course, we had to get back to the States and our tickets were from Copenhagen, so Denmark at the end.
Logistics Recap: DC to Copenhagen, an immediate flight to Munich for a three-night stay. A train ride and three nights in Karlovy Vary, a train ride and two nights in Prague, a flight and four nights in Krakow, and a flight to Copenhagen to end the year in Denmark! The return flight to the States was on January 1.
Ok enough. On to the destinations. The pros. The cons. Recommendations and not.
Munich: Sadly, I cannot recommend Munich for a Christmas Market stop. There are just too many good ones. Perhaps at one time, this market was great, but it is not authentic at all. I saw zero handmade items. Everything looked German but was made in China. The food, however, was great! The food at every Christmas Market oozes Christmas. Sausages, candies, nuts, mulled wine (not a fan, but a lot are), cider, and the best hot chocolate ever. But all markets have that. In short, skip Munich. I know, a very unpopular opinion.
We did eat at a great restaurant called Ratskeller. If you find yourself at Marienplatz in Munich, it is a must. Our stay was at Sofitel Munich which is conveniently located next to the main train station, Hauptbahnhof. It was a very short ride to the main square of Marienplatz. Munich may be worth a visit for some, but if you want my advice, skip it. There are better places. We will get to a revised itinerary later.
Karlovy Vary: I recommend, but only for two nights. The Grand Hotel Pupp was awesome. The breakfast there was superb and included, the hotel was perfect, and the room was beyond luxurious. The only mark I can hold against it is their hot tub area. Karlovy Vary is known to be a spa town filled with hot springs. Most hotels are spa hotels, and ours was supposedly the best. And it had the potential to be, however, I am a bit picky. The hot tubs down below were a not-so-hot 33 degrees Celsius or just about 92 Fahrenheit. That needs to be bumped to 100F. Five stars if they would do that. We had a great time, nonetheless. Have a drink in their cellar, it is the sexiest bar or lounge I’ve ever been in. The mood and ambiance are worth the slightly elevated prices of drinks. And, with a true mixologist, it’s much more than a bar. It’s an experience.
Prague: I think everyone recommends Prague. The Christmas market is outstanding. Maybe the best I have ever been to, up to that point. (Sorry, was that a spoiler.) Those that know me, know I love Budapest, and the market there is awesome, however, I think Prague topped up. The paprika-smoked sausage, pictured, was amazing. The stalls were all authentic, unlike Munich, with people everywhere, even on Christmas Eve. And the Astronomical Clock! The Jewish Quarter is great. Venture across the river using the Charles Bridge to a place that seems like a completely different city, and is still equally as awesome. We stayed at the Art Deco Imperial Hotel. It was fine, but I would go with something nearer the Jewish Quarter and a bit fancier if I had to stay longer than two nights. This was the only place I used a bit of frugality on. American Express paid for my stay using their portal and my points. My advice, splurge on the room and hotel because the food is very cheap, and outstanding, in the Czech capital.
Krakow: Yes! Yes! And Yes! What is your favorite city? I’ve been asked that a thousand times. And every time it is a tossup: London, Amsterdam, Budapest. Even Sydney gets high marks. But all are so unique. Riga is up there as well. Krakow is awesome. My favorite city? I don’t think I have one, but this is in the top three for sure. We both cannot wait to explore more of Poland. Our hotel was perfect except for one thing, the breakfast. Other than that, wow. It was right on the main square. Our balcony overlooked the Christmas market and had a view of the towers of St. Mary’s Basilica. Legend has it that two brothers were commissioned to build the towers, and each built their side taller in some sort of competition. Neither wanted to be outdone by the other. Finally, one brother shot the other and his tower is the tallest. True? Who knows!
The Christmas Market was a 10 of 10. The kielbasa was amazing. The pierogis were flavorful, and all kinds of other treats were plentiful. I could go back for three days and never leave the market. It was awesome, to say the least.
The food. Oh. My. God. You cannot pick a bad restaurant if you tried. I think you could stay for a month and never eat at the same place twice within a two-block radius. Duck, steak, rabbit, goose, whatever you want, it’s there. Some of the best pizza I’ve ever had outside of Rome (ya, I’m not a fan of Rome but they do get their food right!) was at a place in Krakow called Boccanera. If you go, eat there. Also, one of the best meals I’ve ever had was right on the main square at Szara Ges. Their specialty? Goose. Hence the name. I don’t speak Polish, but I’m guessing ges is goose. And it was fantastic. I could go on and on about Krakow. Just go. Also, we skipped Auschwitz in favor of the Oskar Schindler Museum. I wouldn’t say it is a MUST, but it is definitely worth the ticket. That man was a badass in a time when being a badass would get you burned alive.
One more thing before I go about Krakow: it is very budget-friendly. We ate at five-star restaurants for under $60. That includes dinner for two, drinks for two, and sometimes dessert and coffee. However, for every dollar you save in Krakow, you will burn in Copenhagen.
Copenhagen: Pass. I cannot recommend. Why? Because no one is rich enough to visit. It is pretty. Very pretty. It is clean. Very clean. It is expensive. Very expensive. Restaurants: $7 water. $10 soda. $11 beer. $40 lackluster entree. It was a total turnoff. However, if you do find yourself in the Danish capital, do go to Tivoli Gardens. It was well worth it. I won’t bore you with the details: it is just too damn expensive.
There you have it, the Christmas Market trip recap. If I had to revise our itinerary, I would change it from: Munich 3 nights, KV 3, Prague 2, Krakow 4, Copenhagen 3 to Munich 2, KV 3, Prague 4, Krakow 4, Copenhagen 2.
However, I would scrap the whole thing on a redo and change cities, but Prague and Krakow are musts at Christmas time! Until next time, enjoy, and happy traveling. And although some of these were passes, I am still glad we went, else we would never know! Every experience is worth it!
