Why You Should Visit Germany At Christmastime

Last year, my boyfriend and I met our friend in Düsseldorf and Cologne for a weekend. It was one of our favorite trips and even though we probabaly spent too much money buying Christmas ornaments and drinking glühwein, it was totally worth it! If you love Christmas, then you should definitely put Germany on your bucket list for December.

The Themed Christmas Markets

Live La Vida / Via livelavida.wordpress.com

We visited around 10 markets by the end of our weekend. Each one had a different theme and was decorated accordingly. This market was an Elf theme in Cologne. (There were also angel themed and snowflake themed markets).

The FOOOOOOD!

Live La Vida / Via livelavida.wordpress.com

I'm convinced that out of all the places I've traveled, I ate the best food at the Christmas markets in Germany!! To name a few of our favorites... the bratwurst, the kartoffelpuffer (potato pancakes) and apple strudel! The smell coming from the food booths alone is enough to make you drool, trust me.

Glühwein & Hot Chocolate

Live La Vida / Via livelavida.wordpress.com

Ah glühwein. For those of you who haven't experienced this, you're missing out. Glühwein is mulled wine with spices, and you can try the red or white. It's the perfect thing to keep you warm on a cold winter afternoon in Germany while strolling through the markets. The hot chocolate is also superb because they spike it with baileys! One of the best parts about the drinks at a Christmas market are the mugs. Each market has a different mug to represent their theme that year. You put a deposit down on the mug when you order your drink (usually 3-4 euros) and you can either return the mug and get your deposit back, or keep the mug as a souvenir! (My boyfriend and I drunkenly started a Christmas mug collection last year in Germany...12 in total!)

The Magical Christmas Lights

Live La Vida / Via Instagram: @live_lavida

How can you go wrong with a view like this? With the massive Cologne Cathedral towering over the main market and a giant Christmas tree in the center with lots of lights...it's impossible to not be caught up in the magic of Christmas!

The Christmas Spirit is Contagious

youtube.com / Via livelavida.wordpress.com

Finally, it's the perfect trip to take with your friends or family to get you into the Christmas spirit! There's lots of shopping (sweets, ornaments and handmade items), ice skating, rides and lots of food / glühwein. We spent our whole weekend exploring all the different markets and had the best weekend. I've never been to a place with more Christmas spirit before! We even had time to make a little Christmas Carol Lip Dub. Check out how we Jingle Bell Rocked around the German Christmas Markets! Enjoy!