Top Christmas Markets To Visit By Coach
Top Christmas Markets To Visit By Coach
Christmas is a magical time and there’s something very special about visiting a themed market. Shopping for gifts, drinking mulled wine and scoffing mince pies is even more relaxing when you don’t have to worry about driving home.
The best way to visit a Christmas market is to join one of the many coach trips that are organised. Simply buy your ticket - usually in advance - and hop on board; no need to worry about parking, directions or navigating through heavy traffic.
But with so many different coach trips on offer, which Christmas markets should you visit? Here’s a closer look at some of the top Christmas markets that should be top of your Yuletide list to visit by coach.
Bath
Located in the south of England, Bath has been hosting a Christmas market for 18 years and has steadily built a reputation for being a must-visit during the festive season. With 180 wooden chalets, around 80% of the stallholders are local to the south west and 99% of all the products on offer are handmade. This creates a very distinctive atmosphere without the overwhelming presence of mass-produced items.
Bath is a particularly picturesque city at any time of the year and is a real hotspot for tourists. Once the Christmas lights are illuminated and the decorations in place, the Georgian architecture looks simply stunning. With everything from a hog roast to carol singers, as well as demonstrations from local artisans, the award-winning Bath Christmas market is one that everyone enjoys.
Birmingham’s Frankfurt Market
The title of this one may be a little confusing - the market is in Birmingham but it’s a traditional German market. The Frankfurt market includes everything that you’d see at any of the German markets but without the need to travel to mainland Europe to experience what’s on offer.
Joining forces with the Christmas Craft Market, Birmingham’s event is the largest authentic German market to be held outside Austria or Germany. Put on every year, you’ll find everything you’d expect at a traditional German market. This includes delicious cuisine such as roasted almonds, bratwurst, schnitzels, pretzels, weissbeer and gluhwein. If you’ve never sampled the delights of real German food, here is your perfect opportunity!
There are 80+ stalls to browse around where you’ll find a wide and diverse array of goods from wooden, handcrafted decorations to leatherwork, glass baubles, jewellery and toys! It may not be the largest Christmas market around but you’ll be utterly enchanted by everything on offer.
Brussels
If you fancy visiting a European Christmas market but don’t want to venture too far, Brussels, Belgium is a great choice. One of the most sophisticated markets you’ll find, it has the classic look with more than 200 wooden chalets and an outdoor skating rink.
The market is situated around Place Sainte Catherine, the Bourse and the Marché aux Poissons, and you’ll also be right next to the Grand Place too, one of the most striking squares in the world. With the market illuminations, the Baroque architecture on the surrounding streets creates a spectacular backdrop.
As an annual event, Brussels has evolved into more than just a simple shopping trip. As well as the ice rink, there’s also a sound and light show plus carnival rides. Although it’s possible to travel there and back in just one day, there’s so much on offer, you’ll want to linger a little longer.
Vienna
One of the most quintessential festive locations, Vienna is consistently voted as one of the best Christmas markets to visit. Forget about the market occupying a small corner of the area, the whole city transforms overnight into a spectacular winter wonderland that truly celebrates the magic of the Yuletide season.
City Hall Square becomes the Vienna Magic of Advent, where children and adults alike can marvel at the beauty of a true fairytale land. Everything from tree decorations to sweets and gifts await visitors, while a giant carousel and crafting workshops for kids guarantee that younger visitors will be entertained too!
Christmas markets in Vienna are a traditional event dating all the way back to the 13th century. Since then, the market has evolved but remains one of the staple events on the city’s calendar. With lots of different markets hosted on different days, the only difficulty is decided which one to attend…
The surrounding trees in City Hall Park are included too, bathed in a never-ending sea of light with decorations entwined in their branches. The end result is undeniably Viennese, and a Christmas market that you won’t ever forget!
European Market, Edinburgh
Edinburgh celebrates Christmas and Hogmanay in style every year with themed markets that last all the way into the first week of January. Another event that offers more than just a classic market, the Edinburgh offering is more akin to a street party than just a collection of stalls.
There is an outdoor ice rink, a helter skelter, carousel and carnival rides, plus the Elves Workshop and Santa’s Grotto too! It’s a wonderful event to bring children along to as they’ll have the chance to not just meet the man in red, but also enjoy one of many planned attractions.
The European Market, located in Mound Precinct has some unique offerings, and traditional gifts that your family and friends will enjoy opening. If you get peckish while you’re wandering around, you’ll find no shortage of scrumptious street food and hot drinks to warm you up from the inside out.
Plan your schedule!
The above five markets are just some of the great Christmas events that are held in the UK and all over Europe during the festive season. If you plan your schedule carefully, you could even book yourself on more than one because after all, the more the better, surely?!
When you travel by coach or minibus, you’ll have the chance to relax and enjoy the experience - as well as having plenty of room for all those bags of shopping on your return!
How we can help
Travelling by coach is a great, cost-effective and environmentally friendly way of travelling to Christmas markets. Whether you are embarking on an international coach journey or travelling in the UK, we will put you in direct contact with coach hire suppliers and minibus hire companies and suppliers. Whether you require an 8-seater minibus hire or 70-seater coach, we will find the best suppliers who can fulfil all your needs and requirements for the best price.