Close
Winter in Berlin can be daunting sometimes; luckily, there are places to visit with festive lights and satisfying food!
Weihnachtsmarkt am Schloss Charlottenburg (Christmas Market at Charlottenburg Palace)
Address: Spandauer Damm 20, 14059 Berlin
Opening hours: 12:00 to 22:00
Situated across the street from Museum Berggruen and marked by two giant
Christmas trees, the entrance to the Christmas Market you are visiting is very easy to spot. I
would definitely recommend coming here in the late afternoon; it鈥檚 still light outside, but
street lamps and decorative lights are already lit, and wherever you look, it is always warm
and golden.
From the wide entrance, you can already see Charlottenburg Palace, Berlin's largest
palace complex. If you are feeling like having a drink or a snack, on your left is a massive
market stall with various signs that say 鈥楤ratapfel Gl眉hwein鈥� (baked apple mulled wine),
鈥楤r眉sseler Waffeln鈥� (Brussels waffles) and more. Important locations such as the information
desk or ATM machines are marked on the signpost near the stall, but if you have no urgent
destinations and brought enough cash (most Christmas markets only accept cash
payments), you can always follow the crowd and check out every stall on the way.
Whatever you prefer, be it curried sausages with rich sauce, freshly fried garlic cream
mushrooms, cheesy stuffed bread, fries or tornado potatoes with dozens of sauces to
choose from; or if you have a sweet tooth: candied and roasted almonds, gingerbread
cookies, toffee apples, mini fried doughnuts, and sweet cookies and chocolates, you can find
them all in the market.
Having tried some of the delicious food and drinks, you will eventually find yourself
standing at the gate to the magnificent Charlottenburg Palace. A small orchestra is playing
live near the entrance; the square in front of the palace is filled with other festive stalls,
selling colourful Christmas decorations, wooden utensils with flowing patterns, delicate paper
star lanterns, sweet scented candles and more. The palace itself is a breathtaking lighting
show; if you missed the Berlin Festival of Lights, then you should definitely see this.
Numerous beautiful images, mostly Christmas themed, are projected onto the palace walls
under the serene night sky.
Weihnachtsmarkt am Alexanderplatz (Christmas Market at Alexanderplatz)
Address: Alexanderplatz, 10178 Berlin
Opening hours: 11:00 to 22:00
Students at Humboldt-Universit盲t zu Berlin are perhaps already familiar with
Alexanderplatz, but have you been to the Christmas market there yet? You will find not only
food stalls (no less varied or gratifying than those at Charlottenburg Palace) but also vendors
selling holiday decorations, trinkets, plushies, beanies and mittens as well as other mysteries
waiting for you to discover. If you are looking for something else to do, try going for a ride on
the beautiful ferris wheel, or having a great time with your friends on the roller skating rink!
The primary attraction, however, is the gigantic Christmas pyramid, selling mulled
wine, fried sausages and more. Did you know that Christmas pyramids are said to be the
predecessors of Christmas trees? The one at Alexanderplatz is decorated by thousands of
festive lights and is the biggest walk-in Christmas pyramid in Europe.
Looking for an extra stop somewhere close? Drop by at the Humboldt Forum, which
is only 12 minutes鈥� walk away. The Christmas market there is smaller in scale than the
previous two but by no means less inviting; with its food stalls selling Russian stroganoff,
French cr锚pes, Spanish churros and more, you can savour dishes from all around the world
within a single afternoon.听