Nuremberg, Germany Christmas Markets

The last stop on our tour of Christmas Markets in Europe was Nuremberg, Germany. Out of all the cities we visited, the markets in Nuremberg were the easiest to navigate. Basically, once we got to the start of the first one, they all flowed into each other as we walked through the city. They were also the most crowded, especially in the evening.

The markets are all in the old part of the city, so the scenery with these grand old buildings is all so stunning to take in.

The only way you really know you’ve moved on from one market to the next is the market banners strung above the entrance of each one.

Once MaryJane and I were in the middle of the first market, we looked at each and said, “Ok. This is a good one!” Nuremberg was great. There was such a wonderful mix of traditional food and drink, German Christmas goods, handmade goods, and ornaments.

The stove on this stand caught my eye. What a stunner!

I find the knick-knackey German Christmas items so charming:

And love the garland on this stand. So simple, but very full. Now I want to just make my own.

For the most part, the stands throughout all of the markets are red and white striped, which makes them really easy to spot, even from far away. For example, there were times when we were looking ahead from where we were, trying to see if there was another market ahead, and we’d always be able to make out the red and white of a stand. Plus, the stripes are so festive!

Everything about this structure was lovely and SO GERMAN. It made me want to buy whatever they were selling. Packaging doesn’t just apply to an item being sold, the display is so important too!

The number of traditional German Christmas treatstands was pretty amazing as well. Lebuchken, gingerbread, stollen, and Nuremberg style fruitcake to name a few.

Can you believe these are cookies? 

The entrance into this market was so sweet:

We purchased a mini Nuremberg style fruitcake for a snack to enjoy when we got back to the boat later. It was deliciously dense and filled with dried figs, a variety of other dried fruits (maybe pear and apple?), and nuts. I never knew I could love fruitcake! I’m hoping to find someone who has a recipe for this delicious treat.

It was fun to see the little handmade dried fruit people Nuremberg is so famous for:

his ornament stand was so popular and the girls really cheery:

I was conscientious about watching what I ate throughout the trip because it would be easy to get carried away, but I will admit a warm pretzel is pretty hard to resist.

Some of the markets specialized in greenery and produce only, while others had gobs and gobs of foodstands. It was really fun to see each one.

This wreath with the different berries (and chestnuts?) caught my eye. I would have loved to have taken one home with me.

The day we visited also happened to be opening day of the markets and a big opening ceremony was planned at dusk. When we had made our way around and headed back through, the crowds were pouring in. It looked like a sea of people converging. A bunch of barricades had also been put in place and the police presence was very noticeable, so we moved on and in the process, luckily stumbled upon this cute little area for one last taste of Christmas before we said goodbye to Germany and our special adventure.

This is the ninth and final post in a series covering my visit to Europe and the Christmas markets in cities along the Danube River, all via a Viking River Cruise. You can find the first post here, the second post here, the third post here, the fourth post here, the fifth post here, the sixth post here,the seventh post here ,and the eighth post here.