Today, I am pleased to have a guest blogger for my post: my daughter Dr. Kalie Lowrie. Kalie is a world traveler and we recently celebrated her birthday in Paris! Kalie is an Associate Vice President of Communications and Alumni Engagement at Howard Payne University and also teaches in the Communications department.

In her blog, Kalie gives a review and detailed account of traveling to European Christmas markets in Germany, France, and Switzerland in December 2024.

  • Weihnachtsmarkt am Römerberg in Frankfurt

I love Christmas markets and Europe has markets dating back several hundred years, making it a magical place to visit during the holidays. The markets are so festive and offer unique foods and goods you can’t find anywhere else. For my most recent trip to European markets in December 2024, my friend Cassie and I knew we had a limited amount of time, so we prioritized markets that were fairly close together and accessible by train. We went to 24 Christmas markets in four cities and three countries over five days. It was a whirlwind, but so much fun! 

To begin planning our trip, we wanted to go to an area that had several cities pretty close together. I heard great things about Strasbourg, France (the Christmas capital), and so that was the number one destination on our list. We looked for airports nearby and Frankfurt, Germany was the closest and most affordable option for us from DFW.

From there, we looked at other markets in Germany that might be good. I consulted Helene’s list of best markets in Germany and saw Heidelberg. The proximity to Frankfurt made it a feasible option and the castle was definitely appealing! We decided to have just two cities where we stayed so we didn’t have to pack every night. So we made Frankfurt and Strasbourg our bases for the trip. We booked flights and hotels in advance but waited for train tickets until we arrived. The markets were all free so there were not any reservations needed and everything else fell into place. We added in a trip to Basel, Switzerland, because I had never been before and I wanted to check another country off the list.

Here is our itinerary:

Day 1: Fly into Frankfurt, explore markets in Frankfurt

Day 2: Take a train to Heidelberg (1.5 hours), explore Heidelberg markets, return to Frankfurt

Day 3: Take a train to Basel, Switzerland (2.5 hours), explore Basel for 4 hours, take a train to Strasbourg, France

Day 4: Explore markets in Strasbourg (no trains!)

Day 5: Explore markets in Strasbourg in the morning, take a train back to Frankfurt (2 hours), visit markets for dinner

Day 6: Fly back to the U.S.

Frankfurt, Germany

We both flew into Frankfurt, met up on a Friday morning and headed to our hotel. We booked a hotel in the city center that was within walking distance from the main markets. Most markets open between 11 a.m. and 12 p.m., so it was perfect timing for us to get to the hotel and drop off our suitcases and then we headed to the markets to grab lunch. Unfortunately, our hotel did not have a room available for us for a few hours, so we changed clothes and freshened up in the bathroom, and left our bags.  

The first market in Frankfurt started in 1393, so it has a rich history. The first Christmas tree was added in the 19th century and the finest traditional handcrafted goods along with sweets, toys, and Christmas gifts were offered. I read that until the 1870s, it was tradition for parents in Frankfurt to only buy toys for children from the Christmas markets.

I will admit that I did not have high expectations for Frankfurt markets but was pleasantly surprised. The Weihnactsmarkt Frankfurt Romerberg was in the new old city, Romer. This area was rebuilt in 2018, after being destroyed during World War II, and was so beautiful with half-timbered buildings and a gorgeous church. The 30-foot tree was amazing, there was a beautiful carousel nearby and so many booths with delicious foods and goods were right there. 

There was a second market right across the street called Paulsplatz right by St. Paul’s Church. We found a lot of ornaments, stars, nutcrackers, scarves, hats, teas, and sweets. 

We stayed right by the Hauptwache Market, which is the busiest shopping street in the city. We fell in love with these handmade nativities that were carved out of wood from the Dolomite region in Italy. I could have spent all of my money at this one shop.

There were several other markets in the city that were stumbled upon, but the one at Romer was our favorite. 

Heidelberg, Germany

Heidelberg was about an hour and 20 minutes by train from Frankfurt. We left on Saturday morning and arrived in Heidelberg around 11 a.m. Admittedly, we did not know where to go when we got off the train. We took an Uber to Bismarckplatz, which is accessible by tram, as well. It was the start of the Haupstrasse, with a few small booths with food and the entrance to one of the longest pedestrian streets in Europe.

It did not take long to walk down the street and stumble upon our first market. There were five markets in this city. They were smaller than what we found in other cities, but they did have unique goods and delicious foods.

Another draw to Heidelberg was a Hallmark movie that was filmed here two years ago. It was called “A Heidelberg Holiday” and featured one of my favorite Broadway actresses, Ginna Claire Mason. We went to a stall with hand-painted ornaments and asked the vendors if they were familiar with the movie. An older man told me he was there when it was filmed and his friend’s booth was featured in the movie. That was a fun connection! 

Universitatplatz was the market with the best handmade goods, a beautiful church and another beautiful carousel The best food we found was at Marktplatz, which had a traditional German pyramid windmill. We tried flammkuchen, which is a traditional flatbread pizza with cream, garlic, bacon, and onions. It was delicious!

Kornmarkt was another small market with a lot of trees for decoration. Right behind this market, you can find the Heidelberger Bergbahnen, a funicular to take you up to the Heidelberg Castle. For 9€, you can get a ticket for the funicular and entrance into the castle.

We went up and it was so worth it! The castle was first constructed around 1225 and was notable during the Holy Roman Empire. Updates were made in the 1700s as well. You can walk around the grounds and see wonderful views of the city. There is also a wine cellar that offers warm drinks and snacks. 

We walked back down to the markets and bought a few more items on our way out of town. Then, we made it back to Frankfurt that night. The next part of our journey was to Switzerland and France. There is a lot to share, so I am going to include it in a second blog. 

Follow along with me and Cassie on our travel Instagram @travelswithcassandk.