Christmas Market Walks in 4K, from Vienna to New York
59 videos ยท 45 cities ยท 23 countries
Berat Christmas Lights 4K HDR
Video by Albert VideoMaker ยท Dec 2022 ยท All rights belong to the creator
All rights belong to the creator.
Berat, Albania ยท 33 min: more from Berat โ
About Christmas walks
For about a month every winter, the old squares of central Europe fill with wooden huts, mulled wine and the smell of roasted almonds. Most Christmas markets open in mid- or late November and close on Christmas Eve or just before it, so these walks are the easiest way to see them at any time of year. Start in Germany, where the tradition is oldest: the Striezelmarkt in Dresden was first held in 1434 and is named after the Striezel, the loaf we now call Stollen; the Christkindlesmarkt fills Nuremberg's main square with gingerbread and finger-sized sausages; and in Cologne the stalls stand right below the twin spires of the cathedral.
Further south and east the markets change character. Strasbourg has called itself the capital of Christmas since its market began in 1570, and Colmar's half-timbered lanes look like an Advent calendar. Vienna sets up in front of its neo-Gothic City Hall, Salzburg below the fortress, and Prague on the Old Town Square under the Tรฝn Church. Zagreb's Advent spreads across parks, squares and the Upper Town, and was voted Europe's best Christmas market three years in a row from 2016. In the Baltic and Nordic capitals the markets are smaller and often snowy: Tallinn and Riga on their medieval town hall squares, Stockholm in Gamla Stan, and Copenhagen inside the Tivoli Gardens.
Outside Europe, Christmas is more about lights than stalls. In New York the walk ends at the Rockefeller Center tree, lit every year since 1933, after the shop windows of Fifth Avenue. London's Regent Street has hung Christmas lights since 1954, Paris lines the Champs-รlysรฉes with lit trees, and Tokyo's winter illuminations turn whole avenues blue and gold. Chicago and Quebec City run German-style markets of their own. Evening walks show the lights at their best, daytime walks the crafts and food; most of these videos run from half an hour to two hours with only the natural sound of the crowds and music.
Questions
- When do Christmas markets open in Europe?
- Most open in mid- or late November and run until 23 or 24 December. Many German markets start just before the first Sunday of Advent; Nuremberg's, for example, opens on the Friday before it. A few, such as some in Vienna and Budapest, stay open into the New Year as winter markets. Dates change every year, so check the city's official site before you travel.
- Which is the oldest Christmas market?
- Dresden's Striezelmarkt, first recorded in 1434, is usually named as Germany's oldest documented Christmas market. Strasbourg's market dates from 1570, and Nuremberg's Christkindlesmarkt goes back to at least the 17th century.
- What is mulled wine called at the markets?
- Glรผhwein in Germany and Austria, vin chaud in Alsace and the rest of France, glรถgg in Sweden and glรธgg in Denmark, grzaniec in Poland, svaลรกk in Czechia, forralt bor in Hungary and kuhano vino in Croatia. Many German markets serve it in a souvenir mug that you pay a small deposit for.
- Were these walks filmed at real Christmas markets?
- Yes. Every video was filmed on foot by a YouTube walking channel during the Christmas season, with the natural sound of the street. The year differs from video to video, so stall layouts and decorations may look different when you visit.