The fabulous New Town Hall, conceived and built during the Victorian Gothic Revival, towers over Munich's Marienplatz Christkindlmarkt and casts the wonderfully dignified shadow of history over the huge swathe of stalls, which offer a mixture of crafts, gifts, decorations and foodstuffs. You'll find the chic, the cheap, the mad and the sentimental alongside each other here; some of the traditional craft items, such as children's clothes, 'plum people' and wood carvings from Oberammergau were sold at the Christmas fairs here as long ago as the 14th century, and others could only come from the digital age... But never fear, because tradition is certainly at the core of what makes this one of Germany's very best Christmas markets, and once you see the 100-foot tree decked with 2,500 candles, taste the desperately yummy Bavarian gingerbread stars and potato pancakes (like hash browns but somehow far more exciting) and sip some hot, spice-infused wine (-the German term for it translates as 'glow-wine'), you'll be in festive heaven.

Don't forget to visit the famous manger scene, watch the carol singers and brass band on the Rathaus balcony, take the kids to try hands-on Christmas crafts at the 'Heavenly Workshop' and wander on to one of the other, smaller markets to be found on the city's other main squares and make sure you buy a lucky, golden-winged angel to hang on your own tree when you get home.

Written by  larapiegeler.

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