December Travel to Switzerland & France

We decided to do some pre-Christmas traveling this year.  We took a direct flight from Faro (our local airport here in the Algarve) to Basel, Switzerland.  From there, we took the train to visit Mark's niece, Lindsey, and her family just outside Zurich for a couple of days.  After that, we traveled back by train to Basel and on to Strasbourg to see their famed Christmas markets.

Lindsey and her two children Chloe (6) and Owen (3) visited us in Tavira in May.  We returned the favor by visiting them and Lindsey's husband Mike in their home in Wollerau.  We came bearing gifts for both Chloe's recent birthday and the upcoming Christmas holiday.  Our visit was short (and we failed to get many pictures), but it was wonderful to spend time with the whole family and look forward to seeing them in 2024.

Strasbourg Christmas Markets

Christmas markets are popular throughout Europe with the most famous ones probably being in Germany.  But Strasbourg, France has a close history with Germany, so it maintains many of their traditions (while having better food in our opinion).   The history of Christmas markets in Strasbourg dates back to the 16th century with the earliest recorded market, known as the “Christkindelsmärik” or “Market of the Infant Jesus,” taking place in 1570.

Our AirBNB in Strasbourg was pretty funky.  The design was very retro, and with a spiral staircase to the second level, it took some acrobatics to get around.  But the location and the views (over Place Kleber, one of the main Christmas markets in Strasbourg) were fantastic. 

Place Kleber was the location of the official Christmas tree of Strasbourg, and every hour (from 4-9pm) there was a music/light show in the square.  We must have watched it ten times and never seemed to tire of it.

Petite France

The Strasbourg Christmas markets are primarily in the older section of the city.  But the very oldest, best preserved original buildings in the oldtown are in the quaint neighborhood of Petite France.  

The Markets

There are a total of 13 different Christmas markets in Strasbourg.  The markets run from late November through Christmas, opening from 11:30am - 9pm each day.  The markets sell just about everything: gifts, decorations, and food including lots of vin chaud (French hot mulled wine).  

Stuffed bears were a recurring theme at the markets.  You found them for sale in the stalls and decorating buildings at every turn.

Fine Dining in Strasbourg

We snacked at the markets' food stalls, sampling potato pancakes, sausages, cheese, and vin chaud.  But we saved room for a couple of nice French restaurants, which was after all the reason we chose Strasbourg in the first place.  

Colmar Christmas Markets

The town of Colmar is a 30-minute train ride south of Strasbourg.  We stopped here for one night to see their very famous Christmas markets.  Being a smaller town, the markets are more intimate and weave throughout the streets, making it into a Christmas fairy tale.

The City of Basel

At the end of our trip, we had an early flight back to Faro, so we stayed one night near the airport in Basel.  As it turns out, we have friends who live in Basel part-time when they are not living in the Algarve and playing golf with Mark.  Markus and Jenny were nice enough to show us around the beautiful city of Basel, located on the Rhine River, including a bit of their own Christmas markets.

We crossed the Rhine using a boat with no motor.  It is connected to a cable that spans the river, then uses the current to move across.

Some entertainment while having gluhwein and bratwurst at the Christmas market

We enjoyed our early Christmas in the Alsace region