By Gary Walther
Instead of staying home this Christmas, go to the home of Christmas, southern Germany. The Germans didn’t invent the holiday, of course, but they did come up with many of the ingredients that go into a traditional Christmas, notably the Christmas tree. The Germans dawdle over Christmas, turn-ing it into a month-long celebration that begins on Dec. 6, the feast day of St. Nikolaus (the German Santa Claus) and ends on Jan. 6, the Feast of the Epiphany.
Aside from the overall atmosphere of mulled-wine and good cheer, the highlight of the season is the Christmas Markets, an expanse of booths selling food, drinks, gifts, and clothing for the holiday held in many Bavarian cities. The largest one is in Stuttgart—and it’s astonishing, I can tell you—but Munich and almost every other south German city have large Christmas Markets, too.
The home of Christmas is closer than ever right now because of great round-trip Business Class fares to Munich offered by a slew of carriers from major U.S. cities. The least expensive is from New York ($2,350) and the most ($3,190) from the West Coast. You will have to decide soon, though, because the ticketing deadline is Dec.7, and these fares carry an advance-purchase requirement of 28 to 30 days. The departure window is Dec. 17 through Jan. 4, and the return is Dec. 25 through Jan. 8.
Sample of Special Round-trip Business Class Fares to Munich, Starting at $2,350 (Inclusive)
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Where to Stay
Two hotels have long dominated the luxury hotel scene in Munich, the Bayerischer Hof and the Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten. Both offer heaping servings of heritage and tradition, and a formality that is old-world to a tee. (I’m a fan of that.) But let me suggest an alternative that doesn’t usually come to mind when one thinks of Munich: the Mandarin Oriental. It’s a vest-pocket oasis of luxury (only 48 rooms) on a quiet side street in a neighborhood that manages
to contain the Hofbrauhaus and some very elegant antique shops. The design deftly whisks modern Biedermeier elements into the Mandarin’s patented Asian aesthetic. The hotel is also close to the Maximillianstrasse, the Fifth Avenue of Munich, and the Marienplatz, the city’s main square. Just outside the historic center is the Charles Hotel. I went through all of the modern/hip hotels online and the Charles struck me as having décor that was modern but in a crisply elegant vein—not that off-the peg minimalism that is such a staple of hip hotels today. It has an indoor pool, something you don’t often find in German city hotels, and it’s not far from the city’s two major museums, the Alte and Neue Pinakothek, which are not to be missed.
The Christmas Market
It’s held in the Marienplatz, the city’s main square, and runs from Nov. 30 through Dec. 24. A short walk away on Rindermarkt is the Kripperlmarkt (Nov. 26 to Dec. 24), which specializes in nativity ornaments.
Haven’t had enough? Stuttgart, which has Germany’s largest Christmas market, is two hours and twenty minutes away by train. Closer are Nurnberg (one hour) and Regensburg (80 minutes), both of which also have large Christmas markets.