German Christmas markets, also called weihnachtsmarkt or Christkindlmarkt, are open air markets set up for the Christmas season featuring rows of stalls selling a variety of foods and other items. You can now find similar Christmas markets in all parts of the world but many in Germany date back hundreds and hundreds of years ago when the tradition started. Here is our complete guide to visiting a German Christmas Market including which one we visited and what to expect!
Why the Duisburg Christmas Market?
We’ll start off by saying there are so many Christmas markets in Germany. You can also find quite a few in Switzerland, Austria and many other countries in Europe!
For us we were in Brussels, Belguim the second week of November with only a few more days before we planned to leave Europe. So in order to make visiting a market work with our schedule we needed one that opened earlier in November. The Duisburg Christmas Market opened on November 14th this season which worked perfectly for us! It starts on the earlier side so it’s something to keep in mind if you want to experience it but can’t come in late December.
- We found the Duisburg Christmas Market and its opening date information by doing some simple googling. If you’re already going to be in Germany or nearby search for German Christmas markets and I’m sure you’ll have a few to choose from!
That said it’s a beautiful Christmas market that is well organized and well decorated! It has everything you would imagine in a Christmas market with traditional foods and drinks and stalls selling Christmas items. It was busy and bustling without feeling too crowded or hectic. We easily bought what we wanted and were able to find a heated area to stand near to heat up and a table to eat at. We had a really nice evening enjoying the Duisburg Christmas Market and would definitely recommend it!
- There are larger markets and ones that are much more famous than the Duisburg Christmas Market but we kind of liked that we didn’t go to the biggest or most popular one. It just felt a little more real and authentic. We noticed not as many people spoke English which gave us a chance to brush up on our very limited German (basically thank you, ham and next stop).
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Where is the Duisburg Christmas Market?
The Duisburg Christmas Market is located in Duisburg in western Germany. The Christmas Market is located on Königstraße in the city center. To best find it you can put the Duisburg Tourist Information (Königstraße 86, 47051 Duisburg) into your maps and you’ll see it right away!
It is really easy to get to Duisburg from other nearby European cities. We came from Brussels, Belgium by train in under 3 hours. You can take a train in under 2 hours from both Amsterdam and Frankfurt, under 4 hours from Berlin and about 5 hours from Munich. Taking trains in Europe is so easy especially with the Eurail Pass! We traveled with our Eurail Global Pass for 3 months through Europe and have loved it! We’ve saved so much money and loved the ease of traveling by trains compared to flying.
- If you’re flying the closest airport is likely the Düsseldorf International Airport which is about 25 km south.
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When Can I Visit the Duisburg Christmas Market?
The Duisburg Christmas Market is open from November 14th – December 30th, 2019. It’s one of the earliest markets to open therefore giving people plenty of time to enjoy it before the holiday season is over! It’s open for visitors from 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM Sunday through Thursday and 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM on Friday and Saturday.
- Make sure to check the official website as they do have some abbreviated holiday hours in December!
What to See at the Duisburg Christmas Market
At the Duisburg Christmas market you’ll walk through a brightly lit up walkway with wooden stalls on either side. If you like Christmas lights at all then you’ll be in heaven! It’s well decorated and will certainly get you in the holiday spirit.
When we first arrived around 3:30 PM there were produce vendors close to the Duisburg Tourist Information center selling fresh fruits and vegetables. By the time we left around 8:30 PM they were packed up and gone. Earlier in the afternoon there were less people walking through but everything was still fully open! Food stalls were serving food and vendors were open and selling products. So don’t feel like you have to visit late at night.
But once it got dark the full experience began. You can just appreciate all the lights so much more once the sun sets and don’t worry this time of year you don’t have to wait too late. We noticed more people eating at the food stalls and more people congregating over glühwein or mulled wine.
We would estimate there is somewhere between 120-150 stalls throughout the whole market continuing for about 500 meters or so. From the Duisburg Tourist Information center you can see a large Ferris wheel which is the end of the market. It’s actually one of the longest Christmas markets in the area!
Walking through you’ll see candied nuts, German heart cookies and bratwurst. Every now and then you’ll pass a stall selling jewelry, hats and scarves or Christmas items. There were a couple vendors selling Christmas ornaments and other decor but the majority of the stalls are food and drinks.
- If you’re looking for a small Christmas souvenir check out the Käthe Wohlfahrt store. It’s a family company started and headquartered in Rothenburg ob der Tauber which we visited in October!
There are quite a few larger stalls selling glühwein (mulled wine) as well as feuerzangenbowle (a rum punch that contains sugar and mulled wine). These drink stalls are larger and have tables and stools as well as outdoor heaters which brings people to gather around. You can also find ones selling beer but you’ll see almost every person drinking a hot drink from the signature red mug.
- We bought a cup of mulled wine for 5 Euros each and were given a token along with the mug. Then when we finished our drinks we brought both the mugs and the tokens back up to the stall and got 4 Euros back (2 each) making it 3 Euros total.
- If you want to keep the mug and are okay with paying a little more it seems like it’s okay. If not don’t forget to bring it along with the tokens to get some of your money back!
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What Should I Eat at the Duisburg Christmas Market?
There are so many food stalls at the Duisburg Christmas Market we couldn’t try them all! But we did do our best to try as many things as possible and it made us remember why we love Germany and why we really enjoy markets like this.
Dave got an absolutely delicious ham sandwich from GrillSchinken. You will know you’re at the right place because there are huge pieces of ham cooking in the front of the stall. You really can’t miss them while walking by. The sandwich comes with incredible tender ham in a crusty roll with the option of onions and cabbage in top. It cost 5 Euros and was one of the best sandwiches we’ve had in a really long time!
- You can find the stall right near the Starbucks or using these (approximate) GPS coordinates 51°25’57.4″N 6°46’14.1″E
There are quite a few places selling various types of potatoes. We had reibekuchen which are fried potato fritters that we literally saw them fry and then put on our plate with a side of apple sauce. They were delicious especially dipped in the sweet apple sauce! There are also a lot of places selling pommes (French fries) as well as roasted or fried potatoes. We tried another kind where the potatoes were cut thick, thrown into the frier and then topped with a garlic aioli sauce.
For dessert you really have your choice! There are a lot of places selling crepes, churros and pastries. We opted for pofferjes which are basically a dutch bite-size pancake. You can watch them pour the batter into the small trays and flip the mini pancakes until they’re crispy and ready. They have different toppings options such as butter and sugar, chocolate and more. A portion comes with 8 mini pancakes and they were so yummy!
- You can find the stall near the store Sting or using these (approximate) GPS coordinates 51°25’58.3″N 6°46’09.3″E
Overall we had a great time visiting the Duisberg Christmas market and would really recommend it if you are looking for a traditional, non touristy market with incredible food!
