Innsbruck at Christmas time was a complete surprise. The town itself was so much prettier than I had ever expected. Surrounded by mountain scenery, it definitely had a big-scale ski town feel to it.
Although the Christmas market itself wasn’t that big and there wasn’t much diversity in the form of what was on offer there, we found it to be one of the most expensive Christmas markets we visited. I guess that’s what you get when you cross a popular ski and tourist city with vats of hot wine.
Ours was only a flying visit – one night and then we were gone – but we did our due diligence and drank some fueurzangenbowle (mulled wine with rum-soaked sugar in it – as if you couldn’t tell from the description it became my new favourite Christmas drink) and ate some sausages and cheese noodles. We even bumped into an ex-NHL ice hockey player, which made Scott’s day, even if we did freak the guy out by knowing his name.
Innsbruck also had some of the coolest Christmas decorations, including fully-lit trees lining the streets, a centrepiece Christmas tree situated in front of the city’s famous Golden Roof and a large Swarovski crystal pyramid, but my favourite aspect of the market was its position next to river, allowing us to sip our wine while admiring the beautiful scenery.
If you’re planning on visiting the Christmas markets in Innsbruck, I would tell you to be prepared for high costs of accommodation and food/drink. It wasn’t my favourite market, although that was a personal preference, but the scenery and friendly people made our stay a great one. I’ll definitely be back to the city, next time hopefully without the need for a hat and scarf.
Big thanks to the Austrian Tourism Board for helping us plan our epic trip!
oh, I loved seeing photos of Innsbruck! I did a study abroad there almost 10 years ago and was there during Christmas time, too. It’s such a beautiful town. Now I feel all nostalgic. 😀
It really is very pretty. How lucky you were to study there!
so fun! merry belated christmas!