Christmas in Germany: Holiday Travel Tips

Germany is an interesting place to visit any time of year. The Rhine River Valley hosts historic castles and scenic river cruises. The shopping in Cologne and Frankfurt for German clothing never grows old. The Gothic Cathedral adds more spirit to Cologne's city. The German countryside is welcoming with its winding roads and forests full of trees. Hearing people speak German everywhere is a bonus just in itself. Germany during Christmas is even more spectacular. This beautiful country comes alive with Christmas each December, and its worth paying a trip during this time of year. This article will give travel trips and Christmas celebration ideas for people spending Christmas in Germany.

1. Before you plan your dates, go online to a tourist website for Germany (one is listed in the resources), and discover what exciting events will be taking place. There might be an event that you don't want to miss, so find this out before you book your accommodations and fights.

2. Book everything early. Think about it. The biggest times when people will travel will tend to be during the summer, when children are out of school, and major holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve. What this means is that people will book very early to make plans for Christmas, and the cheap plane tickets will sell out. The best castle hotels will sell out. Book a minimum of six months in advance. There are some places, such as small castles, that may sell out a year in advance. Don't wait until it's too late.

3. Find great deals for your flights. The best site to use for airfares is Yahoo Farechase, which can be found by doing a google search for the site. The great thing about Yahoo farechase is that it finds the best fares available on multiple sites on the internet for your flight selection, saving you all kinds of time searching each site yourself. You can also use Yahoo Farechase to book hotels and rental cars.

4. Stay somewhere really interesting. It would be great to stay in a castle for Christmas and New Year's. Think about having your whole family stay in a castle and celebrate Christmas together! To book castle stays on the Rhine River, you can visit the website listed in the resources. Through this site, you pick a castle, and then make a booking through the website

5. Use trains to get around rather than renting a car. Trains will take you almost anywhere you need to go. There are trains connecting all of the major cities, as well as local trains that take you to smaller destinations in Germany. Just realize that the local trains do not run late into the night, so you should check the schedules to ensure you get where you need to go. You can book train travel through the Rail Europe Website, listed. Get a rail pass that will last you for the number of days you will be in Germany to get the best rates.

6. Enjoy the Christmas celebrations in Germany by eating some Christmas baked goods. During the month of December, you'll find gingerbread houses and gingerbread cookies for sale, as well as other seasonal breads and pastries. Christbaumgeback is a white dough that is made into pastry to be used as Christmas decorations on the Christmas trees.

7. Participate in some of the Christmas traditions. You can attend church ceremonies at one of the German churches. Advent is one such celebrational ceremony. On December 6th, Germans celebrate St. Nicholas day, where children put out a shoe the night before which is then filled with gifts or a rod if you were bad.

8. Get a Christmas tree to display wherever you are staying, or enjoy the Christmas decorations that you will find just about everywhere in Germany. You'll be happy to know that Germans go all out with Christmas decorations just as Americans do.

9. Christmas eve is the day that gifts are exchanged in Germany. If you are in Germany, exchange your gifts this day to stay with the tradition of the country.

10. The biggest thing to take part in is the Christmas markets, located in various cities in Germany. Hamburg is one of them. The markets are open all day long every day from the end of November through December 30th. You'll find all kinds of gift items and food items, as well as Christmas decorations. This is one thing you won't want to miss if you celebrate Christmas in Germany.

Additional resources:

http://www.farechase.yahoo.com;

http://www.ehow.com/how_4425730_visit-castle-liebenstein-germany.html;

http://www.santas.net/germanchristmas.htm;

http://www.whychristmas.com/cultures/germany.shtml,

http://www.germany-tourism.de/ENG/culture_and_events/christmas_markets.htm.