Every year, we send around 40 schools to experience Europe’s Christmas markets. These trips aren’t just a festive jolly (although they're obviously super fun), they also give pupils the chance to practise their language skills in a fun, relaxed environment.
With so many Christmas markets taking place around Europe in December, how do you choose which one to visit on your school trip?
Our school travel experts have selected their top picks to inspire you.
The Best Christmas Markets for School Groups
- Aachen, Germany
- Cologne, Germany
- Lille, France
- Berlin, Germany
Aachen
Best for younger groups.
Aachen (in Western Germany) is a historic city on the border with the Netherlands and Belgium. A spa city, it was the imperial capital of Charlemagne (the ‘Father of Europe’), and its famous Christmas market is held in the shadow of his cathedral, in the heart of the city.
It’s a wonderful choice for younger students or first-timers because, as the westernmost city in Germany, you can travel here by coach (with much shorter journey times than many other destinations). This keeps costs down and you can make the journey a key feature of the trip, with games, films and (if you’re brave) festive sing-alongs.
It’s also one of the prettiest Christmas markets in Germany, and offers a good introduction to the tradition, with stalls selling many handmade gifts, jewellery, leather goods and decorations, as well as the delicious food that is integral to these markets. The local speciality here is Aachener Printen. Only produced in and around Aachen, these spiced biscuits are similar to gingerbread and have been enjoyed for centuries.
Once you’re completely shopped out, there’s loads more to explore in Aachen. There’s Charlemagne’s cathedral and treasury (a must-see), a guided walking tour of the city (to learn more about the local history and culture) and a visit to the Lindt factory outlet, where you can grab some chocolatey gifts for friends and family (that’s if the chocolate makes it home, of course).
If you really want to make sure your students are engaging with their surroundings, we can highly recommend including the ‘Race for Time’ activity trail. Exclusive to Halsbury, this will see your students take on challenges in teams around the city (and it’s a huge amount of fun).
Cologne
Best for variety.
Many of Germany’s larger cities host several different Christmas markets. But Cologne stands out for variety, thanks to the very different characters of each of its seven markets.
The biggest market is held in front of the city’s cathedral, underneath the tallest Christmas tree (a cool 25m) in the Rhineland. This is a very typical German Christmas market, with wooden huts selling handcrafted goods, as well as the ever-present sausages and the delicious reibekuchen (essentially a fried rosti served with apple sauce).
The city’s oldest market is held on the Neumarkt and is known as Angel’s Christmas market. The huts here are white and (although the goods being sold here are similar to those at the cathedral's market) the food is said to be even better here. It’s also a little bit less busy and generally more popular with locals than tourists.
The Harbour Christmas market is also worth visiting. Being right next to the Rhine, it’s very picturesque and has a slightly maritime flavour. Plus, the Chocolate Museum is right next door (and this is a visit that always goes down tremendously well with students).
Most school groups that visit Cologne will travel by coach because this keeps costs down, and so more students are able to afford the trip. However, you can also fly if time is short (or you’re travelling with a smaller group).
Obviously, you’ll have plenty of markets to explore, but if you do want to include some other activities (for a bit of balance), then Cologne has loads to choose from. You could visit the iconic cathedral and its treasury. For chocolate-lovers, there’s a great Chocolate Museum, and for the sports fans, there’s a brilliant Sports Museum too.
You can enjoy a festive trip along the Rhine (and given how important the river has been to the city throughout the centuries, this is a must-do, in our opinion). We can also offer our exclusive Race for Time activity trail in Cologne, which is a great way of getting to know the city, as your students take part in team challenges in key sites across Cologne.
And if you want your trip to be the most fun your pupils have ever had, why not include a day at Phantasialand theme park?
Lille
Best for French groups.
If you want to take your French students to the Christmas markets, there are a couple of great options to choose from. You could head to Strasbourg, which considers itself the French capital of Christmas. Or you could go for Amiens and Arras if you’d also like to include some WW1 battlefields visits (a great option if you fancy teaming up with the history department to open up the trip to more pupils).
However, the most popular option in France with our groups is Lille. The main reason for this is that it is that it’s so quick and easy to get to (you can get there by coach, which is the cheaper option, or Eurostar, which is a good option if your school is based in London).
Lille’s Christmas market is based in and around the Grand Place (the city’s main square). There’s a huge Christmas tree, a Ferris Wheel and a carousel, as well as over 80 different stalls selling festive gifts, sparkling decorations and culinary delights.
In fact, if you have a sweet tooth, you’ll absolutely love Lille. Everywhere you look, you’ll see pain d’épices (gingerbread), macarons, waffles and crêpes. If you want to take back some treats for the staffroom, we highly recommend the Babeluttes de Lille – traditional caramel sweets that usually come in a lovely tin. And after browsing the stalls, you can warm yourselves up with a hot drink (chocolat chaud for the children and vin chaud for the adults).
If you’ve not filled up at the Christmas market, there are a couple more tasty visits you could choose to include in your itinerary. Our groups really love visiting local nougat producers, cheese makers and bakeries.
And (as in Aachen and Cologne), we can also offer the exclusive Race for Time activity trail in Lille. Students will split up into teams to solve clues and complete challenges around the city.
Just a heads up – French Christmas markets (including Lille) don’t tend to open until mid-morning (of course, we’ll make sure your itinerary takes this into account).
Berlin
Best for food.
As the capital of Germany, you can find festive treats from all over the country in Berlin.
The city hosts several Christmas markets, as you might expect, but if you are keen on a real foodie experience, then the WeihnachtsZauber at Gendarmenmarkt is the one for you.
Not only are there plenty of stalls selling the usual fare (we’re talking stollen, marzipan, currywurst and other sausages), there are also temporary restaurants where you can enjoy a proper sit-down meal.
Enjoy a traditional German Christmas dinner of goose and red cabbage, or head to the Tyrolean hut for a taste of the Alps. There's also a Bavarian restaurant, another that specialises in spätzle and another that specialises in Austro-German cuisine (there’s even an Italian restaurant).
Groups heading to Berlin will always fly (it’s a bit too far for a coach trip). This does mean it’s not one of the cheaper options for a Christmas markets trip. However, if you choose to visit Berlin, you will (of course) have an almost endless list of other activities to enjoy when you’re done with exploring the markets.
So, if you want to include some focus on German history and culture, this could be a great option for you (and teaming up with the history department could mean you can open the trip up to more students and make it a huge highlight of the school year).
Halsbury Team Tips
How long should a Christmas markets school trip be?
The duration of your Christmas markets school trip really depends on where you’re going and what you want to do while you’re there.
For example, if you’re going to Lille, two days is usually plenty. Because of the slightly longer journey times, groups heading to Aachen or Berlin would usually book a three-day trip. And for Cologne, you’d probably want to spend about four days there.
If you’re not sure how long you need (or which destination works best for the time you have available), just get in touch and we can help you figure it out.
When should we start planning our Christmas markets school trip?
We always suggest that you start planning any school trip as soon as possible. When it comes to Christmas market trips, you need to remember that there will be lots of people (other school groups, as well as local and international tourists) also trying to go to the same place at the same time. So, availability of accommodation is always the trickiest thing.
We’d definitely advise planning at least a year in advance, but if you can start even earlier then you’ll have a much better choice of accommodation, travel options etc.
That being said, don’t despair if you have left it a bit later. Just get in touch and we’ll do our best to help get your trip off the ground. If you can be flexible with your destination and dates, we can usually sort something out for you.
Can we arrange a school music tour to the Christmas markets?
Christmas is a wonderful time for a school music tour. Audiences are feeling festive, the music is fun to perform and it’s just a huge treat for all involved. It can be an unforgettable reward for hard work (as well as something to work towards).
Final Thoughts
We hope this blog has given you some ideas for your trip, but don’t worry if you're still not sure which Christmas market will best suit your group.
Just get in touch, and we can talk you through the options. And once you’ve picked a destination, we’ll work closely with you to make sure your trip is magical (wherever you choose to go).