Christmas Markets from Prague: Dresden, Nuremberg, Vienna and Regensburg

Prague has two good Christmas markets of its own, on the Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square, and they are worth an evening. But the reason people base themselves in Prague in December is that four of the best markets in Europe are within a few hours’ drive, and you can do any of them as a day trip and be back for dinner.

Where to go from Prague

Market	Drive	What makes it different
Dresden Striezelmarkt	~2 hours	First recorded in 1434, which makes it the oldest Christmas market in Germany. It is named after the Striezel — the pastry that became the Dresden Stollen — and there is a whole festival built around a giant one in early December. Compact, traditional, and the closest of the four.
Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt	~4 hours	The most famous market in Germany and the one everything else is measured against. Strictly traditional: no plastic, no piped music, opened by the Christkind from the balcony of the Frauenkirche. Very crowded at weekends.
Vienna Rathausplatz and others	~4 hours	The grandest setting — the market in front of the neo-gothic city hall, plus smaller ones at Schonbrunn, Belvedere and Spittelberg. Vienna does the whole thing on a larger scale than anywhere else.
Regensburg Thurn und Taxis	~3.5 hours	Held in the courtyard of a palace still lived in by the Thurn und Taxis family, lit by braziers and candles. Smaller, ticketed, and the most atmospheric of the four if you dislike crowds.

Dresden is the one to do in a day

Two hours each way means you leave after breakfast and are back in Prague for the evening, having had a full afternoon in the market and the museums around it. Nuremberg and Vienna are four hours each way, which makes a day trip long — better as an overnight, or accept an early start and a late return.

Practical notes for December

Dates. Most markets open in the last week of November. The German ones almost all close on 23 December, Vienna runs to 26 December, and Prague keeps going into early January. If you are travelling between Christmas and New Year, check before you commit: half of Germany will be shut.

It gets dark at four. Markets look their best after dusk, which in December is around four in the afternoon. That works in your favour on a day trip: arrive at midday, see the town in daylight, and the market lights up before you leave.

Bring cash. German market stalls take cards far less often than you would expect, and the Gluhwein cup usually carries a deposit — a few euros back when you return it.

Dress for standing still. A market is two hours of not moving in the cold. Whatever you think is enough, add a layer.

Weekends are the problem. Nuremberg and Dresden at a December weekend are genuinely crowded. A Tuesday or Wednesday is a completely different experience.

Why a car in winter

In summer the train to Dresden is a perfectly good option. In December the arithmetic changes: it is dark and cold, you are carrying whatever you bought, the last trains are early, and standing on a platform at Decin at seven in the evening in December is nobody’s idea of a holiday.

A car waits for you, keeps your bags and your coats, and takes you from the market to your hotel door. For two or more people, split between you, the difference against tickets is small.

Booking

December fills up early — we take Christmas market bookings from October, and the weekends before Christmas go first. Write to cz@cztransfer.com or message +420 773 477 799 (Viber, WhatsApp, Telegram) with your hotel, the date and which market you want.

Related: Prague to Dresden day trip · Prague to Vienna · Prague to Munich · day trips and excursions from Prague

See also: how to get from Prague to Dresden · Dresden to Prague transfer