The Solo Female’s Guide to Backpacking: Christmas market must-do’s in the United Kingdom
By Mackenzie Mason, Staff Writer
With Christmas just around the corner (and my return home after three months of travelling through Europe), I’ve been able to stop by a number of Christmas markets all the way from Scotland’s Glasgow and Edinburgh, to England’s Liverpool and London.
These festive markets, also called “Christkindlmarkt,” originate from Germany and have spread across Europe as a fun way to get into the Christmas spirit. They have everything from amusement rides and local businesses, to German sausages and all the mulled wine you could wish for.
So how do you spend a day at the Christmas markets in the United Kingdom? Here are my suggestions for a holly jolly good time.
Do some gift shopping
There are tons of different vendors that take part in the Christmas markets. You can find personalized Christmas decorations, local products like cheese, spreads and unique items like the kilts and tartan scarves that I saw at the markets in Edinburgh.
Drink mulled wine or cider
Let me set the scene. It’s a brisk night, but you’re bundled up as you stroll through the lit up market passing all the vendors and market-goers. You catch the scent of citrus, cinnamon and spices drifting through the air and then you feel the heat radiating from the large pots of mulled wine and cider. It tastes just as good as it smells. Life is good.
Eat a German sausage
It’s only fair that at a German Christmas market you indulge in their culture, so there’s tons of different sausages to choose from, even stuffed with cheese, to warm you up and fill your belly!
Ride the ferris wheel at night
Not all Christmas markets have a ferris wheel, but it is quite common for it to be part of the festivities and it’s a must-do if you see one. At night you’ll be able to see the twinkling lights from the market below and the city from a view that you wouldn’t get to see at any other time of year.
Christmas is my favourite time of year, and I feel so lucky to have been able to experience it in the UK before flying home to be with my family and friends after three long months of seeing the world.
Merry Christmas MRU!
