Strasbourg Christmas Markets🎄

I took an independent travel trip to Strasbourg, France to see the Christmas Markets, it made all my Christmas dreams come true!

I’ve always wanted to visit a European Christmas Market, so I made it a mission to see one in France this year! Back in October I planned a trip to Strasbourg, the Capital of Christmas, with my friend, and the time finally came! Strasbourg is located in the region of Alsace, which is close to Germany. Ranked as one of the best Christmas markets in the world, I knew I needed to experience this Christmas town for myself this winter. The trip made me feel the most Christmasy I have ever felt, the Christmas spirit in Strasbourg is real!🎄❄️

My friend and I left Rennes at 7:45am on a Saturday for our first train to Paris. Then from Paris we took a train straight to Strasbourg. The commute was quite long because we travelled to the opposite end of France, but it was so worth it! Once we arrived in Strasbourg we went straight to the markets! Seeing the wooden box houses filled with products of joy made my heart so happy for Christmas time. Every kind of Christmas trinket you can think of was displayed so beautifully in these stands. There were nutcrackers, ornaments, nativity scenes, snow globes, angels, lights, anything and everything Christmas! And I can’t begin with the sweet carts🤤. From freshly baked gingerbread loafs to Christmas cookies, I wanted to buy everything, and I mean EVERYTHING. I’m usually not a big spender when it comes to trinkets but everything at this market was so charming, I wanted it all! I didn’t buy anything for myself because 1. I don’t have a way to bring it back to the US and 2. I have nowhere to store anything when it’s not Christmas. So instead, I bought lots of gifts for other people who can admire these amazing things from Strasbourg! I bought my Christmas gifts for my host family here because I wanted to find something special for them that could not only be found in Rennes. There was a stand with handmade wood gifts along with personalization by engraving names. I instantly knew that these would be the perfect gifts for my host siblings, so I got them each a different and personalized wood gift from this stand. For my host mom, I found some specialized Strasbourg tea, and I bought my host dad a nativity scene decoration along with some vin chaud jam. Of course I had to buy some sweet treats for my family too, so I brought home a gingerbread loaf, some cookies, and a Kugelhopf cake!

Now for the food I ate in Strasbourg: I wanted to try all of the Christmas market food, and I can say that most was conquered! For lunch I tried Flàmmeküeche or Tarte Flambée. It’s a thin crust pizza with sour cream, onions, bacon bits, and mushrooms. Soooo good😋. And along with that I had some hot apple cider to keep warm outside, delicious! As a snack I tried a bretzel, it just tasted like a normal pretzel🤭. For dinner I ate authentic Alsatian sausage with sauerkraut, yummy but not astonishing, I think it would taste really yummy at a restaurant in Strasbourg though! Of course I had to try vin chaud, the drink of Strasbourg! You can find vin chaud at every food stand in the market. Here’s my unpopular opinion: I did not like the vin chaud….but I’m glad I tried it and now I know that I’ll stick to the cider! As far as desserts in Strasbourg, I got myself a hot chocolate to feel the Christmas vibes and I had a bit of my friend’s waffle. Oh! can’t forget about the gingerbread samples as well☺️. On Sunday we had brunch at an adorable cafe called Madame Julia with superb Christmas decorations. I ordered a truffle egg scramble which was delicious but also so needed since I haven’t gone out for brunch since I’ve been in the US.

Our rental was a little studio apartment very close to the center of the city which was very convenient. And the best part of this room, there were iconic French windows! You could see lights out of the window and I was obsessed, you already know I had a photoshoot there😏.

We walked around three different Christmas markets in Strasbourg plus the retail shops. One thing to note is that the markets close at 8pm as well as most of the retail stores, so start your shopping early! We left Strasbourg at around 2pm on Sunday. While we had a little more than 24 hours in Strasbourg, it was plenty of time to see all of the Christmas markets and enjoy what the city has to offer! If you have the opportunity to visit Strasbourg or any Christmas market it is incredible and changes the Christmas game! I especially loved it when it got dark because all of the lights are lit up and it’s so stunning! This trip to Strasbourg made Christmas feel like a true Christmas out of a movie! Strasbourg trip in the books!🎅🏼