Are British Christmas markets as good as German Christmas markets? Here’s what we found

The wooden hut shone with a golden fairytale light, and groups of friends wearing woolen hats gathered to warm their hands with mulled wine.

There are signs written in German everywhere – Glühwein (mulled wine), Bratwurst (grilled sausages), Kinderpunsch (non-alcoholic punch).

This isn’t Germany – this is Birmingham’s Frankfurt Christmas Market. Organizers call it the “largest authentic German Christmas market” outside Germany and Austria.

Christmas markets are thought to have originated in Germany in the 14th century, and its markets have been revered ever since. But how close are those in Britain to the so-called traditional, authentic thing?

BBC News visited some places to find out, and maybe provide some inspiration for your next festival visit.

On a cold Thursday afternoon in Birmingham, we have just met Nina Adler and Till Rampe, 27-year-old German students studying for a PhD in the UK’s “Second City”.

They were reminded of home as we wandered through the Christmas markets that wind through the streets near Birmingham New Street train station.

They point to log cabins, food and drink, and handicrafts as positive signs of proximity to traditional ideals. The chocolate marshmallows at one stall impressed Thiel, who comes from a town near Frankfurt. “I could have sworn they were from my hometown,” he said.

But other aspects of the Birmingham market are far removed from German ways – such as beer. “People just associate Germany with beer,” says Nina from Berlin. “In Germany you usually drink mulled wine. That’s very typical.”

As for the pop music coming out of Birmingham’s loudspeakers – like “The Power of Love” – ​​you probably wouldn’t hear it in a market in Germany – it’s Christmas music and carols, she said.

Also visiting the market with us is Katharina Karcher, a scholar from the University of Birmingham. Her verdict? It’s really “super authentic”.

The Birmingham market was founded in 1997 and has been held annually since 2001, organized by Kurt Stroscher, who is also the director of the Frankfurt Christmas Market.

He “used only wooden stalls and non-flickering atmospheric white lights” and the stalls were built in Germany, from where the food and drinks were imported.

Speaking of authenticity, that’s basically kudos to Birmingham’s Christmas markets – but how does it compare to those in Germany?

While many Christmas markets in the UK have been open for several weeks, in Germany they traditionally only open on November 24th.

Most German towns have Christmas markets, the most famous of which are Dresden, Nuremberg and Cologne.

Dr Kacher, who is from near Frankfurt, said the markets had “huge symbolic value” for Germans. Beyond the religious overtones, “they’re something that helps people get through dark times,” she explained.

The city of Berlin, about 800 miles from Birmingham, has more than 70 different small Christmas markets. When we visited Charlottenburg Palace in the west of the German capital on a Tuesday evening, the market was bustling with people of all ages.

The air was filled with the smells of roasted almonds, caramel apples, chocolate-covered fruit, mulled wine and grilled sausages, while Christmas carols were performed live on stage and children enjoyed a sparkling mini Ferris wheel.

The 17th-century Baroque Charlottenburg Palace is illuminated by lights of different colors, with falling snow cast on its facade and the wooden stalls in front.

So how did the traditional German Christmas market come to be?

Typically, they might have (like this one in Berlin):

• Large tent accommodates entire restaurant or bar
• Stalls sell a variety of handmade gifts including woolen hats, gloves, scarves, jewellery, handmade candles, wooden nutcrackers and other crafts
• Traditional German foods such as Lebkuchen (a common German version of gingerbread in biscuit form), many types of sausages including bratwurst, cheese, hearty dishes such as rangos (a fried Hungarian flatbread with different savory or sweet toppings) or goulash, and Spätzle
• For drinkers, drink mulled wine instead of beer
• A spot on the Old Town Square in the old town. In the city – there are many different markets in different areas

Margarita, 66, enjoying mulled wine with her husband Dietmar, 69, said the characteristic of German Christmas markets is their unique atmosphere: “The colorful lights and Christmas decorations make it so special.”

Dietmar explains that “Christmas markets differ from other markets labeled ‘Winter Market’ or ‘Winter Wonderland’ because you can only feel the fairytale feel at a real Christmas market”.

“I visited a Christmas market in Milan a few years ago and it was different, it was just a collection of different shops,” he added.

At another table, Anna and Carolina, both 19, were eating chocolate-covered strawberries. “In addition to mulled wine and food, the colorful lights and festive and cozy atmosphere are also unique features of Christmas markets,” says Anna.

But for Karolina, “the star… is definitely the food and drink. (It) really makes the Christmas market authentic”.

Back in the UK, while Birmingham can boast the authenticity of its market, what about the rest of the UK?

Christmas markets have become a staple event in many British cities, including Manchester, Leeds, Bath, Edinburgh and Newcastle. It turns out that smaller markets, often in historical settings, are also popular on TikTok, sometimes incredibly so. Lincoln Christmas Market is closed from 2023 due to overcrowding issues.

When the BBC visited the market in Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey earlier this week, we saw an open mic night that included a performance of Neil Young’s Heart of Gold, as well as stalls selling items such as pasta, Greek gyros and Yorkshire pudding rolls. There’s also German food and icons, although much less than in Birmingham.

Tourists don’t seem to mind, though.

“I love it,” said Jamie Aycliffe, who was visiting the market with his wife and children. “We’re doing a British version of bratwurst.”

But he himself has been to Christmas markets across Europe and feels that the British Christmas markets are “not that good” and are “a little more commercial.”

Others visit the Kingston Christmas Market for the beauty.

“It’s fun,” said drama student Amelia Shannon, 22. “I don’t have to go to Germany for this.”

But overall it’s not as traditional as Birmingham and it’s much smaller. Some people told us they would prefer it if UK Christmas markets like Kingston sold more small gifts from independent businesses, like markets in Germany.

Anne-Teresa Markovic, an academic from Nuremberg, said that when she visited Christmas markets in Manchester and Leeds, she was struck by the “more prominent” range of food and drink there than in Germany. She recalled seeing “festive mashed potatoes” on the menu, which, needless to say, wasn’t particularly German.

However, Germany’s Christmas markets are changing. There are now generally more international foods – and depictions of patron saint Nicholas are increasingly about Santa Claus, Dr Katcher said.

The warm glow of Germany’s Christmas markets was dimmed after a deadly car attack. Berlin Market 2016 and in Magdeburg city last year.

Security measures at the market have since been tightened. Some markets have been canceled because security costs were too high for organizers.

The Berlin Christmas market we visited was surrounded by a fence with huge concrete blocks placed on it, and a police car patrolled one of the entrances.

Despite heightened security, the atmosphere seemed relaxed.

Anna and Karolina said they had never been to a Christmas market in the UK before, but both would welcome more Christmas markets outside of Germany.

“A Christmas market is not defined by the location,” explains Anna, “but by the festive atmosphere and the time of year it takes place.”

8 other 2025 Christmas markets in the UK you might like:

• Wells, Somerset: Taking place in Cathedral City on Saturday 6th December, a one-day event with over 100 stalls
• Canterbury, Kent: Featuring 120 stalls, including one in the 11th-century cathedral, open until Christmas Eve
• Haddonhall, Derbyshire: Booked tickets with cottage parking are sold out but non-parking tickets are available on the door for £9.50
• Chester, Cheshire: Stalls on the Tudor and Faux Tudor streets run until Monday 22nd December, including one run by Chester Zoo
• Hillsborough, County Down, Northern Ireland: Held on Friday, December 12 and Saturday, December 13, set against the backdrop of 17th-century Hillsborough Castle
• Aberdeen Christmas Village, Scotland: Featuring an ice skating rink and many stalls, the event runs until December 31
• Portmeirion, North Wales: Scenic location in Gwynedd, runs Friday 5th to Sunday 7th December, tickets £10
• Winchester, Hampshire: Christmas market around the cathedral open until Monday 22nd December