The Christmas Market in Göttingen takes place every year in the town centre around the town hall and St. John Church. In 2019, the market opens on 27 November and closes on 29 December. You will find more than 80 different stalls with the traditional products for a German Christmas Market, such as decorated gingerbread figures, sausages, deep-fried potato cakes, sweets, fruit covered in chocolate on lollipop sticks and, naturally, many stalls selling delicious, warm Glühwein. The market is open from 10am to 8.30pm every day (Sundays from 11am to 8.30pm) and is closed on December 24, 25 and 26.

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Cherry Wine and Bratwurst

One of the specialities at the Göttingen Christmas Market is hot cherry wine served with marinated cherries. The market is also well-known for its wide range of sausages. You could, for example, try a half-metre long Bratwurst served either as a curry wurst (sliced sausage served with curry sauce and curry spices) or broken into two pieces and served in a baguette. We found the baguette version easier to eat, but please remember that authentic Bratwurst must be eaten with mustard, not ketchup! If any of the stalls have ketchup, it’s for your fries.

Share the tables and find new friends

All round the market in Göttingen are barrels or high tables where you can stand to enjoy your Glühwein, sausage or potato cake. This is a great way to get to know the locals – if there is space available at “your” barrel or table, you are bound to be joined by others looking for a break from browsing the stalls. You will find this at most Christmas Markets in Germany.

Feel the Christmas Spirit

The Christmas spirit is very much alive at the Christmas Market in Göttingen, with its hundreds of fairy lights and beautiful setting with the church as backdrop. Parts of the ground around the stalls are covered in a type of coarse sawdust, keeping you slightly warmer in the winter chill.

Small stalls and big venues

Some of the stalls are more elaborate than others. In the centre of the market, on one side of the church, we found a stall with two floors and seats indoors. This is one of the most popular local wine bars in the town and opens its own Christmas bar every December in the market, a great place to visit if you get too cold.

Try the Ferris Wheel and Merry-go-round

If you would like to see the Christmas Market from a bird’s eye view, then you can take a trip on the Ferris wheel that lights up one end of the Christmas Market. The Ferris wheel is very popular with people of all ages, and there was a long queue all day long.

Young children will also love the merry-go-round nearby the town hall and the world of witches, a fenced off area where children could climb, draw and play with other children.

Buy a gingerbread heart

No German Christmas Market would be complete without the classical, decorated gingerbread hearts. Several of the stalls sell these in all sizes and with charming texts for every occasion.

The Market has so many different delicious cakes for sale …

… and charming stalls with classical Christmas decorations that will bring a touch of Christmas magic to your home, and which are the perfect gift for friends and family.

Get that magical festive spirit after dark

As dusk falls, the myriad of lights on the market stalls come into their own. Although Christmas Markets are charming at all times of the day, I prefer them best after dark. There is a much more relaxed atmosphere then and a more magical festive spirit.

Candied almonds and every possible type of homemade sweets tempt you from the stalls. The aromas of all the products on sale are just heavenly!

How to get to Göttingen

Göttingen is a University town with a long history of higher education. Today, the population of 130,000 includes some 30,000 students. This gives the town a young, urban atmosphere, and Göttingen plays hosts to a number of festivals throughout the year. Large parts of the historical town centre can be explored by foot or by cycle. To visit Göttingen, we recommend a flight to Hanover then continue by train or car. We can also recommend a round-trip to all or some of the nine historical towns in the state of Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen), including Göttingen.

READ ABOUT MORE CHRISTMAS MARKETS IN GERMANY:

Christmas Markets in Germany – Hamelin
Christmas Markets in Germany – Hildesheim
Christmas Markets in Germany – Goslar

My visit to the Goslar Christmas Market was a part of the #CitybreakGermany campaign arraned in collaboration between Ferielandet Tyskland and NordicTB. All opinions are as always my own.