Christmas Markets & Beer Festivals

A picturesque and romantic city, Geneva city breaks are extremely popular with travellers around the world. From the guided walking tours organised by the Swiss tourist Office, to several walking routes that travellers can take at their leisure, to Geneva boat tours with on board dining facilities, a Geneva city break has plenty to offer tourists.

Some of the most popular tourist hotspots and those which tend to appear in every list of things to do when in Geneva are visits to Lake Geneva, the Cathédrale Saint-Pierre, the Le Jet d'Eau and the l'Horloge Fleurie, the Flower Clock, a symbol of the renowned Swiss clock and watch industry, telling time since 1955.

For the history and politics buff, Geneva tourism offers the UNOG, Reformation Wall (Mur de la Reformation), Museum of Natural History (Museum d'Histoire naturelle), International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum (Musee International de la Croix-Rouge et du Croissant-Rouge), Palais des Nations and the Museum of Art and History (Musee d'Art et d'Histoire) amongst various others.

Theatre and Culture

Geneva is also renowned as a city of culture and theatre and no trip would be considered complete without a visit to the Grand Theatre de Geneve and the Batiment des Forces Motrices. With a wide variety of shows from classics to drama and light comedy, theatre goers can take advantage of over 38 different stages offering a diverse mix of acts and performances.

Geneva by Night

The Java Club, La Suite, the Platinum Club and the VIP prestige club are definitely worth a visit or two on a trip to Geneva. Geneva by night is certainly as interesting, if not more, than Geneva by day: a range of bars and nightclubs offer a social scene to match any of Europe’s leading tourist attractions.

Geneva Events

Geneva gets it fair share of event centred tourism as well with various international events of pedigree being hosted in the city. Some of the events to add to your diary when holidaying in Geneva include the International Fair for Books held in May, the artbygenève International modern and contemporary art fair held in May and the Hope Festival (Fête de l'Espoir), a free festival where all artists perform free on a voluntary basis.

Geneva city breaks take in the most of this beautiful, cosmopolitan city in the French-speaking part of Switzerland, framed by the Alps and situated at Europe's largest lake, Lake Geneva.

Germany is home to one of the most famous beer festivals with Oktoberfest attracting millions of beer enthusiasts from all over the globe. Other European countries that host large beer festivals are the Czech Republic, Belgium, Denmark, Croatia, Norway and Denmark, however, the Munich Beer Festival in Germany takes the crown.

Beer Festival Gardens and Tents

Beer festivals usually take place in tents and gardens. The tents vary in size depending on how large the festival is and could hold anything from 100 to tens of thousands of people. At large festivals such as the Munich Beer Festival, keen beer drinkers can expect to taste their favourite beers in huge tents with high ceilings and stages for musicians.

Once you have been served, you can often enjoy your beer outside in one of the many beer gardens where hundreds of beer companies showcase their wares, making it their mission to make you feel welcome. It can be tricky to get inside the tents at the larger and more popular beer festivals; many people choose to enjoy their taste-testing time in the gardens where getting a seat usually consists of choosing which part if the grass you wish to sit on.

Traditional Dress at Beer Festivals

Some beer festivals such as the Oktoberfest will feature locals wearing traditional dresses. Ladies selling the beer at the various stalls and serving in the tents will often be wearing the traditional dirndl – a bodice, blouse, full skirt and apron. Local men are often clad in the traditional lederhosen.

What to expect from a Beer Festival

Europe is host to many beer festivals throughout the year. The way in which beer is served at these festivals will depend on which country you visit. Staff serve the beer in a variety of ways, including out of plastic cups. Some festivals sell glasses at the entrance gates which you can take around the festival with you, refilling as you go. A map or beer list can be purchased at the larger festivals as a way of knowing where the different tents are located.

With so many beer festivals to choose from including the PINT Bokbierfestival in Amsterdam, the Cannstatt Beer Festival, the Prague beer festival and of course the king of all beer festivals, Oktoberfest, it is easy to see why so many avid beer drinkers enjoy celebrating their favourite drink together in this way.

Christmas is a time for rejoicing and celebrating the birth of Jesus as well as eating too much and swapping gifts! The beginning of December welcomes the opening of countless Christmas markets around the world and they are a fun and traditional way to shop for seasonal gifts and decorations. Christmas markets originated in Germany and Alsace and they are now held on the streets for the four weeks of Advent in countries all over the world including Romania, Argentina and Spain.

A History of Christmas Markets

Christmas markets boast a long and interesting history and one of the oldest of its kind is the Dresden Christmas Market that was first held in 1434. However the Bautzen Christmas Market has been running since 1384 and German Christmas markets remain some of the most popular markets in the world although many countries have since adopted the seasonal market spirit.

Christmas Market Wares

The stalls found in Christmas markets usually sell a range of Christmas decorations and handmade souvenirs. As the markets are usually held on the streets, the stalls are temporary and range from basic tables to wooden huts and shacks. A tall Christmas tree will often boast centre stage at Christmas markets and decorations will be for sale at the various stands. Christmas cookies and seasonal gifts are usually on sale as opposed to gifts that don’t have a Christmas theme found in shops and stores. Warm drinks accompanied by hot snacks are often found in these traditional markets.

German Christmas Markets

Many of the German Christmas markets and others around the world have popular opening nights that will welcome various plays and scenes often performed by local school children. Fireworks, Christmas lights and decorations can be seen for miles around. Glühwein is a mulled wine that can be drunk with or without an additional shot of brandy in the German Christmas markets and this can be found with ease along with some tasty German treats such as bratwurst and stollen.

Different Christmas Markets around the World

Countries such as the US and the UK soon took onto the idea of hosting Christmas markets, even though the German Christmas markets remain the oldest and the most popular. The only noticeable difference between the markets held in different areas around the world is generally found in the food and drink offerings, although these only change slightly between countries. Mulled wine is easy to find throughout all Christmas markets and this can be altered with additional shots of alcohol depending where you are in the world, while snacks will also vary from London’s roasted chestnuts through to America’s toasted pretzels.