Augsburger Christkindlesmarkt 2024

The Augsburger Christkindlesmarkt Claims to be the Most Beautiful:

Augsburger Christkindlesmarkt on the Rathausplatz

We first visited Augsburg a few years ago at the end of our Romantic Road trip. The lady at the tourist office suggested that we should visit their Christmas market. According to her, the Augsburger Christkindlesmarkt is one of the most beautiful in Germany. I had my reservations, but being Christmas market junkies we had to check it out.

Augsburg Christmas Market

The main Augsburger Christkindlesmarkt is set on Rathausplatz, against the magnificent backdrop of its Renaissance city hall. During the advent season twenty-four angels appear on the beautiful City Hall facade and transform the building into a huge Advent calendar. The opening ceremony of the Augsburg Christkindlesmarkt is usually quite spectacular. The market stalls spill over to Fuggerplatz, Martin-Luther-Platz, and Moritzplatz. In the Rathausplatz alone, there are some 130 stalls.

Popular woodcarved Christmas decorations

Goods on sale include the usual Christmas decorations, wood carvings, candles, gloves and scarves, handmade gifts, etc.

Heavenly Post Office

The Himmlisches (heavenly post office) can be found under the huge Christmas tree next to the manger scene. Mail sent from here will have a postmark from the village Christkindl (Christ child).

Drinks at Augsburg Christkindlesmarkt

There are plenty of glühwein stalls at the market, but the one that stands out is the stall at the base of the weihnachtspyramide.

Glühwein stall under the Christmas pyramid

This four-storey high revolving Christmas pyramid is a feature of German Christmas markets. Take a close look and you’ll see angels playing various musical instruments on each level.

A the Christmas markets, Tony’s drink of choice is the feuerzangenbowle. On a cold night, the drink is a warm welcome. We rate all feuerzangenbowle by the standards of Berlin and Dresden. In our humble opinion, Augsburg’s unfortunately is not quite there yet.

Feuerzangenbowle at the Augsburg Christmas market

Hearty Bavarian Specialities

As far as food is concerned, there are plenty of the typical Bavarian specialities like bratwurst, schupfnudeln, dumplings with sauerkraut and bacon, kartoffelpuffer, fleischküchle (meat balls), etc.

Stall with all kinds of bratwurst

If you’re worried about calories, the German Christmas market foods are definitely not light in calories.

Dampfnudel, a popular dessert dumpling

The dampfnudel is  very popular with locals and the size of the dumpling is huge. This steamed dumpling dessert is almost the size of my palm. A vanilla sauce is ladled over it and then chocolate is sprinkled over the dumpling. The size of the dampfnudel is daunting, however the locals show no concern and they tuck into them with gusto.

For pescatarians like us, food options at the Augsburg Christmas markets are limited. We did find a stall selling flammkuchen which has cheese and tomato toppings. Apart from the flammkuchen, there are kartoffelpuffer and a vegetarian schupfnudeln. If you don’t feel like a carbohydrate overload, there are some nice restaurants in the vicinity of the market where you can have dinner.

Where we stayed

We stayed at the City Hotel Ost am Kö previously and found it to be very convenient for visiting the Augsburg Christmas market. This family-owned traditional hotel is cosy and the breakfast is excellent.
For other Augsburg hotels check Here.

Is it the most Beautiful?

The Augsburg Christkindlesmarkt has its own nice features. We enjoyed our visit, but we wouldn’t say it is the most beautiful in Germany. But then, beauty is in the eye of the beholder!

Augsburger Christkindlesmarkt 2024

Dates:  Nov. 25 – Dec 24, 2024
Opening Hours:
Sun – Thurs  10 am – 8 pm
Fri – Sat 10 am – 9:30 pm
Dec. 23 – 10 am – 9:30 pm
Dec. 24 – 10 am – 2:00 pm (last day)

Click here to get a free PDF of this post