If you only visit one Christmas market in France, make it Strasbourg, and in this episode I explain why.

Part 1: I cover Strasbourg and Colmar and how to fit both into one trip, why Lille is underrated if you travel for food, and why I don't think the Paris markets are worth a dedicated trip, even though Paris in winter is. Plus the one Paris market I'd skip, and a quick-fire round on Bordeaux, Lyon, Nice and Montpellier.

Part 2: Your questions. Which markets stay open after Christmas, why 26th December catches people out in Alsace, what vin chaud blanc is, and whether anything at the French markets is actually handmade.

Confirmed dates and guides for every French market: https://ultimatechristmasmarkets.com/france/french-christmas-markets/

I'm Andrea Anastasakis. I've spent 20 years travelling in Europe, and I run Ultimate Christmas Markets, where dates for more than 300 markets are verified weekly.

Austria has more Christmas markets than you can do in a week, and one city where you could spend the whole trip going to a different one each day.

In part one: Vienna, Salzburg and Innsbruck, plus a special mention for Hallstatt. Which of them is worth building a trip around, which one is really a stop on the way to somewhere else, and the market I'd tell you to see for the lights and eat somewhere else entirely.

In part two, your questions. Why you get charged more than the price on the sign. Whether you need cash. What Austrians actually do on Christmas Eve, and what that means for your dinner plans. And whether anything at these markets is genuinely handmade.

Confirmed dates and guides for every Austrian market: https://ultimatechristmasmarkets.com/austria/austria-christmas-markets/

I'm Andrea Anastasakis. I've spent 20 years travelling in Europe, and I run Ultimate Christmas Markets, where dates for more than 300 markets are verified weekly.

Germany is where Christmas markets started, and it's still the country that everything else is compared to. In this episode, I go through the German markets I'd actually plan a trip around: Dresden, which I think is the best in the country, Nuremberg, Munich, Bamberg and Hamburg. Plus Ravenna Gorge in the Black Forest, the one I haven't been to yet and am most looking forward to.

In the second half, I answer all your questions. When they open and close, why you got charged more than the menu said, how many cities you can realistically fit into a week, and whether the markets are all just selling the same thing.

Confirmed dates and guides for every German market: https://ultimatechristmasmarkets.com/germany/christmas-markets-in-germany/

I'm Andrea Anastasakis. I've spent 20 years travelling in Europe, and I run Ultimate Christmas Markets, where dates for more than 300 markets are verified weekly.

20 years in Europe, 300+ Christmas markets, one country per episode, ranked honestly by travel blogger Andrea Anastasakis.

Germany first, then Austria, France, Poland, Czechia, Hungary, the Baltic States, Switzerland, Belgium and the Netherlands, and Italy. Which markets are worth planning a trip around, which are better as a day out, and your questions answered along the way.

Full guides and confirmed dates at ultimatechristmasmarkets.com