Ottenhöfen im Schwarzwald Archives

Happy New Year, friends! How it’s 2024, I’ll never know.

Okay, full disclosure before I get into this post: It was really hard for me to narrow down photos 😉 Like, harder than it usually is, which is already usually very hard. This European Christmas Trip of ours was EPIC, and it was made even more epic by the fact that we were able to do it all with Chris’ parents. Any time that we and the girls get to spend with them is special. To spend that time on vacation over Christmas in Europe?? I mean. What can I say?

To start, our place. We stayed at this sweet Airbnb in the Black Forest, and it surpassed my wildest dreams. The house itself was huge, with plenty of space for four adults and three kiddos. Plus, it was filled with so many games and toys that even if we never left the house, the kids would have stayed occupied for days. There was also a hike directly accessible from the back of the house that had breathtaking views. It was the perfect spot for us, and the best place to begin our European journey and spend Christmas.

How sweet is this cute little covered outdoor picnic area, too?! Here is poppa, hosting his ladies to a (brief but very sweet!) afternoon tea.

The outdoor hut was also the perfect spot for housing some of our Christmas Day necessities 😉

Our host even decorated for Christmas, leaving us a live Christmas tree and all her ornaments to adorn it with! It was the sweetest touch on her behalf.

Here she is on Christmas Eve, fully decorated and ready for celebrating!

Here’s one happy Grace, with a little of the view from our house behind her.

Two of my little loves on Christmas Day <3

Even my mom came to hang for a bit. This was by far one of the most incredible moments of the trip, and trust me, there were many. IYKYK.

There were tons of balconies, which made for amazing sunrise/sunset viewings!

Cheers to this amazing spot in the world.

Although hanging out in the house would have been enough, I had specifically formulated the plan for this holiday with one goal in mind: CHRISTMAS MARKETS! Europe is known for them, and I wanted in. So … are you ready to market it up? Here’s where we went.

Thursday, December 21: Freiburg, Germany

Lotte looks fairly miserable in this photo, but that was after what was, trust me, a very fun night!

Our first Christmas Market was in Freiburg. Since this was our first one (well, Chris’ parents had already been to a couple by the time we arrived, but it was my first one!), I didn’t realize that the market is actually spread around the city. We kept stumbling on different sections of it as we walked around, which was a really nice surprise.

As a person who *thoroughly* enjoys holiday decor, these markets were MY JAM.

We started in early on the treats, and did not stop.

We drank ALL the Glühwein (hot wine!) we could find!

I couldn’t love this holiday hopping crew any more <3

Friday, December 22: Baden-Baden, Germany

As you can see, in Baden-Baden, we weren’t messing around!

Next up was the Baden-Baden market, and the fondu igloo lunch I had booked us weeks before. This felt like the perfect excuse to don the matching Christmas sweaters that Nan had brought for us 😉 The day was chilly and rainy, but snuggled up inside our heated igloo with our fur blankets and tasty treats (you rent the igloo for three hour blocks and are welcome to walk around the market during that time and then go back to the igloo whenever you like) was the perfect way to spend this day and see this particular market.

Despite the weather — or perhaps because of it — this particular market felt so magical and festive.

The girls loved checking out the ornate booths, and Nan loved teaching them how to shop!

We had the sweetest time! Nan & I have vowed to make a special trip back to Baden-Baden, which means “bath” and is actually known for its amazing spas!

Saturday, December 23: Gengenback, Germany

We had a tough decision to make this day: Travel 3.5 hours each way to visit the Nuremberg (where I was born) markets, or head about 25 minutes away, to Gengenbach, to see their world-renowned life-size Advent Calendar. Ultimately we decided to stay local and head to Gengenbach, which I think was the right decision. All the more reason to make another trip back to Germany in the future to hit up my birth spot. Perhaps when we have a little more time.

This was the smallest of the markets that we visited, but it was also the sweetest town with the cutest Advent Calendar Town Hall.

Each day leading up to Christmas they perform a short play with live music in front of their beautiful Town Hall building, then they lift the one (hand painted by a different artist each year!) window that corresponds to the day. We were there to see the 24th window get lifted — a fish for the Feast of Seven Fishes! — which felt extra special.

Sunday, December 24: Strasbourg, France

We classed it up on Christmas Eve and decided to head out to FRANCE. Strasbourg was about 45 minutes away, and it was easy to drive, park, and hop on a quick train to the Christmas markets. This event was sprawling, and so, so beautiful. We were even lucky enough to catch the tree lighting, accompanied with Christmas music, of course.

The markets were gorgeous, but even the buildings in the area were so ornately decorated.

More Glühwein! You could get a small refund if you returned the cups that the wine was served in, but you best believe we kept all of them!

Such a gorgeous area! They say this is the biggest Christmas tree in the world … but you know 😉

More gorgeous buildings. I honestly could have spent days here wandering the streets and been quite content.

This girl clung to her dad like glue the whole trip, which was super annoying for him but VERY nice for me! I didn’t have to carry her AND I always knew where she was 😉

Thank you Strasbourg for a very special, unforgettable Christmas Eve!

Of course there are a very many more Christmas markets in Germany (and France and everywhere else in Europe, really) to visit, but these were centrally located to our house and I had read great things about them. After having now actually been to them, I can agree: There is nothing like Christmas in Europe. It stands alone. Nowhere else compares. The end.

After spending a relaxing Christmas Day and Boxing Day eating, drinking, hanging at our house, watching movies and playing games, we spent our final day in Germany checking out a bit more of the view around our town and heading to Lake Mummelsee, a beautiful lake with a quirky story.

Glorious views (and sun!) on our final day in Germany!

Driving through the Black Forest to reach the lake also provided for some gorgeous views! Don’t forget the Dramamine!

Every day in Germany was fabulous, and the last day was no different.

I’ll be honest, friends … I had a lot of anxiety leading up to this trip. I worried someone would get sick or get hurt, and as our friends started dropping like flies to illness as our departure date got closer, I only got more and more nervous. Once we were on our flight to Germany, though, I realized … there’s nothing you can do about that. I could spend the trip worried, or I could relax and enjoy and know that we would handle whatever came our way.

Luckily, I can now say that other than a few coughs here and there, we were all GREAT. No illnesses to note. So see that? All that worrying was for naught. Wouldn’t a crystal ball be great so we could know all ends well ahead of time?

Anyway, that was about it for our Germany (and France!) expedition, friends! I’ll be back tomorrow with the second installment (third country!) of our adventure: SWITZERLAND!

Bis bald, friends!