Visiting Vienna

Each Christmas, the forecourt in front of Schönbrunn Palace is turned into a Christmas Market of the better sort. Indeed, the Schönbrunn version ranks in the top three in Vienna, alongside the markets on the Rathausplatz and Spittelberg.

The palace and its outbuildings form an impressive backdrop which is reflected in the quality of the wares. There are no stalls selling cheap watches or plastic soldiers. Instead, you get products from the workshops of candle makers, glass blowers, wood carvers, potteries, stonemasons and other traditional artists and artisans.

It’s a great place to find traditional Christmas gifts and decorations harking back to a time when plastic was still a twinkle in some chemist’s inventive eye.

The food stalls are also a throwback to another era: Victorian-style candy and sweets, traditional gingerbread and cookies, steaming baked potatoes, strawberries dipped in hot chocolate, melted cheese on dark bread, roast chestnuts, pastries…it’s nigh on impossible to walk round without buying something to eat.

The roughly 60 stalls form a large ring, with a giant Christmas tree on the palace side. A small stage plays host to open-air (and free) advent concerts, with performers from around the world…everyone from the IBM company chorus to American high school choirs.

There’s also a programme of events in the surrounding buildings. The 2005 market, for example, has an exhibition of angels inside the palace. You can also take a guided tour which explains some of the Austrian Christmas traditions, like gingerbread and the Christkind.

Children can bake Christmas cookies in the Imperial Bakery or take part in various seasonal activities at the Schönbrunn Children’s Museum.

Like the other markets, it can get very busy. And very cold; the open layout offers little protection from the wind. My tip is to go at dusk, around 4pm, on a weekday. The advent concerts tend to be in the afternoons, and the darkness adds a little extra to the atmosphere. But it’s not peak visiting time. If you really don’t like crowds, then go in the morning.

In 2005, the Schönbrunn Christmas market runs from November 19th to December 26th, from 10am to 8.30pm (it closes earlier on its last three days).

To reach the market, follow the general instructions for finding the palace.

Address: Schloß Schönbrunn, 1130 Vienna
Website: http://www.weihnachtsmarkt.co.at/ (with an English version)

This entry is filed under Schönbrunn, Christmas markets.