Our child is spending a semester abroad in Europe and will be traveling with friends afterwards. They want to know the best place in Europe to spend Christmas. Their rail passes include France, Italy, Benelux, Spain, Switzerland, Germany. Any good suggestions for five 20 year olds on Christmas???

No responses??? Hasn't anyone spent Christmas in Europe?

Just beware that Christmas in Europe last longer than in America. Correct me if I´m wrong (it happens), but Christmas in the US is basically one day - December 25? I think about Christmas as a two week period, from Dec 24 to January 6 (when I throw out the Christmas tree).<BR>

If I were to spend Christmas in Europe, I think I would opt for a Christmas Market in Germany,preferrably in Dresden (the oldest market) or a similar Market in Stuttgart, Nuremburg, or Frankfurt. Either that or a ski resort in the Alps.

Christmas markets have closed before Christmas. They are not really Christmas markets but Advent markets, from late November until a day or two before Christmas. In German (Germany, Austria, Alsace, S&uuml;dtirol) they are called Christkindlmarkt. Christkindl is the same word as El Ni&ntilde;o.<BR>

No, Christmas in America is not just one day. It is November 24th and Christmas is in full economic swing here in the States. The neighbors have Christmas trees in their windows already!!!!! Any other suggestions for twentysomethings at Christmas in Europe?

I lived in Germany for 3 years and the best one was spent in Garmisch. It was like a dream come true from my childhood...snow, Midnight Mass in a quaint chapel, hot gluhwein.

I suspect the person who said that Christmas is not only one day in Europe meant that commercial ventures will be closed around Christmas time, rather than open and capitalising on the holiday. For the few days before Christmas and the days between Christmas and New Year, Europeans of Christian background tend to be holed up with their families, rather than working or shopping.<BR><BR>Is the group interested in a traditional Christmas, or would they just as rather go somewhere they can ignore the holiday? If the former, unless one or more of them has friends or family in one of the countries, their best bet might be to rent a house or apartment, or even get a group room for themselves at a hostel, stock up a couple of days before Christmas, and have their own celebration. They can still experience the atmosphere of Christmas in whatever country, and might like to attend a Church service, but there won't be much public Christmas-related stuff to do after the 23rd.<BR><BR>If they just want to be somewhere where they won't be too inconvenienced by the shut-downs, any large city with a decent-sized non-Christian population will be a good bet - Berlin, Amsterdam, and Paris are good bets. In cities, some restaurants offering traditional fare will be open on Christmas day as well, but reservations are probably a good idea.<BR><BR>

I absolutely agree with Misha - I've tried a couple of Christmasses in Europe, and it really does close down. This year we're going to London, but are going fully aware that many things will be shut down a couple of days before &amp; after Christmas.<BR><BR>2 years ago, at the last minute, we decided a Swiss Christmas would be wonderful. We prefer cities &amp; thought we'd start in Zurich &amp; work our way over to Geneva. We shortly discovered that nearly everything closes down from about the 24th of Dec. to Jan 3 or even 8. Restaurants, shops, museums, etc. The downtown area of Zurich was a ghost town (but a beautiful one!).<BR><BR>Some cities seem more &quot;open&quot; around Christmas than others - I haven't been there at Christmas, but previous posters say Paris is still pretty vibrant during that time. We ended up in Milan, and many restaurants were open, and the museums and shops were open on Dec. 24.

Britain is the only country to be avoided at Christmas as almost everything is shut on the 25th and 26th. Most other countries have both days as public holidays, but in cities and big towns, there are restaurants and caf&eacute;s open, and trains run a Sunday service. France has only the 25th as a holiday, with the 26th as a normal working day. France and other countries make more fuss over the New Year holiday; in the UK, the New Year is the big holiday in Scotland, but in England and Wales, Christmas is the only time when everything shuts.