My husband and I are planning a 10 day trip to visit Christmas markets. We are flying into Vienna (4nights) then on to Nuremberg (2nights) on to Strasbourg (3nights) possibly Colmar (1night) on to Zurich for the last night before flying out the following day.
We have always travelled by car on previous trips as we enjoy the countryside. Since we are staying in large cities, I think that it would be best to travel by train. We have not been frequent train goers in the past, but I don’t think that driving and paying for parking makes sense. I have looked into both the Austrian and German sites for train travel, avoiding third party websites.
I would appreciate any suggestions regarding the itinerary and transportation. Many thanks!

Moved from Tech Support to the Europe Forum and country tags added

Unless you are the sort of people who buy annual Disney passes, you might find yourselves in Christmas market overload. (No, I am not comparing Disney parks to Christmas markets but simply pointing out that there can be too much of a good thing, just like people who go to too many museums, cathedrals or castles.) However, it is definitely interesting to compare the variations in Christmas market styles in different countries to not keep seeing the same thing again and again.

Have to agree with Kerouac on the too much of a good thing. When we lived in Austria, our first couple of years were spent "overindulging" on Christmas markets. The big markets (Vienna's and Munich's Cristkindlmarkts, for example) have some cheap, imported items and lack the more authentic Christmas market feeling. We quickly soured on those markets, and spent the weekends leading up to Christmas visiting smaller, and more intimate, markets. Some of our favorite markets never made the "must-do" lists that the tourism folks push out.

The TL;DR is "do your research wisely."

I like the itinerary and your travel by train mode. But, a few years ago, we took a Christmas market tour from Berlin to Vienna and found that, after a few stops, we were suffering from Christmas market overload. There was simply not enough difference among them. That said, the Strasburg Christmas market is definitely hard to beat. And, each of those cities provides enough to see and do other than visiting its Christmas market. So, enjoy your trip and stay warm!

Great perspectives and experiences, thx! We will definitely start in Vienna and move on to Nuremberg for a couple of nights. After Nuremberg we will travel towards Strasbourg. We are new at this train traveling, will have to do some homework. I am wondering about staying somewhere outside of Strasbourg and traveling in for a couple of days trips. The hotels are very expensive during the holidays, to be expected. Also looks like there are several smaller villages in the area which might be fun to visit if transportation to and from is possible.
I did look at the train schedule from Vienna to Nuremberg and wondered if it is wise to schedule and purchase tickets now or wait until after we arrive in Vienna. I have read that they can get pretty expensive if booked close to the date of travel. Fortunately I guess, we do qualify for senior passage!
I totally agree, there is much to see other than markets. We have never been to Vienna, looks like a beautiful city. I welcome all suggestions!!

Obernai is a good smaller town on a commuter line to Strasbourg (about 20 minutes). It has its own very pleasant and authentic Christmas market, not at all on the same scale as fabulous Strasbourg.

If you can fly out of GVA:
https://www.montreuxnoel.com/en/

You can avoid market overload if you also see and do other things in your selected locations.
Spend a couple of hours visiting during daylight and return after dark when the atmosphere is different.
In cities where there are numerous markets, choose which ones you visit carefully. Do some research. Each market has a different vibe and sells different types of products.

We have found a combination of London or Paris with a a few Christmas markets works well. The Christmas markets in London and Paris are a pass but lots of other things to do.

FWIW, we really enjoy Zurich around Advent. Its markets are spread out a bit but the whole Altstadt is decorated for the season. One of our favorite Zurich events is the Singing Christmas tree, which features various choirs and choruses singing live both traditional and more contemporary holiday music. Many of the restaurants are decorated as well. As for hotels, if you're flying out of Zurich, we recommend the Hyatt at the airport (in The Circle).
https://www.singingchristmastree.ch/

As for Nuremberg's market, it is deservedly famous but that also makes it very crowded, esp on week-ends. We liked Bamberg's market better, although our favorite Christmas markets are in Dresden (it has more than one market).

Thoughts on whether I should purchase the train tickets now or in country from Vienna to Nuremberg. Booked lodging in both Vienna and Nuremberg. Also the Hyatt at the airport in Zurich. Strasbourg, late in the game, has been a bit more challenging. There is pricey availability, one of the issues is booking a four night stay. May need to change hotels. Also looking at staying outside in a smaller village. I do need to look at Obernai. Not planning to rent a car. Thoughts?

We just stayed at the Hyatt Place (The circle) in Zurich a few nights ago. Solid choice.

I'm doing a similar trip in late November, early December and have already booked our rail and seat reservations. To be honest, I didn't spend a ton of time researching whether to buy now or later. We have our dates locked in and decided to travel by train so why wait? We are traveling VIE to SLZ for 1 night so we booked a one way train and then a second one way train from SLZ to ZRH the following day. I have never been to the Vienna Christmas market but have always wanted to go. I have been to the Salzburg market and if you have time to go, I'd highly recommend it! I have also been to Nuremburg and it's huge. I don't think I bought a lot at this market but I remember it being nice. When in Nuremberg try to get to Regensburg, which is a quick daytrip from Nuremburg and has several markets that are quite nice! I can't remember the name of it but one of them is in a courtyard and we had to pay for entry but the atmosphere and items they were selling were like nothing else. The town is small and you can walk from the train station. You will love Strasbourg too---which is also one of my personal faves! Enjoy your trip! If you know your dates, you may way to buy your train tickets now so you can select based on the times you want vs. what's leftover. Make sure you buy seat reservations too otherwise you're not guaranteed a seat.

We did a 3 week Christmas trip a couple years back and it was awesome with a couple disappointments. Did not get market fatigue at all.

The not so good:
1) Prague: we booked the trip almost a year ahead and so we were there a couple days before market. Based on preparation, it was small and for tourists

2) Brugge: small and clearly geared towards tourists

The good:
1) Nuremberg: it was a massive market but the city was dark and disappointing. I would not spend more than 2 days here.

2) Strasbourg: beautiful town and magical setting but not as great as we imagined it. We visited it before in summer and it was much better then.

3) Brussels: was surprisingly good. The town was also beautiful which confused me because it is not popular on this site at all.

The great:
1) Vienna: we love the city as we had been there a couple times in summer and it did not disappoint. Our favourite Christmas city with multiple markets. We also caught a nice opera show.

2) Strasbourg: fantastic with multiple markets but not as many nor as big as Vienna. What set it apart is the day trip to Colmar. If I were to do it again, I would probably spend 2 nights in Colmar. It was magical at night but super crowded.

3) Heidelberg: we wanted to break up the long train ride between Nuremberg and Strasbourg and chose this based on feedback from here. It was awesome, both the markets and the city. It was a wonderful surprise.

We plan to do this again in a few years and we will revisit the "great" list and some other new places.

There is certainly considerable benefit in buying your train tickets in advance.

As an exercise, using the OBB site, I priced Vienna to Nurnberg for tomorrow and early December. For the same train, 1313 from Vienna, 17.29 in Nirnberg. Tomorrow 129 euros' Early December 35 euros

I'll just share my thoughts. I love train travel in Europe but my #1 concern is packing light because each person has to deal with their own luggage and do so quickly. A friend and I have considered a winter trip with an interest in the Christmas markets. Her #1 interest is visiting Germany. My hesitation is that she is a heavy packer. I don't think I can deal with my luggage and her luggage too - and I'm pretty sure that would be the case. We've talked about this trip since Covid and I'm not sure it will ever happen. It MAY happen if we fly into Germany at the same time other friends will be there and my best friend's husband will drive us around. Add in purchases at the markets and I just get overwhelmed with the images of dealing with getting the bags on and off the trains.

I travel lightly for work trips - and take carry-on. A roller bag and a tote and I'm set. For winter trips (out west) I check because I need more in winter = snow boots and heavy coat. I can make it work with a duffle instead of the tote, but it's pushing the carry-on limits. For me, in winter.

I would think about that if your goal is visiting the Christmas market.

Since you are used to driving, if it were me I would make this a driving trip.

Later on you say that you are already planning to stay outside of the big cities and take the train in. I'd just do that.

It seems that your #1 concern is parking. That's a bit confusing to me. Why exactly? The cost? If so, just budget in the parking costs and make it easier on yourself. If you are staying in smaller towns or villages, the cost for parking may be lower or free. On a two week July trip to Italy last year I rented a car for part of the trip. The place we were staying in Tuscany had free parking. For our nights in Florence I chose an American hotel with free parking and we took the trolley into the city for the day. One afternoon we were so hot and tired we took a cab back and it was not as expensive as I expected. Well worth it anyway. Especially on a hot day in Florence.

None of this may apply to you. You may pack super light, may not plan to buy anything other than small items (tea towels and jewelry) so that bringing home items will not be a concern. If you do buy a treasures, you may plan to ship those items home, instead of packing them and carrying them home in luggage. There are a lot of variables and each person is different.

I was on a group trip last year and two couples missed their departure because it took more time to gather their luggage and get off the train than they realized. The rest of the group was standing at the train station until the leader and the "lost" made arrangements via phone on how to reconnect with the group. If you are a newbie to train travel, just read and ask questions and be prepared to move quickly. If I ever take the winter trip with my friend, I've already decided that we will fly between cities instead of trains. My friend is older (than I), has a problem foot so moves slowly and is a heavy packer. I hope we get to take the trip one year, but my #1 stressor is the thought of getting on and off the train with luggage.

Please disregard if none of this applies to you.

Adding - another friend and I took a December trip with days in Paris before and after a river cruise. To be honest, one or two of the Christmas markets in Paris were enough for us but we did enjoy the very small Christmas market in a smaller town. The vendors had different things to sell and we both bought from a wonderful jewelry vendor.

I would love to know some of your favorite smaller markets. Last year we went to Tallinn’s market that we loved. It was very charming and I loved the many Estonian made items. We went home via Frankfurt and we were disappointed by how crowded and mass produced the offerings were.

Don't omit Salzburg. I have been to all the markets you list over the years and many others and my all time favourite market is in Salzburg.