European Christmas Market Guide (don’t have FOMO next year), Real IDs, and Updated Tips

Ciao Reader,

We stayed home (in Lucca) for the 2025 Holidays. Here are our experiences and some things to think about if you are considering an Italian Christmas next year.

Having lived in Italy for 3.5 years now, we knew that we needed to plan ahead if we were staying home for the holidays. We know that there will be events and traditions not to miss, but we also know there will be holiday hours and closures to be aware of.

When it comes to grocery shopping and planning to cook at home, we knew we had to consider 2 things in order to plan our menus efficiently. We had to think about the weather (because we don’t drive) and the opening days and hours of the grocery stores. Christmas holidays in Italy begin on December 8th and are sprinkled on the calendar through January 6th. Here is a quick rundown of the holidays and a general idea of what to expect.

• December 8th is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception- shops have limited hours (closing early).
• December 24th, most stores and restaurants are open (if they aren’t closed for the season). But may have early closing times.
• December 25th, stores will be closed or have limited hours, and some restaurants will be closed. Since not all restaurants are closed, the ones that are open are busy. Book in advance if you want to dine out during the holiday.
• New Year's Eve & New Year's Day- some places are open, and busier since others are closed.
• On New Year's Day, most public services are closed (including grocery stores and some public transportation).
• January 6th is Epiphany- many shops and restaurants are closed or have limited hours- again, plan accordingly and book in advance.

What do Italians eat for the holidays? This year, we planned a meal based around what we felt like making and enjoying, so we sort of missed the mark on Italian tradition, but we are ok with that. We had Charlene’s green bean casserole (made from scratch and adapted from an Alton Brown recipe), Candace made delicious fluffy mashed potatoes, and Charlene tried a new recipe, Peposo. Peposo is a traditional Tuscan beef stew. It’s simple and made with lots of pepper and slow-cooked in a bottle of Chianti. It was fantastic. While we really enjoyed this, we think next year we might lean into traditional Italian Christmas foods.

• Christmas Eve- in some parts of Italy, the tradition is the feast of 7 fishes. This is more popular in Sicily and the southern parts of Italy, but you will find some families that observe this tradition in other parts of Italy. This is mostly a religious tradition, but hey, 7 fish dishes? What’s not to love? - except when you are cooking for 2 people, this is a bit too much. Many don’t make 7 dishes anymore, but instead just make everything they have with some fish or seafood (they avoid meat for Christmas Eve).
• Christmas Day- There isn’t a set Christmas dinner tradition, and it likely varies by region. The tradition that we want to participate in next year is tortellini in brodo for lunch on Christmas Day. Tortellini in brodo (tortellini in broth) originated in Bologna but has become popular in many parts of Italy. The most common tortellini is with prosciutto; some will make it with other fillings, but usually some kind of meat. We’ve heard it's really good with mortadella, but we haven’t found this yet.
  • You will find tortellini in brodo on the menu in most restaurants at this time, or you can make it at home. If you want to make it, we recommend finding a fresh pasta bodega rather than buying the tortellini from the grocery store. Our local spot had a line out the door the day before Christmas. We will probably order this in advance. Top this with some freshly grated Parmigiano, comfort food at its finest.
• Panettone- a sweet, cakelike bread that originated in Milan. The classic is made with raisins and candied orange peel, then topped with almonds and sugar sprinkles (confetti). Traditionally, this is had for dessert on Christmas Eve and sometimes with breakfast on Christmas Day. A panettone is large (too much for 2), so we skipped it on Christmas, but we got some for New Year's because we had guests. This is the first year we bought it at a pasticceria instead of the grocery store- what a difference!

You may be wondering what Italians do to ring in the New Year. Some things are quite the same: a nice meal, usually with seafood, and a midnight toast (or brindisi) with champagne or bubbles. They often eat lentils on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day, as they resemble coins and are meant to bring good luck. Maybe we’ll do this next year, but we didn’t this year. Most restaurants will have a Capodanno menu (Capodanno is New Year's). You will also see “Menù di San Silvestro” because December 31st is also the feast of Saint Sylvester.

These menus are usually a prix fixe menu. If you plan to dine out, it’s smart to see if you can find the prix fixe menus before you make a reservation. Or find a restaurant that is offering the standard or à la carte menu.

Most cities, big and small, will have celebrations. One or more of the towns’ Piazzas will be filled with people, music, lights, and maybe fireworks. These parties usually kick off around 10 pm and go until 2 or 3 am. The vibe of these parties will vary by city, and some towns may have bands or performances, while others will have dj’s. Think NY city ball drop, but Italian style, and without the ball.

Our cousin visited from Germany this year. We had a beautiful day walking around Lucca on a sunny winter day, followed by dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in town. Then we got a bottle of prosecco to go, and had a toast on our balcony while counting down and watching the fireworks. Maybe next year we’ll actually go to the party, but this was the perfect speed for this year's crew.

On New Year's Day, we went to Pisa, our cousin and his girlfriend got to see the famous tower, and we found some tasty pasta. The buses weren’t running in Lucca, so we took a taxi to the train station. All the shops in Pisa were closed (retail shops and grocery stores). Some cafes, restaurants, and eateries were closed, but enough were open that it didn’t affect us. This was also the case a couple of years ago when we spent New Year's in Florence, and it’s probably like this in most major cities.

Make Sure You Have A RealID And Avoid a $45 fee at TSA This is a short reminder, as of February 1, 2026, you will be charged $45 for your identity verification at the TSA checkpoint if you don’t have a Real ID. If you are a family, this will add up quickly- a family of 4, that’s almost $200. Honestly, if you don’t have one by now, we aren’t even sure how that’s possible. This travel restriction was first brought up in 2005. It hit delays and more delays, well, 20 years later, it’s finally a reality. Real IDs became a requirement on May 7, 2025. If you don’t have one, it’s time to get one.

What you need to know to plan your European Christmas Market Trip.

I know, you're thinking Christmas is over, why are we still talking about this? Well, if you had FOMO seeing the Christmas market pictures this year, you might be thinking about planning a winter trip for later this year. If you’ve seen photos of busy Christmas Markets, full of stands with unique gifts, delicious street foods, and warm, hot mulled wine, you’ve probably considered a Christmas in Europe. Why not? It looks cozy, charming, fun, and like a really good time. We love the Christmas markets, we went to our local one 4 times, and it’s not even very big.

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​History of European Christmas Markets

Since this is a newsletter, we are going to keep this brief. There is a lot of information about the origins of the Christmas markets we see today; these are the main highlights. Christmas markets were originally called December fairs. Their purpose was to sell supplies and ingredients that would be needed for the coming winter season. They originated in German-speaking countries and date back as far as the mid-1200s (yes, medieval times). In 1434, in Dresden, Germany, the first official Christmas market (Christkindlmarkt in German) was held for one day, on Christmas Eve.

Evolution of Christmas Markets

Over the years, prepared food items and treats began to be sold at the markets, as well as handmade items that make lovely Christmas gifts. In the early 1400s, market stalls started serving hot mulled wine. It became further popularized in the 1890s when vendors began competing with different recipes and custom mugs with their logos, to serve the warming beverage in. In some markets, you will find ice skating rinks and rides (like a Ferris wheel or other carnival-like rides). Markets are now filled with Christmas lights and decorations, too. Christmas markets bring a huge dose of holiday cheer and a great atmosphere.

Christmas Markets Across Europe

It wasn’t until the 1900s that non-German-speaking countries started hosting Christmas markets. Now you can find them all over Europe, in the United Kingdom, and of course in the United States. Some are certainly better than others, and the truth is that the German ones really are the best. While the German ones are the best, there are many others that are still worth a visit. Many countries do a version of the hot mulled wine, and have different names for all of them. In Germany, it’s Glühwein, in France it’s Vin Caldo, in Italy it’s Vin Brulé, and so on. You will also find other hot alcoholic beverages. In Nuremberg, we found a hot appfel punch, and they added Di Sarano to it (OMG, it was like hot apple pie). Another is the Feuerzangenbowl- a version of hot mulled wine that has a brandy or rum-soaked sugar cone, which is lit on fire and dripped into the wine. It’s intense but so good.

Our favorite Christmas market we’ve been to (so far) is the one in Nuremberg, Germany. The first one we went to was in Berlin, Germany. We were instantly in love with the concept. Our favorite in Italy is in Arezzo, but we haven’t been to Bolzano yet (and Bolzano has the biggest one in Italy, it’s also the first one in Italy, and has a big German/Austrian influence). The Christmas market we went to in Paris in 2015 had lots of international street food, which we loved. We still have a lot of Christmas markets to visit; these are some that are at the top of our list (in no particular order):

• Germany: Dresden (1st official Christmas Market), Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, & Rothenberg Ob Der Tauber
• France: Strasbourg, & Colmar
• Austria: Vienna, & Innsbruck
• Italy: Bolzano (the largest and oldest in Italy), Arezzo, & Trento
• Poland: Gdańsk (ranked #1 in Europe in 2025), & Poznań

Tips on planning a visit to Christmas Markets

1. Check the dates! Dates are going to vary widely; some start as early as mid-November and others not until the 2nd weekend of December. Some end just before Christmas (the weekend before), some end before New Year's, and some go all the way through Epiphany (Jan 6th). Double-check the opening dates, as some dates we have found were only the initial building of the market. Some will start out with just some weekend hours, too, and some will also have shorter hours at the beginning or on days like Monday.
2. Dress Warm! Even if you plan to drink lots of hot wine, you should wear layers, a warm coat, bring gloves, and a beanie too. Our Christmas Market coats are referred to as our sleeping bag jackets. They are long, they zip, they button, they have big pockets, and they are incredibly warm and cozy. This will apply if you are in Northern Italy and most of the rest of Europe. Southern Italy won’t be as cold. And we really haven’t heard much about Christmas markets in Spain or Portugal.
3. Bring Cash. While most vendors will take cards, it will be quicker for you to pay with cash, and if the vendor isn’t getting a good wifi signal, their card machine may not work (we experienced this in Arezzo).
4. Buy Local. The Christmas market tradition is to get some local handmade types of gifts (jewelry, scarves, hats, blankets, pottery, candles, soaps, ornaments, etc.) You will see stands that have cheap PCR stuff, and you can buy it if you want, but we think it’s better to support the local economy.
5. Go hungry. There are so many tasty foods and treats to try, so go hungry and snack your way through the market.
6. Plan multiple days. If you are going to a larger market, you may not get all your shopping done, or get to try all the things in one visit. Plan to go a few times while you are in town to really get the most out of the Christmas cheer.

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