Basel Christmas market

The medieval streets of Basel were made for Christmas. Divided in two, the Christmas market sets up in Barfüsserplatz, the central hub of the Old Town, and in Münsterplatz, the vast square (well, it’s a rectangle) outside Basel’s twin-towered cathedral. Christmas here is big business – the tourist office estimates around 900,000 people come to the city each festive season – so you can expect to find a wide range of goods on offer on the near-200 market stalls. Browse handmade gifts, toys, clothing, jewellery and pick up local edible specialities such as Läckerli biscuits. As you’d expect, everything is decorated with twinkly lights and enormous fir trees.