The best Christmas markets in the U.S.

As you might expect in a place called Bethlehem, this Pennsylvania town is a big Christmas destination just like its Biblical namesake (it even calls itself the Christmas City). The annual Christkindlmarkt covers 10 acres with shopping, food and live music. Check off everything on your Christmas shopping list with more than 100 vendors coming from as far away as Germany to help you find everything from art to home goods. Feast on traditional German treats like strudel and pretzels, plus modern street food favorites like chicken and waffles.

Dates: Nov 13–15, 20–22, 27–29; Dec 3–6, 10–13, 17–20

Price: $14, free entry on Fridays from 5-8pm

Address: PNC Plaza at SteelStacks, 645 East First St, Bethlehem

Not only is Denver Christkindlmarket in Civic Center Park an authentic German holiday market complete with wooden huts, glühwein and Krampus, but it is also a certified green event by the City of Denver. Since 1998, locals have celebrated the season under twinkling lights in the heart of Denver. Revelers can reserve a table in Festival Hall and listen to music, walk through Visit Denver’s Mile High Tree, (the U.S.’s tallest LED Christmas tree) and buy handmade holiday gifts from international vendors and local small businesses.

Dates: Nov 20–Dec 23

Price: Free, additional fees for table reservations and workshops

Address: Auraria Campus, Tivoli Quad, 1000 Larimer St, Denver

The Great Dickens Christmas Fair is one of the most unique holiday markets in the U.S. Organizers transform the Cow Palace arena outside San Francisco into Dickensian London with hundreds of performers and vendors dressed in Victorian costumes. Wander through music halls and festive shops filled with handmade goods, have a pint at Mad Sal’s Dockside Inn and sample festive foods like roasted chestnuts, fish and chips and Christmas pudding. Interact with beloved Dickens characters like Tiny Tim, Bob Cratchit and Father Christmas. Activities, including a miniature live steam train, Champagne tasting, Port and chocolate tasting, the Jekyll and Hyde Pub Crawl, and a Sherlock Holmes Experience.

Dates: Nov 21, 22, 27–29; Dec 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20

Price: $50, discounts available, additional experiences extra

Address: Cow Palace Exhibition Halls, 2600 Geneva Blvd, Daly City

Inspired by Nuremberg’s historic 16th-century Christkindlesmarkt, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor comes alive with authentic German holiday spirit from Thanksgiving week through Christmas Eve. Covered in thousands of lights (including the gorgeously lit Glühwein Pyramide, a German wooden Christmas tower of mulled wine), Christmas Village in Baltimore combines an indoor and outdoor holiday market with an amusement park and beer garden. Stay warm with a mug of glühwein and Belgian fries or, if the cold doesn’t bother you, grab a large stein of German beer on tap at the Hofbrau stall.

Dates: Nov 21, 22, 26–29; Dec 2–6, 9–13, 16–24, 26-27

Price: Free, $5 heated tent entry on select weekend days

Address: West Shore Park, Baltimore

Christkindlmarket Chicago has exclusive vendors selling whimsical gifts, Christmas ornaments, and handmade wooden nutcrackers, plus savory and sweet treats like roasted nuts, fresh pretzels, bratwurst and hot spiced wine. The outdoor German-style market is so popular there are three locations, in Daley Plaza, Wrigleyville and Aurora.

Dates: Nov 20–Dec 24 (Daley Plaza and Aurora), Nov 20–Dec 31 (Wrigleyville)

Price: Free, events and experiences extra

Address: Daley Plaza, 50 W Washington St; Aurora RiverEdge Park, 360 N Broadway; Wrigleyville at Gallagher Way, 3635 N Clark St

Central Indiana is transformed into a nostalgic winter wonderland each November and December at Carmel Christkindlmarkt. An outdoor ice skating rink is the centerpiece of this outdoor German-style Christmas market. Stroll the stalls of ornaments, cuckoo clocks and nutcrackers, and indulge in festive foods like raclette sandwiches and pretzels. Children can see German artisans blow glass and carve wood in the Werkstatt (workshop) and write letters to Santa and decorate cookies at the Kinderecke (kids' corner). This year, the market is serving feuerzangenbowle, a flaming glühwein cocktail and klöße, large potato dumplings.

Dates: Nov 21, 22, 25, 27–29; Dec 2–6, 9–13, 16–24

Price: Free, skating and skate rental extra

Address: 10 Carter Green, Carmel

New York is a quintessential Christmas city, and the Union Square Holiday Market is NYC’s quintessential holiday market. It features more than 185 vendors, so you can find something for all those hard-to-shop-for friends and relatives. Weave your way through the labyrinth of stalls and treat yourself to sweet and savory treats as a reward for crossing everything off your shopping list.

Dates: Nov 12–Dec 24 (Closed Thanksgiving)

Price: Free

Address: Union Square Park, New York

D.C.’s bustling Holiday Market turns New Hampshire Ave above Dupont Circle into a daily holiday block party. It’s a chance to shop local for all your holiday gifting needs. The D.C. Holiday Market features more than 35 local artists, crafters and small businesses, plus food vendors selling everything from mini doughnuts and roasted nuts to premium cheeses and specialty teas. This annual event brings the holiday cheer to Dupont Circle.

Dates: Nov 12–Dec 23 (closed Thanksgiving and Nov 30)

Price: Free

Address: 1500 block of New Hampshire Ave, NW, D.C.

Travel the world without ever leaving Philadelphia. Christmas Village takes over Philly’s LOVE Park from late November through Christmas Eve. Shop for gifts from all over the world. In addition to shops and holiday foods, there are rides for the kids, plus beer and wine tastings for the adults. The Christmas Village is one of a quartet of holiday happenings in Philadelphia, which include the Made in Philadelphia Holiday Market and the Ice Rink at Dilworth Park and the Festival of Trees.

Dates: Nov 21–Dec 27 (closed Nov 23–25, Dec 25)

Price: Free

Address: Love Park & City Hall, 1500 Arch St, Philadelphia

Many cities have German-style markets around the holidays, but Holland, Michigan, celebrates its Dutch heritage with Kerstmarkt (similar to traditional markets that pop up across the Netherlands every December). Held at 8th Street Market Place in front of the Civic Center, Kerstmarkt features 35 rotating vendors in charming wooden booths. Special market events can also pop up, so make sure to check the calendar.

Dates: Nov 20, 21, 27, 28; Dec 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19

Price: Free

Address: 8th St Marketplace, 150 West 8th Street, Holland

You will find plenty of festive gemütlichkeit (friendliness) at the three-day Tomball German Fest. In the expansive open-air market, browse the 150-plus stalls for arts and crafts, Christmas baubles, and German souvenirs. The German heritage festival features a variety of music and dance acts performed on three stages and tempting holiday treats made by local vendors. Don’t miss the bier stein hoist contest, yodeling contest, dance fest and schuhplattler (folk dance) contest.

Dates: Dec 11–13

Price: Free

Address: 201 S Elm St, Tomball

Elkhart Lake is a bit off the beaten path, but the annual Old World Christmas Market is worth the roughly one-hour drive from Milwaukee and nearly two-hour drive from Madison. Inspired by Christkindlesmarkt of Nuremberg, Germany, the Osthoff Resort hosts regional and international artisans each year for their festive market. The giant heated tent contains unique treasures like Czech glass-blown ornaments, German hand-carved nutcrackers, fresh Christmas wreaths and handmade jewelry. You’ll also find horse-drawn wagon rides, ornament-making activities and tasty German food like sauerbraten and potato pancakes.

Dates: Dec 4–13

Price: $8

Address: Osthoff Resort, 101 Osthoff Ave, Elkhart Lake

Helen’s Christmas Market is a jolly good time. Located 90 minutes from Atlanta, the weekend holiday market in downtown Market Platz and Unicoi Hill Park is packed with festive cheer. The market has dozens of white-tented booths selling handmade Christmas decorations and artisanal gifts, plus savory and sweet foods and drinks to get you in the Christmas spirit.

Dates: Nov 28, 29; Dec 5, 6

Price: Free

Address: Unicoi Hill Park, North Main St, Helen

Once a logging hub, Leavenworth, WA reinvented itself in the 1960s as a Bavarian village—complete with Alpine architecture, food halls selling schnitzel and a Nutcracker Museum—to encourage tourism. Visiting this town in the Cascade Mountains in the winter is nothing short of magical. From Thanksgiving through February, Leavenworth becomes a real-life snow globe as more than half a million lights illuminate the village daily. Christmastown takes over during the holidays, with vendors selling gifts, live music, food at the Festhalle, strolling carolers, a gingerbread house contest, storytime, visits from Santa and Mrs. Claus and much more.

Dates: Nov 24–Dec 27

Price: Free

Address: 800–820 Front St, Leavenworth