We wanted to check out some famous Christmas Markets in France for the weekend and to do that DiploBaby had to take Joker Days for the very first time this year. Will have to do a separate post on WHAT JOKER DAYS ARE when I have time!
By the way feel free to click on the names of places to see where they are on Google Maps and more complete pictures and my review.
Why we stayed in Bad Krozingen
Bad Krozingen, Germany is around 3.5 to 4hrs from Geneva. There are a couple of reasons we stayed here:
- It has the famous healthy-giving thermal baths: VITA CLASSICA
- It a 30mins drive to FREIBURG where we plan to do our (semi)annual shopping in
- TK MAXX
- DM DRUGSTORE – Pharmacy where I get my natural make up & toiletries
- GALERIA DEPARTMENT STORE – to look at Black Friday Sale for jewelry & get a NIEDEREGGER ADVENT CALENDAR
- And they also have a small CHRISTMAS MARKET.
- It’s 45 mins to the EGUISHEIM CHRISTMAS MARKET in the Alsace region of France
- Then it’s a 15min drive from EQUISHEIM to COLMAR
OPTIONAL: It’s a 1hr 15min drive to the STRASBOURG CHRISTMAS MARKET. This might be too far for us though.
It’s a great place to stay when going to the Christmas Markets mentioned because it’s almost impossible to find accommodations in the Christmas Market towns or it would be very expensive.
Since we would be out the whole day, we stayed in a budget hotel called HOTEL VIER JAHRESZEITEN, which is less than half the rate of HOTEL NOURI (a luxury hotel we stayed at last March 2025 when we were going to enjoy the baths for 2 days).
Our Christmas Market Goals
These are our goals, but we are flexible because it will also depend on how much time we have, if there is any place to park and if there is too much people.
- Freiburg, Germany (where we will shop coz it’s much cheaper than Switzerland!)
- Eguisheim, France
- Colmar, France
- Strasbourg, France maybe coz it’s 1.5hrs away
DAY 1: Drive to Bad Krozingen
We left super late on Friday after class because packing was hard with an injured thumb. We left at almost 4:30pm which is already rush hour so we took longer than if we had left mid-day. First, we got gas in the Shell near our place so that we could use the Diplomatic gas card. Then we drove for a bit.
We did one stop at around 6pm to have dinner at this rest stop with a McDonald’s in Restoroute Rose De La Broye which always has a lot of parking. The toilets are clean at CHF1 per person (kids go for free) and we get a CHF 0.50 voucher back for the Restoshop.
At 8:30pm we crossed the border from Switzerland into Weil am Rhein, Germany. By 9:15pm we were going into our hotel rooms in Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten, Bad Krozingen.
HOTEL VIER JAHREZEITEN
DAY 2: Shopping in Freiburg
We had breakfast included with our stay so we left after breakfast. Saturday was our day for shopping because shops are closed on Sundays in Germany. We shop in Germany 1-2x a year because the high-quality, natural products that are a fraction of the cost of similar goods in Switzerland. What we usually buy:
Toiletries
Makeup
Gifts
Giftwrappers
100% natural candles, including the scent
Kitchen stuff like pots & cooking utensils
Clothes
Shoes
Natural Dog treats & accessories
We drove 30mins to Freiburg and parked in SCHLOSSBERGGARAGE which is close to the Old Town where the Shopping and Christmas Market would be. It conveniently has a free WC/toilet.
First we had lunch at the multi-awarded, MICHELIN GUIDE-listed BASHO-AN JAPANESE RESTAURANT. Highly recommended and “Asian-standards good!”
Then it was time to shop. These are the stores we visited in Freiburg:
- UNTERDENLINDEN APOTHEKE to load up on medication since we were under the weather (colds & flu symptoms)
- WOLLE RÖDEL great for embroiderers, sewers, crocheter, knitters, etc.
- DM DROGEREI MARKT for natural cosmetics & toiletries + snacks + xmas supplies
- GALERIA DEPARTMENT STORE for fine jewelry & Niederegger Chocolates
- WMF for stainless steel kitchen supplies & cutlery
- TK MAXX for gifts, candles, toys, food, toiletries & gift-wrapping supplies
We had quick dinner of BRATWURST with bread at the FREIBURG CHRISTMAS MARKET. It was so crowded on a weekend but worth it.
DAY 3: Christmas Markets
EGUISHEIM
We explored the EGUISHEIM CHRISTMAS MARKET
Riesling wine tasting at FREUDENREICH JOSEPH et FILS WINERY – YUM!
Late lunch at CAVEAU D’EGUISHEIM to enjoy Alsatian cuisine. Not all restaurants are open in between lunch and dinner servings so we were lucky that this was recommended to us by the proprietor of FREUDENREICH JOSEPH et FILS WINERY.
COLMAR
We parked at PARKING PLACE RAPP which is right under Noël Féerique Colmar (Magical Christmas in Colmar) which for me was the best one in Colmar even and if you go on a weekend, this is the one I recommend to you. They even have tables with a roof so you can enjoy your food unlike the other markets.
As we were walking to the other Christmas Market, I saw a store that really called out to me called FRANCK EBSTEIN Natural & Made to Measure. I found some gems from Finland and it’s a store you go into if you want some of the HYGGE & high quality Scandi lifestyle items. The owners were so sweet & helpful especially since I realize when I was trying to pay that my credit card was missing! Click on THIS LINK to read how they were so nice.
On the reel you can see how gorgeous Colmar Christmas Markets are but also the reality of going on the weekend. I was also disappointed with the booths with cheap China-made stuff. I recommend you go on a weekday to avoid the crazy crowds.
DAY 4: Looking for Credit Card & Going Home
So right at 10am we called TK MAXX and after verifying, they said they had my card! Yay!!!! So happy! We all wanted to go back to eat in the MICHELIN LISTED JAPANESE RESTO.. but they are closed on MONDAYS!
Before leaving BAD KROZINGEN we dropped by the BAD APOTHEKE (there’s a parking, but you need to have a parking disk coz it’s only for customers for 60mins) for a NOSE BIDET & their DM PHARMACY to see if we could find LAVERA NATURAL COSMETICS & other things that we didn’t find in DM FREIBURG.
We ended up eating in this delicious Vietnamese Restaurant called PHO 1986. The servings were massive and the food was delicious!
We were so full after so we walked around the FREIBURG CHRISTMAS MARKET to digest. We got some treats for DiploDog from Hundebäckerei Luckys Leckerlis and found the holy grail of soft nougats: NUTELLA FLAVOR! It’s sooooo good, guys!
We went back to GALERIA Freiburg am Bertoldsbrunnen to grab more NIEDEREGGER CHOCOLATES (look for the ones without marzipan). They have an amazing collection of Advent Calendars!
Then we headed over to TK MAXX to grab a few more things that we had forgotten, then went to pay and retrieve my credit card. Phew!
Right before going back to the car, we decided to go into LUKE SCHUHE to see if we had any luck with their sale. I’m specifically looking for brown boots for wide feet & calves ,and I found the perfect ones from ARA GERMANY for less than half the price of my ECCO boots, and they’re just as comfortable!
We happily drove back home knowing we saved so much by getting our supplies in Germany, made memories as a family, and enjoyed such delicious food without breaking the bank!
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