Berlin Xmas markets

[Shitshower]

I want to take my kids to Berlin for the Christmas markets.
Due to school I would need to fly Friday evening and return late Sunday afternoon.

I’d like to do the zoo and markets.

I am not a natural at travelling, so is this long enough to go for? I don’t want to frantically rush stuff, but there are time constraints to going.

Also, where is a good area to stay so that I’m not travelling miles??

Thanks!

If you're goign to come back Saturday night, why bother taking them out of school? Unless tha tmakes it cheaper for trains/hotels?

I thought I could go Thurs evening and have all day Fri and Sat , then travel back, or stay until the Sunday.

Thurs evening trains much cheaper, it’s also cheap Fri morning but I don’t think I could get us to St Pancras at 7am

Yeah, that makes sense from a cost perspective. It's the same amount of time if you left friday night and came back Sunday night, but not surprising it's more expensive. Missing one day of school is okay I think.

I honestly think Berlin's worth a much longer visit. There are Christmas markets in different parts of the city, and that makes it difficult to enjoy in such a short window.

As everyone else has said, I'd go for Bruges and even if few stalls are there, it's just a magical place and you can definitely visit in a weekend.

We went last year December to Berlin, Friday out, Sunday back.

We weren't at the hotel until 11pm and had to leave on Sunday at 3pm. We walked around the Reichstag, Brandenburger Tor and East Side Gallery which has the largest section of the Wall still standing.

We stayed in a hotel near the Anhalter Bahnhof.

Market wise we went to the one at Bebelsplatz (more expensive items and you have an entrance fee) and loved the one at Rotes Rathaus (Red Townhall).
The couple of stalls at the Alexanderplatz were not worth stopping but we had lunch there.

There is one at the Charlottenburg Palace but that was too far out for us.

The Zoo - last year it was below freezing, snow on the ground and we were bundled up. Not a place I would go to in winter.

We actually went back for 5 days this Summer, had lots of time to do various things and it's worth more than just 36 hours.

I’m actually thinking I might go there with them in the summer. I think we will all appreciate it when it is above freezing.
Im quite keen to go to Germany

@Shitshower Summer is great, it was hot, we had 30 degrees each day but it didn't feel that you couldn't do anything.

Plenty of interesting museums, lots to do. The transport network is good as well.

We stayed in a s/c flat, hotels do come really expensive if you need 2 rooms and have to eat out each day as well.

I went to Cologne Christmas market many years ago. It was wonderful and near to the cathedral which is really impressive.

How did you get to Vienna? Is that on the Eurostar route?

You can of course get to Vienna by train but not if you only have a weekend because it will eat up nearly all your time.

I love Berlin at Christmas, the Christmas markets are great. I think your itinerary looks too rushed to me. I would definitely take want to stay. For 3 nights minimum. (And, to be honest, Berlin zoo was not that great when we visited. It's a small site and the enclosures were just depressing.) Much better things to see....

Budapest Christmas market is lovely and it's a pretty cheap break. Lots of nice modern apartments centrally to rent which would be perfect with kids.

We have been to the Berlin Christmas markets many times now over the last 20 years or so. I think the best place to stay is around the Old Town or Alexanderplatz and it's easy to catch the train everywhere else. There's a lot of markets. There used to be a lot near the opera/Dom area but that had turned into a building site last time we went. There still is a huge one near the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedachnichtkirche/Ku'damm but the best market as far as we were concerned is at Spandau. It's only at the weekend (or was) but the shops are also open and they have fairgrounds, they have oompah bands, there's a really good cake shop there and older kids will get a lot out of going round the Zitadelle. Don't underestimate the cold! We have always gone Fri to Mon. We went once to Vienna and didn't like it nearly as much.

Check Ghent which is a bit nearer to Brussels than Bruges as an option. Not sure about the Christmas market but a lovely place to visit in winter.