Christkindlmarket brings German-style Christmas to Chicago

Photo from chriskindlmarket.com/The Chriskindlmarket runs through December 24.

By Sean Keenehan
Section Editor

You do not have to travel to Europe to experience a true, authentic German-style Christmas this year. Look no further than downtown Chicago as Daley Plaza transforms into a European Christmas village, reminiscent of the traditional Christkindlmarket in Nurmberg, Germany.

Christkindlmarket Chicago is complete with potato pancakes, goulash, schnitzel, bratwurst, sauerkraut, and decadent gingerbread, as well as plenty of other German delicacies.

Keep warm and wash your meal down with hot chocolate or hot, spiced German Gluhwein.

Crafty vendors line Daley Plaza in small booths, which offer traditional German holiday novelties that include handmade quilts and mittens, candles and soaps made of honey, hand carved wooden dolls and clocks, and a variety of pewter ornaments and beer steins.

Christkindlmarket Chicago is an annual holiday tradition in Chicago that has been in Daley Plaza since 1996.

Visit the Christkindlmarket in Daley Plaza until December 24. It’s open daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., with reduced hours from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Christmas Eve.

Sean is the section editor for A and E and Co-Exist. He can be contacted at artsent.coexist@luchameleon.com.