Vienna Rathaus Christmas Market (Christkindlmarkt) Pictures

The Rathaus (city hall) plays host to a variety of seasonal events throughout the year. In December, the big event is the Christkindlmarkt / Weihnachtsmarkt / Adventmarkt (Christ Child Market / Christmas Market / Advent Market).

During this holiday event, hundreds of vendors selling everything from pastries and sweets to Christmas ornaments and handcrafts to sausage and cured meats to Punsch and Glühwein (hot, sweet drinks with rum or wine) occupy wooden stalls set up in the large place in front of the Rathaus.

Welcome to the Vienna Rathaus (City of Vienna)

During this holiday event, the Rathaus is turned into a giant Advent calender, with 24 of its large windows each covered by one of 24 cloth curtains printed with the numbers 1-24. On the First of December, the curtain with "1" printed on it is removed, revealing yet another curtain with a Christmas scene printed on it. This continues for each day of December until the 24th, when the big "24" curtain is removed from the large window on the center tower of the Rathaus. In this picture you can see five of the still-covered windows, and one (between 15 and 16) that has been uncovered already.

(38 images / photos / photographs / fotos)

The Rathaus Christkindlmarkt is the biggest and probably the most commercial of the Vienna Christmas markets. It has something of a fair atmosphere, and many of the "crafts" are, disappointingly, mass-produced plastic crud. Still, it's worth a visit.

I took all of these photos without using a tripod.

Handcrafts?

Mmmm... Pastries and sweets for the kids (and the grownups).

Heisser Punsch (hot punch) is generally made with fruit juices and rum. Jagertee (hunter tea) is yet another hot, sweet, alcholic drink. I guess most of the locals visiting the Rathaus Christkindlmarkt are interested in socializing and drinking lots of hot alcoholic drinks. Despite the large quantities of alcohol consumed that the market, the atmosphere usually remains pretty tame and family-friendly.

Hot Dog buns, corn cobs and various Punsch kettles. In Vienna, hot dog buns are not split like in the US. Instead, they are partially impaled on a pointed metal cylinder, which turns them into a sort of cup that holds your hot dog, mustard, ketchup and whatever else you order. These buns have been left on their cylinders (which are sometimes also heated), waiting for the next hungry Weinachtsmarkt-goer.

More commercial stuff.

Austrians call Chestunts "Maroni," which they probably borrowed from their Italian neighbors. The real German word for chestnuts is Kastanien. They are served hot in a little paper cone and can taste pretty good. They have a soft, somewhat dry, pasty consistency, and taste a little like a sweet potato.

Fleisch (meat) anyone?

Yes, please!

I wonder if this saleswoman (behind the hanging sausage) gets sick of the smells, standing behind a huge curtain of meat day in and day out.

Wooden toys.

The Krippe (Manger or Nativity scene) at the foot of the large Weinachtsbaum (Christmas tree) at the Rathaus.

Christmas ornaments galore.

I like the way the vendors load every bit of free space in their stands with various wares.

This is a view of the Rathausplatz (City Hall Place), toward the Burgtheater. As you can see, there are thousands of people strolling around at the market.

Chocolate-covered strawberries and candied apples. Yum!

Burgtheater and an oversized Christmas decoration.

Everyone is either drinking a Punsch or ordering a new one...

More Christmas ornaments.

More people ordering Punsch.

Here you can see the 24 curtain (Advent Calendar) just above the bells.

This was a hard picture to get. Just above the nativity scene, actually in the big Christmas tree, is a platform where traditional musicians play traditional Christmas tunes. I needed a tripod and better zoom for this shot.

Vienna's official Weinachtsbaum (Christmas tree). I believe the tree is shipped in from a different Austrian state each year. There are 9 Austrian Bundeslände (federal provinces or states): Wien (Vienna), Niederösterreich (Lower Austria, where this year's tree originated), Oberösterreich (Upper Austria), Steiermark (Styria), Kärnten (Carinthia), Vorarlberg, Salzburg Land, Tirol (Tyrol) and Burgenland.

Christmas ornaments. Notice how these stands have nowhere near the traffic of the Punsch stands.

Ladies night out. These friendly Austrian ladies let me take a picture of them with their Christmas hats and warm smiles. At least one was worried that her kids would think poorly of her if they came across this picture online. First, I figure the kids will probably never come across this picture, and second, what's wrong with having a good time with friends every now and then? :-)