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The Christmas markets scattered across Europe are truly magical. There is something about the weather, food, music, mulled wine, and unique gifts that draws me to Europe every November or December. In past years, we’ve visited Germany, France, Hungary, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and even the UK for these holiday delights. This is the first year in many that I won’t be getting into the festive spirit (I’ll be in Aruba instead), but I am in the minority of travelers this year. United Airlines announced this week that it has seen a surge in bookings for passengers heading to Europe to take in these magical markets.
This year, United will offer around 60 nonstop flights each day from its US hubs to Europe in the months of November and December. This is more than any other US airline and I have long lauded United for its excellent route network (especially in Europe). United’s flights coupled with the Star Alliance offerings from Lufthansa, Austrian, SWISS, Brussels Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and TAP Portugal means that you can get just about anywhere on the continent conveniently.
Darren Scott, United’s Director of Atlantic and Hawaii Planning, said:
The European Christmas markets have become even more popular in recent years and no airline makes it easier than United to get away and visit for the holidays. Stay for a week or make it a long weekend with nonstop flights and easy connections to more than 130 European cities, including the legendary markets in Dresden, Strasbourg, Vienna and Cologne.”
United expects the 2024 holiday season to be its busiest yet, with around 25 million passengers traveling, which is up 6% over 2023. The “revenge travel” that was supposed to die down is still roaring with no end in sight after the pandemic. According to a Deloitte survey, spending on holiday experiences (i.e. travel) is expected to rise 16% this year. Spending on physical gifts remain flat. This checks with what many reports have said about Millennial and Gen Z opinions around experiences versus items.
Anthony’s Take: Christmas markets throughout Europe are one of my favorite things about the holiday season. I have been to dozens of them and look forward to many more visits in the future even though I won’t be trekking across the pond this year.
(Image Credit: United Airlines.)
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
