Where the magical Advent atmosphere makes your eyes light up

No, this is not an apple tree. Amazed, I look up into the treetops, which are decorated all over with red, heavy Christmas baubles. A truly magical sight that makes my eyes light up.

I’m not a die-hard Christmas market visitor. To be honest, I even have to admit that last December I traveled somewhere for the first time to visit a Christmas market (to Freiburg). I associate Christmas markets with a dense crowd of people, kitsch, too much mulled wine and cold feet. As I stand at the entrance gate to the Hellbrunn Advent Magic, I realize how wrong I am with my cliché.

Against the picturesque backdrop of Hellbrunn Palace, more than 13,000 red Christmas baubles shine on over 400 Christmas trees. Hidden between the branches are the lovingly decorated Christmas stalls offering local and high-quality products. For example, there is the horseshoe man, where you can burn your desired saying into a horseshoe. Or the picture-book man who creates an individual children’s book for each child (it would have been hard to impress me with that as a child!). If you’re hungry, you can, for example, try freshly caught sturgeon – which, by the way, swims in the middle of the beautifully lit and famous trick fountains of the castle – or venison sausage.

The atmospheric ambience in this castle courtyard enchants me from the first sight. In addition, there is no crowd at all on this Friday evening. I take a leisurely stroll from booth to booth and enjoy the pre-Christmas atmosphere. And when Rudolf the reindeer suddenly appears, it seems to me as if I have landed in a fairy tale world.

This year, the Hellbrunn Advent Magic will take place daily from 21 November to 24 December. In the evening it is open until 20:00 (with the exception of Christmas Eve). The castle is located about 25 minutes outside of Salzburg and can be reached by bus line 25. More information about the Christmas market can be found at Hellbrunneradventzauber.at.

Note: I was invited to Salzburg by Austria Tourism. Thank you very much for this. Nevertheless, my readers can be sure that I always represent my own opinion and enthusiasm here.