The Baltimore waterfront is feeling festive, with the arrival of the Christmas Village, a traditional indoor/outdoor German Christmas market.
Now in its sixth year, Christmas Village in Baltimore has more charming wooden vendor huts for 2019, new kids’ activities, six flavors of warm mulled wine, and a 65-foot Ferris wheel with a birds-eye view of the harbor and the Patapsco River beyond.
At a sneak preview the weekend before Thanksgiving, Bay Bulletin got a tour from Christmas Village’s communications pro, Jacky Below, who is herself from Germany. Below showed off a stall full of traditional German treats she remembers from her own childhood.
We got to sample German beer at the Hofbräu Beergarden, peruse thousands of special ornaments from Käthe Wohlfahrt, and experience Swedish raclette, a wheeled cheese that melted and oozed right into a sandwich before our eyes. Click any of the tiles below to get a feel for the market:
Inside Käthe Wohlfahrt 
A Hofbräu brew 
Gooey, melting raclette cheese 
Bay Bulletin (and mini-me) try out the Ferris wheel
The Girl Scouts of Central Maryland are hosting a Kids’ Corner, new for this year, helping children with crafts to make and take home. The Ferris wheel, the most popular attraction on our tour, is next to the city’s Visitor Center, and beyond that is the annually-installed outdoor Inner Harbor Ice Rink.
“It’s the most wonderful time of year on the Baltimore Waterfront,” said Christmas Village Project Manager Nancy Schmalz. “ We have been working hard since last year on expanding and evolving our authentic German market.”
The Christmas Village officially opened for the season on Thanksgiving Day and runs through Christmas Eve with regular hours (click here for hours and more information). The outdoor market is free, with $5 adult admission to the heated festival tent. Children under 18 can enter the tent for free. All purchased tickets act as Holiday Season Pass, for unlimited return visits.
-Meg Walburn Viviano
