Visiting south-west Germany in December might make for a chilly trip, but the reward of being able to experience the Christmas markets more than makes up for it - and there's always the possibility of a white Christmas, too. During the time I lived in Heilbronn, I always made the most of every Christmas season by haunting the various Christmas market stalls around the region.

Every major town and city and many small towns and villages hold Christmas markets in the weeks leading up to Christmas. While in larger cities like Stuttgart they might be held continuously for much of December, others are held just for a week, and traditionally many are held only on weekends, in conjunction with Advent, beginning on the fourth weekend before Christmas and being held for three consecutive weekends.

In Heilbronn, the Christmas markets are held for a week or so in mid-December, and everyone who's anyone in town heads there to catch up with friends before the year ends. A highlight is the living nativity scene set up at the foot of the old town hall; the last time I visited to see the live donkey and sheep roaming in the stall with the (not live) baby Jesus, Mary, Joseph and three wise men, the donkey had pushed Joseph over so he lay sprawled on the straw. I also enjoyed drinking Gluhwein here, the traditional German variety of warm mulled wine. Not only is it a sweet, warming drink for a cold night, it comes served in a decorated Heilbronn Christmas market mug to take away as a keepsake - I still use mine often.

But my favorite Christmas market in the Baden-Wuerttemberg region is easily the Altdeutscher Weihnachtsmarkt - Old German Christmas Markets - of the village of Bad Wimpfen. In this medieval village set on a hill above the Neckar River, Christmas market stalls are set up along the narrow, winding alley ways and on the cobblestones of the main square. They are known throughout south-west Germany as some of the most authentic Christmas markets, and you can choose from a huge assortment of handmade Christmas tree decorations and hand-carved wooden toys, as well as tasting the real German Christmas spirit with Gluhwein and decorated gingerbread pieces. The Bad Wimpfen Christmas markets adhere to the strict tradition of being held only on the weekends of Advent, which means they often finish a week or ten days before Christmas, so you have to be careful not miss them.

While these are just a couple of examples of fantastic German Christmas markets, you're really in a win-win situation wherever you end up in German in December. Just check the local information for the nearest Christmas markets and make sure you check them out. For me, they are an essential part of an authentic Christmas.