The Frankfurt Christmas Market in Germany is open now

© Patrice von Collani/Westend61/Offse

625 years of holiday cheer. A Christmas market with a long history

We think even Scrooge would delight in the Frankfurt Christmas Market, or Christkindchesmarkt (gesundheit!), a tradition that’s been traced back to 1393. Here you can shop for goods from artisans, binge on marzipan candies, and sip a warm cup of mulled wine. Locals can even shop for Christmas trees, a tradition that is said to have originated in this part of the world. The modern Christmas tree tradition as we know it started in the 15th and 16th centuries in northern Germany and Livonia (present-day Estonia and Latvia). It’s believed the Protestant reformer Martin Luther was the first to add lighted candles to an evergreen. Sidenote: That had to be a fire hazard, right?