Stuttgart and Esslingen

We arrived in Stuttgart on Monday 27th for a 2-night stay, heading into the city from our hotel on the outskirts early on Tuesday afternoon. The weather is extremely chilly with some snow flakes whipping around our heads as we walk to the nearby metro station.

In the city, the Christmas markets are still being constructed for opening later in the week, but the big ferris wheel is already operating so we hope on board for a look over the city.

After a wander through the Schlossplatz and the pedestrianised part of the city, we hop on a train for the 20-minute journey to nearby Esslingen, where the Christmas markets are already open. As well as a standard Christmas market they have a Medieval market located across several squares, which turns out to be one of the best markets we've ever visited. Apart from all the usual stalls and delicacies, there is a great area with different games and challenges, so we take part in some axe-throwing before we have too much gluhwein!

The weather forecast is starting to look very cold for the next few days as we prepare to head south in Germany. On our return to the hotel we pop to the car to grab a bottle of water, but the door needs a serious wrench to open it as the snow that landed on the car earlier in the day has frozen over!