Dresden - Post Christmas Market Activities?

We%26#39;re going to be hopping though Germany, Austria and CR during December, but we%26#39;ll hit the Dresden area just after their market has closed. Is it worth the stop, or should we just go straight toward Berlin and Potsdam and skip it? What else should we do at that time?

I have about one full day allocated there. We are married and in our early 30%26#39;s.

Thanks!

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Why would you skip Dresden just because the Christmas Market is closed? Visitors come to this city all year round because of art, architecture, culture, scenery ... and to have fun in cafes, restaurants, bars, clubs. The question is - when exactly are you going to be in Dresden? 24 or 25 December?

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Dresden is breathtaking. I would not skip it under any circumstances.

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Okay, so maybe I should be more specific here. It is not that I don%26#39;t WANT to see Dresden post-Christmas, it is that I wanted to be sure that large chunks of public buildings or services are closed. We had this problem just a bit between Christmas and New Year%26#39;s Eve in London a few years ago.

So, assuming that all the best options will be accessible, what do you recommend as the top 5 things to do?

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You still didn%26#39;t say exactly when you would be in Dresden. 25 Dec? 26 Dec?

The exhibits in the Royal Palace are open on 25 Dec. Historic Green Vault and New Green Vault are *musts*. Highly recommended is also the Christmas exhibit in the Saxon Folk Art Museum, which is also open that day.

On 26 Dec the Zwinger exhibits open as well: Picture Gallery Old Masters and Porcelain collectin are also *musts*.

Definitely visit the Church of Our Lady (Frauenkirche), maybe climb the tower, and the Catholic Cathedral. Opening hours may be short due to services/mass, but they%26#39;re both open for a few hours. Besides, I highly recommend to attend a service in the Frauenkirche or in the Kreuzkirche (with the boys choir).

The boats on the river run from 27 Dec on. Not 25/26 Dec.

Restaurants, Cafes, clubs and discos are open on holidays, too. I highly recommend the ballet %26quot;The Nutcracker%26quot; in the opera house, two performances on 25 Dec. %26quot;Hänsel and Gretel%26quot; on 27 Dec is also worth to see. I don%26#39;t care for the Baroque opera on 26 Dec. There are classical concerts, operetta etc. going on in other theatres/concert halls.

I.

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I forgot: having hot chocolate and a %26quot;Eierschecke%26quot; cake or a piece of %26quot;Stollen%26quot; at Cafe Wippler at Körnerplatz is one of my favourites. You could add a ride on the suspension cable car (the first world wide) and enjoy the view from the top.

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FWIW, I was in Dresden right after New Year%26#39;s last year and while it wasn%26#39;t the full deal, there was still a decent portion of the Old Town X-Mas market open. The city was noticeable %26quot;slow%26quot; though, for sure.

I would definitely keep your day in Dresden. Great city.

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I think we will be there on Dec. 26 or 27. I can%26#39;t remember right now off the top of my head. Thank you for all the great suggestions. I had most of these outlined as my list, so it is good to hear this. I especially like the food suggestions. Keep those coming! Always great to find good food.

Also good to hear that some of the market stuff is still up and about.

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In general you cannot go wrong food-wise. There is practically everything available - gourmet, local/German, all sorts of international cuisine, every kind of price range. What would you prefer?