No, it is not too late. It is early September as I write this, and there is still real space on Christmas markets river cruises for this year. What you have lost is choice. The best cabins on the most popular dates went months ago, and what is left leans toward mid-December and the categories at either end of the price list. I’m Donnetta Byrd, a travel advisor, and I have sailed the rivers myself with Viking and with Avalon. Here is the straight picture of what you can still get.
There is also something happening this year that I have not seen in a while. A few lines are discounting December sailings instead of selling out of them. Several lines added capacity for this season, which means some ships still have cabins in a month when they would normally be full. If you have been waiting, waiting actually worked out.
The date that decides everything
Before you look at a single sailing, understand this, because it matters more than the line or the ship.
Most of the famous German and Austrian markets close on December 23. Nuremberg’s Christkindlesmarkt runs November 27 through December 24 and shuts at 2pm on Christmas Eve. Cologne’s cathedral market closes December 23. Roughly half of Vienna’s markets close December 23 as well.
So a Rhine sailing that departs after about December 20 stops being a full Christmas markets week. You will still find something open, because Cologne keeps a couple of its markets running past the holiday, but the cathedral market and most of the smaller towns will be packed up. Some lines say this on their own booking pages, and I would rather you hear it from me before you book than discover it in Rüdesheim.
The markets that survive Christmas are worth knowing if late December is your only window. Salzburg runs to January 1. Vienna’s Schönbrunn Palace and Riesenradplatz markets run to January 6. Prague’s Old Town Square market goes to January 6. Cologne’s Heumarkt and harbour markets run into January. Weighted for what stays open, a late-December week works better on the Danube or a Prague routing than on the Rhine.
The practical window for a full week of markets is roughly November 20 through December 22, with most of the capacity sitting between November 25 and December 16.
What is actually still open
Availability moves daily, so treat this as the shape of things rather than a live inventory list.
The peak dates, late November through the second week of December, are the tightest. Several lines show their early December Rhine departures sold out or down to one or two cabin categories. Mid-December has more room. A few lines have one remaining departure rather than a choice of several.
Where I am seeing real deals is on the later December dates and on the lines that added sailings this year. Some are discounted a few hundred dollars a person. At least one December Rhine sailing has been marked down steeply. If your dates are flexible and you can live with a later departure on a Danube or Prague routing, this is a good year to be flexible.
The lines still quoting availability change week to week, which is exactly the kind of thing I track for clients rather than asking them to refresh eight websites.
What a week actually looks like
Seven nights is the standard. The Rhine between Amsterdam and Basel is the volume route, hitting Cologne, Rüdesheim, Strasbourg and Breisach. The Danube between Budapest and Passau or Regensburg is the other classic, with Vienna, Melk and Bratislava. There are longer itineraries too, ten to twelve days pairing the Rhine with the Moselle or the Main, plus a Berlin to Prague run along the Elbe.
The rhythm suits this trip well. You sail overnight, wake up in a new town, tour in the morning with a guide, and have the afternoon and evening free for the market. The markets look their best after dark, and in December that means about four in the afternoon.
One thing people do not expect is how much the ship itself leans into it. Garlands over the doorways, a tree in the lounge, advent candles and a nativity by the dining room, and something warm waiting when you come back aboard cold. On a week where you are outdoors in the dark every afternoon, that turns out to matter more than it sounds.
What it costs, and what is included
For a seven-night sailing, cruise-only, the mainstream premium lines are running roughly 3,000 to 4,500 dollars per person this year. The all-inclusive lines run about 4,000 to 5,800 for the same week. Airfare is extra almost everywhere, so budget it separately.
Amadeus sits below those bands, and it is worth understanding rather than dismissing. Their fare covers your meals, wine and beer with dinner, wifi, port taxes and gratuities, which plenty of pricier lines leave off. What it does not cover is the touring and the airport transfers, which you buy separately or skip. If you have already seen Vienna and would rather spend the afternoon in the market than on another guided walk, that structure works in your favor, and it is one of the reasons I keep them on my list.
Past that, be careful with a low advertised number. It is often a shorter sailing, four or five nights instead of seven, or the smallest cabin down at the waterline. Match the length and the cabin before you compare.
I book across the river lines rather than one of them, and the inclusion differences on this particular trip are wider than people expect. Some lines pour drinks all day, some only at lunch and dinner. Some include every excursion, some sell them in packages. Some cover gratuities, most do not. On a Christmas markets sailing where you are ashore every afternoon, those differences add up fast. I wrote a longer breakdown of what a river cruise fare actually covers if you want the full picture.
What to know before you go
It is dark early and it is often gray. Vienna averages about eight and a half hours of daylight in December, with the sun down around four. Cologne gets roughly an hour and a half of sunshine a day that month. Highs sit in the low to mid forties on the Rhine and around forty on the Danube. Snow is possible and not remotely guaranteed. Pack a waterproof winter coat, real boots, a hat and gloves. This is not a trip where you get away with a cute jacket.
The markets are crowded in the evening. That is when they are prettiest and when everyone else has the same idea. If you want to actually shop rather than shuffle, go at midday and come back after dark for the atmosphere.
Water levels are a winter question too, just a different one. People know about low water because this past summer was an extraordinary drought year on the Rhine and the Danube. Winter’s risk is usually the opposite: too much water after heavy rain, plus cold-weather stoppages. Autumn and winter rain typically resets the rivers, so August tells you very little about December. When levels do interfere, lines almost always adjust rather than cancel, whether that is a coach transfer around a bad stretch or a swap onto a sister ship with your luggage moved for you.
Who this trip is right for
If you like the idea of a small ship, a guided walk every morning, and mulled wine in a square that has been doing this for six hundred years, this is one of the best weeks you can buy in Europe. It suits couples, friends traveling together, and solo travelers who want company without a lot of noise. It is very good for people who do not want to pack and unpack in five cities.
It is not the trip if you are chasing warm weather, if you need a big ship with a casino and shows, or if you want long unstructured days. And if the only week you can travel is the one straddling Christmas itself, tell me that up front, because it changes which river you should be on.
Christmas markets river cruise FAQ
Is it too late to book a Christmas markets river cruise for this year? No. As of early September there is still space, mostly on mid-December departures, and some of it is discounted. The peak late-November and early-December dates are the hardest to get.
When do the Christmas markets close? Most of the big German markets and about half of Vienna’s close on December 23. Nuremberg closes at 2pm on December 24. Salzburg, Prague’s Old Town, and Vienna’s Schönbrunn market run past Christmas into early January.
Which river is better for Christmas markets, the Rhine or the Danube? The Rhine has the higher concentration of classic German markets and more departures. The Danube works better for late December because more of its markets stay open past Christmas. I would pick based on your travel dates first and your wish list second.
How cold is it? Highs in the low forties, lows around freezing, roughly eight and a half hours of daylight, and a good chance of rain. Dress for cold and damp rather than for a postcard.
Should I just wait and book next year instead? If you want a specific ship, a specific cabin category, and a peak early-December date, yes, book next year now. If you are flexible on dates and want a deal, this year is the better buy.
What if the river is too high or too low? Lines adjust the itinerary rather than cancel it in nearly every case, using coach transfers or a ship swap. It is worth knowing that this can happen and worth having travel insurance, but it should not talk you out of the trip.
Let’s find you a sailing
If you want a Christmas markets cruise this year, the useful thing I can do is look at what is still open across the lines, tell you what each fare really includes, and match it to your dates instead of sending you to compare eight websites. If next year is the smarter move for what you want, I will tell you that too. Reach out and let’s talk about it.