The cave with the largest underground Christmas market in Europe
#dreamdestination
This post will take you to visit the largest underground Christmas market in Europe in Valkenburg, southern Netherlands. The city's main tourist attraction is a cave that has been used to mine marl since the ancient Roman era. The Christmas market held in this cave is so famous that it has received many awards for many years. You have to come to this city especially for this event.
📌 Venue
The Christmas market is held in two caves: Municipal Cave (Gemeentegrot) and Velvet Cave (Fluweelengrot). The market in Municipal Cave is larger and more worth seeing, so we chose to go here. You can book an entrance ticket on the website. The cave is beautifully decorated with original murals and brightly lit Christmas decorations. The temperature in the cave is around 12 degrees Celsius, which is very comfortable compared to the freezing outside. The Christmas market is held every year. You can plan your trip for the next year.
🛍 Shopping
The cave is very large and there are a lot of things to buy, including cute trinkets, snacks, bags, shoes, winter wear, and many more. But here are the highlights:
☃️ Christmas Decorations
Christmas decorations are a must-have at every Christmas market. Here, there are so many to choose from that it's dazzling. Plus, the prices are better than in many other cities I've been to. Picking up anything makes you want to buy it. Your hands will be clutching your wallet tightly. What's more special than other places is that there are decorations, souvenirs, and art sculptures made from marl limestone extracted from caves. They even offer a name engraving service.
🍽 Food
Inside the cave, there are drink shops, shops selling freshly baked Stroopwafel pastries, coffee shops, hot dogs, and waffles. I recommend trying the famous Dutch dessert, Stroopwafel, which is a flat, crispy waffle sandwiched together with caramel filling. When it's freshly baked and comes out of the oven, it's incredibly delicious.
In addition to the Christmas market in the cave, there's also a small Christmas market in the city. If you have some time, you can walk over and take a look.