In Europe, the Christkindlmarkt (Christ Child Market) is a street market that celebrates Christmas during the four weeks of Advent. These Christmas markets date from the late Middle Ages. Today, Christkindlmarkts are held in numerous German-speaking cities, including Bern, Zurich, and Geneva in Switzerland, Munich, Frankfurt, and Nuremberg in Germany, and Vienna, Salzburg, and Innsbruck in Austria. In the United States, cities such as Chicago, St. Louis, Denver, and Philadelphia have held Christkindlmarkts for decades, and recently, the City of Carmel, Indiana, has hosted a very popular and successful regional Christkindlmarkt. Traditionally held in the town square, the markets offer food, drinks, and seasonal items for sale from open-air stalls, accompanied by traditional singing and dancing.
The Board of Directors of Berne Community Development Corporation has determined that a Christkindlmarkt in Berne could not only become a cherished Christmas tradition for the Berne community but also bring numerous visitors from all over the Midwest. Preliminary discussions regarding the possibility of a Berne Christkindlmarkt began in 2023, but deliberate planning started in the Spring of 2024 with the intent of holding at least some form of a Christmas festival during November and December of 2024. A steering committee and fundraising committee were established, and these committees have been working diligently since then.
In the future, plans would be to expand the Muensterberg plaza to the east by half a block to be used as a permanent seasonal site for the Christkindlmarkt. This would allow the possible addition of an ice skating rink and double the number of vendor chalets.
We invite you to join us in this exciting initiative that will be transformational for the Berne community. Not only will the Christkindlmarkt be a wonderful way in which to celebrate the Christmas season, but the income from there will also act as a crucial funding source for numerous other projects that Berne CDC has planned for the Berne community, including the expansion of the plaza, streetscaping, Lehman Park improvements, and numerous other “quality of life” initiatives.