Festive season arrives in South West Germany

The crisp air is scented with spicy Gluehwein (mulled wine) and Lebkuchen (gingerbread biscuits). Beautifully-decorated stalls offer locally-made Christmas tree ornaments and decorations, stocking fillers and toys. Set on cobble-stone squares, surrounded by half-timbered houses, SouthWest Germany's Christmas markets look like Christmas cards come to life.

Whenever you visit South West Germany, there is always a festival going on, but nothing is more romantic than the glittering - and usually snow-flecked - Christmas Markets. From the Black Forest to Lake Constance, from Heidelberg to Freiburg and from Karlsruhe to Ulm, they are plenty of excuses for visitors and locals alike to enjoy a warming mug of Christmas cheer.

South West Germany's numerous Christmas markets range from big and bustling to small and intimate. In Bad Wimpfen, you can join a walking tour with night-watchmen and town guides in historic costumes at one of Germany's oldest Christmas Markets.

In Ludwigsburg, near Stuttgart, the baroque Christmas Market features 170 stalls, all decorated in baroque style. Gengenbach not only has a charming market but also boasts the world's biggest Advent calendar - using the 24 windows of the 18th-century town hall!

Getting into the Christmas spirit is easy! Most Christmas Markets open during the last week of November and are open daily until Christmas Eve.

Fly to airports such as Stuttgart, Karlsruhe-Baden Baden and Friedrichshafen. Frankfurt International is also close by, and the region is also well-connected to the rest of Europe by high speed train.

For more information and photos of the world's most attractive Christmas Markets, visit: tourismus-bw.de