Let’s explore Quedlinburg’s secret Christmas courtyards 🎄 UNESCO town & castle

Just in time for the first weekend of Advent, we’re heading to Quedlinburg, one of Germany’s most beautiful medieval towns and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This isn’t an ordinary Christmas market. During “Advent in the Courtyards”, the people of Quedlinburg open their private courtyards, normally closed to visitors, and fill them with Christmas stalls, crafts and mulled wine. With hundreds of half-timbered houses, cobbled alleys and a castle with a panoramic view of the city, you will get one of the most magical winter days you can have near Berlin. The whole trip is covered by the Deutschlandticket, and we’re back in Berlin by 21:00.

The plan:

• 07:55 — Meet at Berlin-Charlottenburg, platform 4, close to the first carriage.
  How to get there: We take the RE1 at 08:12 to Magdeburg, then change to the RE11 to Quedlinburg (arriving 11:23).
• 11:23–12:00 — First look at the old town: we walk through the centre to the Market Square and start exploring the courtyard markets 🎄
• 12:00–12:30 — Lunch break at the stalls. Grab some local specialities and a Glühwein.
• 12:30–14:00 — We explore the medieval alleys around the castle hill, then go up to the castle gardens for the best view over the rooftops of the old town.
• 14:00–15:00 — Castle museum visit (optional, 12€, paid on site)
• 15:00–17:00 — Free time to hop between the hidden courtyard markets, shop for Christmas gifts, or warm up in a café ☕ (the markets are open until 19:00)
• 17:00 — We meet again at the Market Square and walk together to the station.
• 17:31 — We take the HBX back to Berlin (change at Wannsee to the RE1), arriving at Berlin-Charlottenburg at 20:48.

What to bring: warm winter layers, a hat and gloves, comfortable shoes for cobblestones, and cash, at least 30-40€ (8€ meetup fee + Christmas market food, drinks and gifts). The Deutschlandticket is valid on all these regional trains. If you don’t have one, please buy your ticket in advance.

Organizing fee: 8€ (cash), collected at the start.

IMPORTANT: Join the WhatsApp group for updates. All updates are posted on WhatsApp. I can’t give personal support to anyone who doesn’t check the group or take the connections listed above, so please join and keep an eye on it: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EKu4vZBi6qW6SIPCUm8miBxGfSxuU7wJbwt3RFSZRYo/edit?usp=sharing
(The link to the WhatsApp group is inside the document)

Come for a festive day of secret courtyards, half-timbered streets, and mulled wine, and let’s start the Advent season together in one of Germany’s prettiest towns. See you there!🎄✨