The holiday season has started early this year in Bethlehem as ArtsQuest’s annual Christkindlmarkt has begun weeks sooner than usual to navigate COVID-19 measures.
Despite typically opening the week before Thanksgiving and running for five weeks up until a week before Christmas, Christkindlmarkt opened on Oct. 8 this year and will run until Nov. 29.
Roy Neeb, ArtsQuest’s senior vice president, said the setup of the event will be different this year to accommodate Pennsylvania state COVID-19 regulations.
“The vendors are the only tents that are in the lot, so basically it’s an open air market similar to what an actual Christkindlmarkt is in Germany,” Neeb said. “It’s all outside, so you basically wander outside and walk up to each vendor who is in a tent to shop, similar to how it normally is.”
Rather than four large heated indoor tents, as seen in previous years, the market will be split into three fenced-in areas each with a capacity of 250 people. Two hundred attendees are permitted in each area at a time with the assumption that vendors and staff volunteers will accommodate for the remaining space.
With limited space for attendees, ArtsQuest is encouraging people to buy tickets in advance by offering a $4.00 discount on tickets purchased online. Tickets are available on Christkindlmarkt’s website, ChristmasCity.org, for $9.00 on Thursdays and $10.00 Friday through Sunday.
Vendors have also had to make adjustments in order to comply with new regulations ArtsQuest has put in place.
Barbara Salso, from Nazareth Ceramic Center, is participating in Christkindlmarkt for the seventh year in a row. While her booth size is similar to previous years, Salso said because she has to sell behind a table rather than the typical “walk-in store environment” she usually has, the shopping experience in her store is different this year.
“There’s a different feel to the market this year, not just because of the time of year, but because it’s closer to what the typical European or German Christkindlmarkts are where you go and wander from hut to hut to see what everyone has,” Salso said. “It’s a different experience, and I hope they’re able to keep some of the feel that is happening this year in the future.”
Angela Ding, ’21, has attended Christkindlmarkt in previous years and is looking forward to going again this year. Ding said, coming from her hometown of San Diego where she doesn’t experience a “proper winter,” she especially enjoys the experience of the market. While the market is not as close to the holiday season this year, Ding feels attending the market will still be just as enjoyable.
“I do think that it not being around Christmas time does detract a little from the experience,” Ding said. “However, thinking about it now, I still think that just being able to go and see the same vendors and everything they sell is pretty unique in itself. I don’t really associate it as much with Christmas this year, unfortunately, but I’m still really happy they have it going on despite the pandemic.”
Christkindlmarkt will be open Thursdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. until Nov. 29.
Comment Policy
Comments posted to The Brown and White website are reviewed by a moderator before being approved. Incendiary speech or harassing language, including comments targeted at individuals, may be deemed unacceptable and not published. Spam and other soliciting will also be declined.
The Brown and White also reserves the right to refuse the publication of entirely anonymous comments.