Winter in Aachen: 7 things you must have experienced in winter

Why Aachen is so special in winter

Aachen is exciting all year round. In winter, however, the city shows a side that you only experience in this season. When it gets dark early, the lights in the old town come on and the scent of spices and hot food sweeps through the alleys, Aachen suddenly seems smaller, cozier and closer.

Especially around the cathedral, the town hall and the old houses, you can feel this mix of history and lively city life. Students, commuters, families and visitors mingle, drink mulled wine, eat something warm and enjoy the fact that the city looks anything but cold despite the cold.

In this article, you'll get seven concrete ideas on how you can experience winter in Aachen. Regardless of whether you study, work here or get to know the city in a new way.

1. Experience the Aachen Christmas Market

For many, winter in Aachen doesn't really start without the Christmas market. As soon as the booths are set up and the fairy lights hang, the city center becomes a Christmassy living room.

A compact Christmas village is being built between the cathedral and the town hall. You walk across cobblestones, look at the historic facades and are in the middle of the hustle and bustle at the same time. It is tight but not uncomfortable. It feels more like a big open-air living room.

What you should treat yourself to:

• a bag of roasted almonds or chestnuts
• Aachen Printen as a typical souvenir
• a mulled wine or punch to warm up
• A brief moment in which you simply enjoy the view of the cathedral and town hall

The Christmas market is best during the week in the early evening. It's full enough to get you in the mood, but not so crowded that you're just standing in a crowd. And if you live in Aachen, you can also treat yourself to this moment several times in winter.

2. Winter walk through the old town

If the Christmas market isn't running right now or you simply want a quieter evening, a stroll through the old town is worthwhile. Especially when it is already dark or there is a slight frost on the roofs.

A possible circular route:

1. Start at Elisenbrunnen
2. through the pedestrian zone towards the market
3. Past the town hall to the cathedral
4. about Katschhof
5. through small side roads back to the city center

Along the way, you can stop again and again, look at the cathedral from different perspectives, take a look at shop windows or stop off at a café. In winter, the old town is not just a backdrop, but a place where you can see how close everything in Aachen is.

Especially if you're new to the city, this walk is perfect to get your bearings. You will learn paths that you will use every day later on.

3. On the Lousberg: views and fresh winter air

If you want to get out of the city center for a moment, Lousberg is your address. It's not far away and yet it feels like you've just fallen out of town.

In winter, the Lousberg is ideal:

• for a walk during lunch break
• for a short head-to-head moment during the exam phase
• for a walk with friends, not just to talk about university or work

On particularly clear winter days, you can look far beyond Aachen from above. When there is snow, the city below you seems calm and almost a bit unreal.

Anyone who lives in Aachen should take the time to travel this route at least once in winter. It is often more than just another dull look at the screen.

4. Cafes and bars: warmth, conversation and a place to take a deep breath

Winter in Aachen also means arriving indoors. In cafés, bars and small bars where you can warm up, work or simply sit down.

Typical winter moments in Aachen cafés:

• Sit in a quiet corner with a laptop and headphones and write a homework
• Drink cocoa with fellow students or colleagues and round off the day
• Read a book alone and watch people along the way

Especially in the city center, in the Pontviertel and in the Frankenberger Viertel, you will find many places that feel like a second living room in winter.

If you're studying, you can also use cafés as a place to study, especially when the library is full or you simply need a change of scenery. A good trick: First concentrate on working for one or two hours, then eat or drink something warm. This is how you automatically reward yourself.

5. Wellness, spas and indoor wellness areas

Aachen is a thermal town. When it's cold, wet and grey outside, warm baths and spa services are a real lifeline.

A winter day could look like this:

• study or work in the morning
• A short walk through the city at noon
• Relax in warm water for a few hours in the afternoon or evening

Especially during long examination phases or on stressful working days, such breaks help to keep from burning out completely. You mute your cell phone for a while, let yourself drift and come out again with a different feeling.

Even if you're not the typical wellness person, a visit in winter can make more of an impact than you might expect.

6. Winter culture: museums, history and quiet places

If you don't just want to freeze outside in winter, Aachen also has a lot to offer culturally. Museums, exhibitions and historic sites are perfect when the weather is really unpleasant.

Typical winter destinations:

• Cathedral and cathedral treasury, if you want to learn more about the history of the city
• a city museum or an exhibition to completely escape from everyday life
• concerts, theatre evenings or small events, which are often particularly atmospheric in winter

The advantage in winter: Many places are less crowded than in summer. You have time to look and read in peace and let what you see work on you.

Especially if you're new to Aachen, a museum or a guided tour can make you feel: “Okay, now I understand the city a bit better. ”

7. Winter trips to the surrounding area: Eifel, Dreiländereck and neighboring countries

A big advantage of Aachen is its location. You can quickly reach Belgium, the Netherlands or the Eifel. Winter is ideal for short trips.

Ideas for winter days:

• a day trip to a Dutch city with a wintry atmosphere
• a walk in the national park or at a lake in the Eifel
• a visit to the border triangle when the air is clear and cold

You don't have to plan big trips for that. A half-day trip is often enough to feel like you've been completely out of the ordinary. Especially in stressful phases, such a small change of scenery can work wonders.

If you live in Aachen, you can plan such trips spontaneously. A glimpse of the weather, a short train or car journey — and you're somewhere else.

Living in Aachen in winter: Why a good home makes everything easier

All of these things are nice. But they're even more fun when you know you're coming back to an apartment that really feels like home.

In winter, you can quickly see whether your living situation suits you:

• Is it warm and quiet when you arrive in the evening?
• Do you have space to study and relax?
• Do you have to worry about utilities, internet or furniture?
• Or can you focus on what's important right now?

If you come to Aachen to study, for a job, a project or as an international guest, a furnished apartment with all-inclusive rent Simplify a lot of things. You don't have to organize furniture, sign contracts, and fear annual statements. You move in and you can get started right away.

In Good Shepherd In Aachen West, you can find such apartments: furnished, with clear costs, in a special building and with a short connection to RWTH, Melaten Campus, University Hospital and the city center. There are various apartment sizes — from compact studios to spacious lofts — and there are currently still a few apartments available there in Aachen, some even with special conditions.

This not only makes winter in Aachen beautiful outside, but also relaxed inside.
You can enjoy the Christmas market, walk through the old town, go on trips and retire in your own four walls in the evening — without stress, without temporary work, without permanent construction.

Conclusion: Winter in Aachen is more than just cold

Winter in Aachen doesn't just mean dark and cold hands early on. It means:

• Christmas market with history
• Walking in the old town with lights
• Cafes where you can warm up and arrive
• Wellness that takes you away from everyday life
• Culture that brings you closer to the city
• Excursions to an entire region that is just around the corner

If you also have a living situation that suits you, winter becomes a time in which you can experience, arrive and grow a lot.

Aachen can be just that in winter: a city that feels warm despite the cold.
And maybe that's how you're starting to discover them right now.