10 Christmas Destinations Chocolate Lovers Will Enjoy

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Christmas is a time to celebrate and indulge, so why not spend your Christmas vacation in a destination designed to delight any chocolate lover? From around the world, you can celebrate Christmas in the spirit of chocolate – from world-class Christmas markets to chocolate-making and chocolate-themed hotels, spas, and more. These Christmas destinations are sure to satisfy your sweet tooth!

1. Brussels, Belgium

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Brussel is one of the best Christmas destinations chocolate lovers will enjoy is Brussel, as Belgian chocolate is synonymous with luxury. Here, you can find world-class chocolate like the jewel-like creations of Maison Pierre Marcolini, the gluten-free Belvas, the incredible pralines at Passion Chocolat, and of course, the famous Godiva.

Visit the Museum of Cocoa and Chocolate, and enjoy stunning Christmas markets in Brussels’ many open squares for vendors offering hot drinks, antiques, local artistry, and finely crafted independent chocolate makers. Stop in at Mary, a chocolate shop loved by the Belgian Royal Family, for unique praline boxes that make the perfect Christmas gift.

2. Zurich, Switzerland

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Zurich is another one of the best destinations for chocolate lovers to visit on Christmas holidays. It is the birthplace of milk chocolate, and this city churns it out like it is going out of style. There are chocolate shops on nearly every corner. To really satisfy your sweet tooth, visit the Nopra Chocolate Shop for their Sweet Tooth Xmas Tour. Take a guided tour of the most festive parts of the city and head back to the shop to create your own chocolate while sipping on homemade glögg.

Another fun way to enjoy the special Swiss chocolate is a ride on the Chocolate Train. Leaving Montreux and heading to Gruyeres and Broc, chocolate lovers can get both sweet and savory on this train ride. Stop first in Gruyeres for the finest cheese and fondue tastings, then continue to Broc for an immersive tour of the Maison-Callier chocolate factory.

Also, chocolate lovers should definitely visit Lindt Home of Chocolate during Christmas holidays. Here you can visit the museum of cocoa and chocolate, see the production lines, try different components of delicious sweets in a store with an area of 500 sq.m., buy a lot of gifts, and sit in a cafe. And there is also a 9-meter chocolate fountain. You can create your own sweets or try one that the confectioner will create just for you.

3. Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA

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The sweetest town on earth, the name gives a notion as to what chocolate lovers will enjoy on Christmas is this American town. A visit to Hershey requires keeping your appetite for the many chocolate samples that will complement your stay. Samples of mini sweets are a signature feature of many places you visit, such as the city trolley tours and the after-tour service at Hershey’s Chocolate World.

Visit Hershey’s Chocolate World for extra-special Christmas events like visiting Santa, riding the Holly Jolly Trolley complete with caroling and an elf with chocolate treats for guests, and checking out the amazing Chocolate House, a large structure made entirely of chocolate. Plus, you can stay at Hotel Hershey and relax at their chocolate spa! Chocolate face masks, cocoa bean polishes, and even cocoa baths.

Read also – 10 World’s Most Livable Cities

4. Oaxaca, México

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Looking for sunnier Christmas destinations chocolate lovers will enjoy? Oaxaca is touted to be the birthplace of chocolate, and their addition of chocolate into cuisine goes beyond your standard chocolate bar.

Christmas in Oaxaca is a remarkable thing – the celebrations are not as lively as those in Mexico City, but chocolate lovers come together to celebrate, especially on one of Mexico’s most unique celebrations – Noche de rábanos – Night of the Radishes that takes place in the week leading up to Christmas.

Christmas celebration occurs in the city’s square, where radish carvers sculpt intricate scenes out of vegetables. These Christmas celebrations and markets are the best places to sample the Oaxacan chocolate – you can find it in the complex mole sauce, the tejate drink, and drinking chocolate. Markets sell cacao beans, fermented cacao, ground cacao, and toasted cacao. Chocolate is not just an indulgence at this one of the best Christmas destinations chocolate lovers will enjoy; it is part of their lifestyle.

5. Barcelona, Spain

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The first city in Europe to experience chocolate, Barcelona was the first place to have a chocolate-making machine back in the 18th century. Now, the Museo de la Xocolata offers visitors a glimpse into the magic of big and small sweets making.

If you are a real chocolate lover, you will definitely enjoy seeing chocolate sculptures, doing tastings, and even painting with chocolate. During Christmas, you can bake and decorate cookies with the family or become a chocolate artist and learn how to manipulate and sculpt them.

Also, you can visit chocolate restaurants such as La Pallaresa and La Granja. Here you can enjoy tasting churros and having a cup of hot chocolate. There is a pleasant atmosphere here, so these are ideal places for chocolate lovers during the Christmas holidays in Barcelona.

6. Cologne, Germany

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Germany during Christmas is gorgeous. Cologne is one of the best Christmas destinations for chocolate lovers. Check out the Christmas markets, like the large one near the Cologne Cathedral, and find gifts, mulled wine, and baked goods vendors for locally-made treats.

The capital of Germany is home to the Stollwerck Chocolate Company and the Imhoff Stollwerck Chocolate Museum. Hans Imhoff – a famed German chocolatier – opened this museum in 1993, and it has welcomed chocolate lovers ever since. You can learn about the history of chocolate, see interactive displays, and of course, sample the wares.

7. Bournemouth, UK

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If you want a unique chocolate lover’s Christmas holiday, try spending a few nights at the Chocolate Box Hotel in Bournemouth. The quaint rooms are decorated in warm browns, purples, and gold that feel like the inside of a chocolate box. Plus, the daily in-house truffles brought to your room are a sweet treat each day.

Try a chocolate cocktail at their bar, or start your day with chocolate pancakes at the breakfast buffet. Then, work off all that chocolate by going skating at night in the festively lit Bournemouth Gardens Ice Rink. Moreover, chocolate lovers will enjoy visiting the Christmas market, or checking out the famed Coca-Cola Truck lit up in all its holiday glory. Chocolate workshops, sweets tastings – the maximum of cocoa events in one of the most chocolate-oriented hotels in Europe.

Read also – 10 Cool Destinations to Visit with Your BFF

8. Paris, France

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Another one of the most exciting Christmas destinations chocolate lovers will enjoy is Paris. In anticipation of the most long-awaited winter holidays, the central streets in Paris are being transformed. Trees and house facades are dressed in bright lights, thousands of multi-colored garlands are lit everywhere, small live Christmas trees are set up, whose delicious smell wafts through the streets, and cozy wooden chalets with mulled wine and hot chocolate open in the central squares.

All kinds of cakes and chocolates occupy a good part of the houses in the Christmas markets. However, Parisian hot chocolate will provide a special pleasure. Hot chocolate is a real cult in Paris in winter. In addition, Christmas lovers will enjoy many well-known confectioneries and cafes where hot chocolate is a signature drink, and serving it is a whole ritual.

For example, Un Dimanche à Paris, a luxurious chocolatier concept store with a huge selection of sweets will definitely amaze chocolate lovers. Another one of the best places to buy chocolate is Angelina, right across the street from the Louvre. They have a variety of quirky desserts, so order cookies and chocolate chod while watching the crowded cafes through your window.

9. Vienna, Austria

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Vienna is a fabulously beautiful Christmas destination for chocolate lovers. Aromas of Christmas pastries, hot punch, sugar-roasted almonds, and, of course, chocolate are in the air. The old town and shopping streets are decorated with festive lights that fill the city with a Christmas mood.

You should definitely visit Grand Cacao, Xocolat, and Schokoladenkoenig, which amaze chocolate lovers with their fantastic ideas embodied in chocolate, thereby making the Viennese confectionery world more varied and tasty. Also, an excellent idea for chocolate lovers who decide to spend their Christmas holidays in Vienna is to visit the chocolate museum.

The Chocolate Museum will allow chocolate lovers to learn many new and exciting things about the art of growing cocoa and its processing. The museum program includes a show of choco movies, as many as three choco fountains, a tour of the production, and, of course, tastings. In addition, the museum presents chocolate of all kinds, as well as shapes and sizes: here, you can find both giant bars and tiny chocolate bears that will appeal to young tourists. Chocolate lovers will undoubtedly enjoy it.

10. San Francisco, USA

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Christmas is one of the most atmospheric holidays in San Francisco. To be in the city on the eve of the holiday is a great success. At this time, it is transformed beyond recognition – Christmas trees are set up on the main streets and squares, bright lights are lit everywhere, and festive music sounds. One of the most popular Christmas events is the annual Dickens Fair, where chocolate lovers will enjoy delicious sweets.

San Francisco is the chocolate capital of America, as it has excellent opportunities for chocolate lovers to enjoy. Two famous factories settled here at once: Ghirardelli and Scharffen Berger, both with a rich history. In San Francisco, you can find several stores of these brands, where you can try wide varieties of chocolate, as well as taste chocolate confectionery.

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