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Now shopping is most definitely not at the top of my list of favourite activities. So it was against the grain when I headed off to check out just what was driving the stellar rise in popularity of continental ‘Christmas Markets’.

Indeed the generic ‘German Xmas Market’ can now to be found, with local influences, straddling the great waterways of Europe - the Maas, Rhine, Mosel and Danube to name but a few. From November and into the New Year the cobbled lanes and market squares of villages, towns and cities across the near Continent are awakening form their autumnal slumbers and sparkling into life.

But it is not just the promise of a retail romp around Europe that is attracting visitors in their thousands. What better way to discover wonderful old places such as Maastricht, Koblenz, Rudesheim, Cochem and Strasbourg than onboard one of the scores of river cruise vessels now plying the major river highways of Holland, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and beyond. The leisurely pace is a joy. As is the pleasure of fellow ‘marketers’ and the opportunity to view the delightful riverside scenes - with wine or Schnapps in hand. Easy to understand why European River Cruising is now one of the fastest growing tourism sectors. It’s wonderful!

I was fortunate enough to be able to boat-hop and saw numerous vessels on my trip. Flying to Frankfurt Hahn (it’s actually a long way from Frankfurt) I journeyed then to the historic city of Koblenz at the confluence of the Rhine and Mosel Rivers. From there I travelled along these two massive waterways stopping off at one Christmas market after another, arriving finally in Strasbourg from where I took a coach back to the UK via the delightful principality of Luxembourg.

For sure, after a few markets, they do become indistinguishable but still great fun. I can think of no better way of getting into the Yuletide spirit in scenes straight off the front of a traditional Christmas card – especially when the cold air catches your breath and the snowflakes begins to fall. Bur what makes them so special for me are their old-Europe backdrops and it wasn’t long before I strayed off the tourist tracks to sample the intrinsic attractions that make these great places to visit long after the markets shut up their shutters for another year. Maastricht, for example, is chic and a genuine surprise. I loved it. Rudesheim (with its world-famous 'Siegfried's Musik Kabinett' organ and musical box musuem) and Cochem fulfill every pre-conceived idea anyone might have of ‘quaint’ German market towns. I could go on.

So did I shop? Well I have to admit I did. The urge to buy is irresistible and even though I could now probably find the same in Cheltenham, Lincoln or Bath (the Christmas Market is now very much established in the UK), I just had to spend those Euros. The wife and kids would never have forgiven me otherwise!