In a few days the first Christmas markets will start in Germany. FOCUS online makes the savings radar and says what you have to pay for bratwurst, mulled wine or gingerbread.
Without a mask and without looking at the current incidence!
The first Christmas markets will open in the next few days after almost two years of the corona crisis and without any corona restrictions. Due to the increased operating and standing costs, the prices for almost everything that can be bought at the Christmas market are rising sharply.
In Stuttgart, for example, a cup of mulled wine costs EUR 4.50 this year. Last year it was 3.50 euros. That’s almost 30 percent more. In Munich, mulled wine also scratches the 4.50 euro mark. At the Christmas market at the airport, the mulled wine is even said to be available for just under 5.50 euros. In Leipzig, mulled wine climbs from three to four euros per cup, according to local media. There are also big price increases in Ulm, Bonn, Karlsruhe and Hamburg.
Consumers should expect prices of four to five euros for a cup of mulled wine at the Christmas markets in Germany. Including the deposit, the first cup can cost more than seven euros.
There is also a price adjustment for children’s punch. It is also around 30 percent. A cup of children’s punch in Stuttgart, Munich and Berlin costs over three euros. In the previous year, the children’s drink in the big cities was available for an average of 2.50 euros.
Consumers also have to dig deeper into their pockets for the bratwurst at the Christmas market.
It’s not just sausages and rolls that have become more expensive in wholesale, the energy for frying also costs more money. “The prices will rise by around 50 cents,” explains Martin Rausch, who runs four stands at various Berlin Christmas markets.
Consumers have to reckon with prices from 3.50 euros upwards for the bratwurst.
For the lentil or other stews, Christmas market visitors should expect prices from five euros upwards. Confectionery salespeople who sell popular classics such as fried almonds, chocolate bananas, baked apples and gingerbread have also turned the price screw. Visitors to Stuttgart have to pay 17 euros for a pack of four types of “finest gingerbread”. Last year, the package cost 15 euros.
The price increase for fries is even more severe. Christmas market fans should also expect that the portions will be smaller here. The background is that deep-frying fat and the energy required for deep-frying drive up costs. “We will reduce the portion by 15 percent,” says an operator in the east of Munich.
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Visitors should be patient, especially because it can take a little longer at the stands. This year there are fewer stands in many places. There is a lack of staff. This leads to longer queues and waiting times.
“Due to staff shortages and delivery problems, some feeders have canceled,” reports Andreas Kroll, Managing Director of In Stuttgart in an interview with “Bild”. For many Christmas markets in the Munich area, restaurateurs and showmen are looking for helpers just a few days before the start of the Christmas market season. At the Munich Tollwood Festival, a provider even promises a lucrative hourly wage of 18 euros.
This is also one of the reasons why prices are increasing overall at the Christmas market this year.
Watch out for special offers. “Two mulled wines for the price of one” or family days make visiting the Christmas market a little cheaper. Apps and vouchers that you can find online or in regional newspapers also help you save.
Many establishments also sell stamp cards for mulled wine and bratwurst. The card is stamped with every order. After ten stamps there is a mulled wine or a bratwurst for free.
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