Have you visited the Royal Christmas Fair in The Hague?

TheHagueOnLine editor, Renée Tentori, visited the 2023 Royal Christmas Fair in The Hague last week. Here’s her impression.

Christmas markets are tradition right across Europe, and it’s great to have our very own here in The Hague. The Hague & Partners invited us along to the opening last week.

I grew up in Australia, so Christmas for me used to mean sunshine, beach and BBQs. After many years in The Hague, I still struggle with the cold, but experiences like the Royal Christmas Fair make winter much more fun. Here’s a few of my own tips and observations:

Ask for the standholder stories

One of my favourite surprises during my visit was listening to the stadholder stories. This was a real treat for us on the press tour, but if you are visiting I’d really encourage you to talk to the stand holders about themselves and their business.

Did you know that the Flammkuchen stand is run by students from ROC Mondriaan, supervised by their teachers? Or that Dakini is run by 70 year old social entrepreneur Karin Stevens, who built her business after travelling to Nepal and wanting to support women entrepreneurs there? She usually only sells B2B but so much enjoys meeting people at the Christmas Market that she returns each year. Or that the DTR Spincasting/De Tinnen Roos is a family run business, that specially designed a beautiful Christmas tree hanger just for The Royal Christmas Fair? There are no doubt many more stories at every stand – just ask! It will really enhance your experience and appreciation of the products on offer.

Santa is still Santa

The Santa I met and the grew up with was a very different type of Santa. In Australia, he would “arrive” on a sleigh, traditionally pulled by reindeer. Here, it was horses and a beer cart! No matter the differences, it’s always fun to have Santa included in the Christmas Fair. It was a delight to watch both children and adults posing for photos. I particularly loved the “jingle jingle” of the horses bells.

Wear good shoes

A little silly of me to come straight from work in my “indoor shoes” – it meant that I had very cold toes walking around outside. On my second visit I wore the warm boots I usually reserve for walking in the forest, and was much happier!

The prices are really reasonable

I have to admit that I went along expecting to see some over-the-top pricing but was thrilled to pick up several “bargains”. It was also great to hear from my two teenagers that they found several gifts they loved (mostly for themselves!) for only a few euros. My daughter even found a koala pin to represent her Australian side.

One of my favourite purchases was this beautiful set of “Haagse Hangers” for the Christmas tree from de Tinnen Roos. The whole set was 22,50 euros and they come beautifully boxed. A lovely gift!