Holiday home for Christmas in Belgium

The Christmas break is also popular with groups celebrating New Year together. A large house with a terrace, an outdoor fire and room for everyone to sleep over: it is the most welcoming way to round off the year.

The Ardennes are the most popular destination for the Christmas holidays in Belgium. In the higher parts of the High Fens and around Spa, real snow does sometimes fall, completing the scene. Even without snow, the Ardennes in December are beautiful: bare forests, misty valleys and a fireplace you will not want to leave.

For families who want to celebrate Christmas with several generations together, a large holiday home in Belgium is ideal. Distances are short enough for older relatives to join easily, and there is plenty of choice when it comes to houses for 10, 15 or 20 people.

Christmas in a holiday home means no fixed programme, no restaurant reservations and no noise from other hotel guests. You decorate the house as you like, cook a big festive dinner together and decide for yourselves how long you stay at the table. No set breakfast at eight in the morning, just coffee whenever you feel like it. Many owners put up a Christmas tree and leave candles and blankets in the house.

The combination of a log fire, good food and your own company makes a holiday home the natural choice for the Christmas days. Especially for larger families or groups of friends who do not normally all sleep under the same roof, a holiday home is the practical solution: everyone is together but there is enough room for a quiet moment alone.

If you rent a holiday home in the Ardennes or near a city, Christmas markets are often within easy reach. Liege (Place Saint-Lambert) is one of the largest and most celebrated Christmas markets in Belgium, with more than 200 stalls, an ice rink and a distinctly Walloon atmosphere. Durbuy has its own charming village market in its small medieval centre. And if you are staying in the High Fens area, Aachen, one of Germany's oldest Christmas markets, is just 45 minutes away.

Bruges at Christmas is in a class of its own. The canals reflect the lights, there is an ice rink on the market square and the atmosphere is unique. Anyone renting a holiday home in West Flanders can combine a day trip to Bruges with mussels and Belgian beer. Plan ahead though: Bruges is very popular in the Christmas period.

The High Fens is the region in Belgium with the best chance of snow at Christmas. The Baraque Michel sits at around 680 metres, making it one of the highest points in Belgium. In some years snow has arrived by mid-December; in others it holds off until after the new year. Do not plan around snow, but be glad when it comes. Eupen, Malmedy and Sankt Vith are the nearest towns for shopping and dinner.

Christmas in the High Fens is impressive even without snow. The bare forests, the wide view across the moorland and the quiet that settles in when tourist numbers drop make this a special experience. A walk on the wooden walkway across the fen in frost and mist is one of those things that stays with you.

If you want to celebrate Christmas with more than eight to ten people, you need a house with enough bedrooms and a large living and kitchen area. Such properties are rare and are booked early, often as far ahead as spring of the same year. Do not wait until autumn if you have a specific house or region in mind.

Plan activities for the quieter days between Christmas and New Year too, such as the 27th or 28th of December, when the holiday excitement has died down and the next occasion is still a few days off. For New Year's Eve: check with the local council about the rules on fireworks. These vary from one municipality to the next and can change from year to year.