German Christmas markets find ways around COVID-19

Chestnuts roasting and music blaring from wooden chalets lined with artificial snow - the Landshut Christmas market in southern Germany has all the usual trimmings..

But this year, visitors must enjoy the sights and smells of the traditional Christmas market from inside their cars due to precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Every night after dark, several dozen vehicles roll into the Christmas market drive-in, their occupants cosy and socially distanced inside.

Once through the gates, they must wait for an employee wearing a mask and a Christmas hat to knock on their window and offer them a menu of savoury treats to choose from, such as crepes, sausages and roasted chestnuts.

Orders placed, they can then drive on to the next hut offering sweets such as candy floss or gingerbread hearts.

As Germany battles a second wave of coronavirus infections, leisure and sporting facilities have been ordered to close while restaurants and bars can only offer takeaways.

The restrictions also include limits on social gatherings and have been a huge blow to Germany's 3,000 or so annual Christmas markets.

The markets have been an annual fixture in Germany since the 15th century, when craftsmen and bakers were given special permission to ply their wares in town squares in the run-up to Christmas.

But many German cities have cancelled their Christmas markets entirely this year, despite the huge financial losses - the markets draw about 160 million visitors annually and bring in revenues of three to five billion euros ($3.6 billion and $5.9 billion), according to the BSM stallkeepers' industry association.

To keep the spirit - and the economic benefits - of Christmas alive, cities across the country have come up with creative initiatives.