You know the Advent season is not far off in Innsbruck when the snow starts falling gently onto the rooftops of the medieval city centre and the air is scented with the smells of grilled sausages, mulled wine and sweet confections.
Tourists who have lapped up the December-long pleasures of German Christmas markets could do worse than to try Austria's this year.
Innsbruck's Christmas Market is not exactly ancient, but this year it will be marking the 40th anniversary of its foundation.
The Tyrolean region around it offers lots of other markets, each with its own special character, where open-air stalls are filled with Christmas tree decorations, handicraft items, jewellery and many an oddity. The music and the mulled wine on sale complete the magic.
In Innsbruck's Maerchengasse, or alley of fairy tales, dolls representing fantasy figures from Little Red Riding Hood to Hansel and Gretel and the Frog Prince are perched on the facades to delight the visitors every Christmastide.
