Christkindlmarket is returning to the suburbs.
The beloved holiday bazaar of food, glühwein (traditional hot spiced wine) and all-things Christmas that makes its home in Chicago’s Daley Plaza and Wrigleyville, will also be taking place at Aurora’s RiverEdge Park this year, it was announced Tuesday.
Presented by German American Events, LLC, the outdoor fest returns to the western suburbs following previous incarnations in Naperville and Oak Brook.
“We are so happy to bring the Christkindlmarket back to the western suburbs. ... For the last few years, many people have asked when we would have a suburban market, and we are overjoyed ... to make this dream a reality,” said Kate Bleeker, director of expansion and market development for German American Events, LLC.
Christkindlmarket locations are modeled after the classic German holiday market in Nuremberg, Germany, with the familiar “candy cane”-striped kiosks.
The dates for the Aurora festival (360 N. Broadway St., in downtown Aurora), as well as those for Chicago’s locations, will be announced in the coming months.
“RiverEdge Park is the ideal site to host the return of the Christkindlmarket to the western suburbs. We’ve always wanted to find a way to activate the Park beyond the summer concert season, and we can’t wait to welcome area residents and Christkindlmarket fans from all over to this incredible new holiday destination in downtown Aurora,” said Tim Rater, president and CEO of the Aurora Civic Center Authority.