Krampuss in Austria

Anyone from outside Austria visiting this stunning country next month, or Southern Bavaria in Germany, could be in for an unpleasant surprise!

When and where does Krampuss Happen?

If you are out and about in the villages, towns
and cities of Austria and Southern Bavaria on the evening of the 5th of December be ready for some noise and scary sights.

For the 5th of December is the traditional evening of the Krampuss fun and games!

What is Krampuss?

Or maybe that should be who is Krampuss? Krampuss is a mythical creature who accompanies Father Christmas at Xmas time in these areas. Accompanied by flaming torches, the loud
noise of rattling chains and cow bells, and shouting and revelry the scary Krampuss creatures trawl the streets, restaurants and bars looking for the naughty children, who instead of getting nice presents at Christmas are visited by Krampuss!

The Krampuss creaures especially enjoy frightening the life out of kids so maybe make your kids aware if this is going to be new to them, and you are out and about in Austria on these dates!

Perchten

And its not all over for the poor children of this region after the 5th of December, as here in Bavaria and Austria, Perchta (another mythical beast) continues to visit, entering the homes of the area during the twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany (although this tends to be mainly enacted on the Twelfth Night). Perchta knows if children have behaved well and leaves a small present for those whom have done so, those not so good seem to get another damn good scaring!!

Other things to do in Austria at Christmas

Austria is a great place to visit all year round, but given its generally cold and snowy mountainous setting in the Alps, it is especially great to visit at Christmas time. As well as the skiing in great resorts throughout the country, you have excellent shopping including outdoor shopping and dining in the lovely Christmas Markets.

Especially those in the larger towns like Vienna, Salzburg and Innsbruck. Who could not get into the Christmas spirit while holding a warm spiced wine 'gluewein', and listening to live outdoor carol concerts in such great settings.

Things to do in Salzburg

I personally came across Krampuss while spending a great Xmas weekend in Salzburg. There are plenty great things to do to keep the family or travel group busy, with the Xmas Markets, live concerts, shopping, great restaurants and bars, a trip up the cable railway to the impressive Castle with its views over the city and river and further afield the snow and fun salt mine visits. Higly recommended.