The holiday season is the most magical time of the year, yet every year many people receive a Christmas gift that leaves them wondering: "What did I ever do to this person?" From candles to a self--help book penned by a "ground--breaking" life coach, how to give a gift that won’t be re--gifted at Boxing Day? Don’t wait to be the bad Santa – is there a better gift than a vacation? And  when   that vacation is  strolling through a  European winter wonderland, and smelling the roasted  chestnuts  at one of the  continent’s famous  Christmas  Markets, well you’ve just secured your  place as gift-giver  extraordinaire! Celebrate the holidays by truly getting away from it all with our list of the top 5 itineraries that will get everyone in the festive mood. Yes, even Scrooge himself!

Exploring the Christmas Markets of Kraków, Wroclaw, Kutna Hora, Prague, Dresden and Berlin, this 9--day itinerary will get even Scrooge into the festive spirit. Beginning in one of the oldest cities in Poland,  Kraków, guests get their first  taste of Polish  old--world charm with a  walk around the magnificent Cloth  Hall in the Market Square.  Wrapped in romantic  gabled townhouses and  Gothic spires, the  festive  Christmas Market stalls  are a Disneyesque dream, offering all sorts  of delicacies and delights -- from Highland woollen slippers to  amber jewellery from the  Baltic and delicious Mazurek  (traditional Christmas cake). From here, guests travel to the city of Wroclaw, the "Venice of Poland", made up of   five rivers, 12 islands and over 150 bridges. Rated one of the finest in Europe, Wroclaw's Christmas Market offers a delightful, fairytale charm. Travellers enjoy an orientation tour of the market, located in the historic main square Rynek, surrounded by Baroque splendour and adorned with thousands of twinkling lights. They then spend time exploring the vast array of stalls bursting with local crafts and tasty treats, where they can indulge in the traditional oscypek cheese with cranberries, a delicacy from the Tatra mountains. In Prague, travellers visit the city’s colourful Christmas Market that contrasts with the Gothic skyline. Beneath a giant Christmas tree, draped in a blaze of lights, locals browse the decorative wooden stalls. There, guests will meet a local stallholder and savour a glass of Svarák (mulled wine) along with the local Trdelnik pastry while shopping for authentic Christmas decorations, gifts, and toys to bring back home. Available at http://www.insightvacations.com or through your local travel agent; priced from $1,753

From the magic and romance of Paris to the decadent Alasace region of France and beyond to the Black  Forest, this 10--day Christmas Markets of  Strasbourg and the Black Forest  is the first Trafalgar guided vacation that  takes you inside the city  of Strasbourg to explore Christkindlmarik – Europe’s  oldest and largest traditional Christmas market, dating back  to 1570.  Walk through Münsterplatz in Freiburg, dominated by the Romanesque and Gothic cathedral, see the colourful Merchants Hall with its statues of the four emperors and view what was once part of the city’s defensive wall at the Swabian Gate. For a truly memorable market experience, watch local craftsman as they give you a Cultural Insight into the making of traditional cuckoo clocks deep in the Black Forest region. Available at http://www.trafalgar.com or through your local travel agent; priced from $2,752

Celebrate this Christmas Dutch--style & Contiki--style in the carefree city of Amsterdam. This 4 day package lets you get up close & personal with this cultural, café--filled & canal--lined city. Hop on a bicycle & roll around the city like a local or float past skinny houses & buzzing cafes on a canal cruise -- great ways to see Amsterdam from a different angle! Shop on the busy Kalverstraat, get a culture fix at a gallery or try food from the world in the multi--cultural cafés & restaurants through the city or   just people watch & soak up the pre--Christmas vibes in Dam Square.  Gobble down a Christmas feast with all the trimmings & wash it down with some Dutch beer. Clogs, cheese & tulips – what better way to celebrate the holidays! Available at http://www.contiki.com or through your local travel agent; priced from $565

Celebrate the holiday season in truly extraordinary fashion with a special Uniworld itinerary (departing only on December 23, 2015) that gives you the best of four different countries at their most magical time of year. Cruise the mighty Danube, visiting classical capitals like Budapest and Vienna. Hear the largest organ in Europe on Christmas Eve in Passau, and then ring in the New Year in elegant style with a gala dinner and ballroom dance in Budapest. Commemorate a splendid musical heritage as you lift your voice and sing "Silent Night" in Oberndorf, where the beloved Christmas carol was composed,   and delight in the music of Strauss and Mozart in Vienna, where the composers lived. Sip a cocktail with   a princess in the seven--towered Artstetten Castle, and waltz in a Viennese palace.  Attend an on--board Signature Lecture on "The Sound of Christmas Music, from ‘Silent Night’ to Christmas Oratorio". Spend Christmas Day in Salzburg and enjoy a holiday lunch within the walls of St. Peter’s Abbey. Sample the finest of the Wachau Valley’s famous white wines in an exquisite baroque village. Ring out the old year and ring in the new with art, wine, and song, as you cruise through four nations during this most magical season. Festive celebrations are plentiful during this cruise—what better way to create perfect holiday memories? For  those looking  to make health  their New Year’s resolution, the on--board amenities will  not lead you astray  thanks to the "Lite"  menu chock full  of healthy alternatives and  the use of complimentary bicycles to explore during land excursions. Available at http://www.uniworldcruises.ca or through your local travel agent; $5,599 (December 23, 2015 departure only)

Imagine a Highland setting for Christmas, with lochs, snow--capped mountains and cosy pubs with real fires. Then add a proper slap up dinner with all the trimmings and a ceilidh (Scottish party!) – a wee bit different  to mince pies  with your granny.  A real  Christmas cracker, the  magnificent Scottish Highlands  covered in a  blanket of snow,  as well as  having the time  of your life with  Christmas Day spent  in a Highland hotel  fit for  the Royals. Available at http://www.busabout.com or through your local travel agent; priced from $929