The shopping in Rothenburg is just plain terrific, but if you love Christmas, don’t miss the Kathe Wohlfart Christmas Village. The two main stores are across the street from each other on Herrngasse, but there are several other little specialty shops scattered around town.The main store on Herrngasse is a Christmas wonderland with thousands of twinkling lights and Christmas ornaments to fit any décor and budget. Ornaments are all sizes, shapes, and colors—even orange! Prices range from EUR 4 to 25+. Although the many nutcrackers are factory-made, they are all made in Germany. You will find everything connected with Christmas here—crèches, linens, nutcrackers, hand-blown glass ornaments, wooden ornaments, etc. I could have spent hundreds of dollars on ornaments alone!
A clerk will hand you a little basket as you enter the store, and, unless you are Scrooge himself, you will spend. Some say the prices are high, but I didn’t find such a selection anywhere else.
I did buy a cuckoo clock at the Clock Shop on Spitalgasse. It had a large selection of well-made clocks. The clock casing was carved in the Black Forest, while the works are Swiss. Frau Stahl was very helpful in showing us how to set up the clock when we got home. The shop shipped it to our home, and it arrived in perfect condition. By having the clock shipped home, you don't have to pay all the VAT, which covers the shipping.
Open M-F 9am-6pm, Sat. 9am-4pm. The store has a website--Kathe Wohlfahrt.