Central Europe might hog the limelight when it comes to Christmas markets, but with its quaint clapboard houses, pine tree forests, log fires and an abundant stock of reindeers, Scandinavia is an equally appealing backdrop for yuletide festivities.

Liseberg Christmas market in Gothenburg is said to be the biggest of its kind in Scandinavia. “It’s the number one Christmas destination in Sweden,” Anders Skold, director of leisure travel, Goteborg & Co, told me. “It’s a magical place to visit.”

The festive market is housed in the Liseberg amusement park, which opened in 1923 and transforms into a winter wonderland come mid-November, illuminated by some five million Christmas lights.

Aside from taking on the 27 rides open in winter, visitors can enjoy a sleigh ride led by reindeer, a visit to Santa’s Christmas workshop, choirs singing carols and an ice skating rink. There’s also the opportunity to learn more about the Sami people’s culture (those native to Lapland) at a snow-covered encampment within the park’s walls, which features tents, campfires and handicrafts.

For those looking to do a spot of shopping there are 80 market stalls peppered around the grounds. And in between bouts of retail therapy visitors can sample local delicacies, from the familiar – Glogg (Sweden’s answer to mulled wine) – to the more exotic, such as reindeer meat doner kebabs. For those in need of something a little stronger to ward off the cold there’s the Ice Gallery & Bar, constructed with ice from Swedish Lapland, which serves up vodka cocktails.