A homely Christmas Eve for everyone

On Christmas Eve for the past 35 years, Zug's Wiehnacht has been a meeting point for people who want to celebrate together. The cosy parlour in the Rathauskeller will also be open on December 24th from 7 p.m.

"Guests can enjoy a free, hearty soup and pastry," says Graziella Christen Terrani, who organises the event together with many helpers. The tables are decorated with nuts, apples, oranges and sweets, which, of course, you can also eat. “You only have to pay for alcoholic beverages on this evening.”

In addition to the Christmas delicacies, there is also handicraft material, coloured ribbons and foils, from which you can make decorations during the evening for the Christmas tree that stands ready on the Fischmarkt near the Zytturm. This is sponsored by the Zug Corporation. "We decorate the tree at 10 p.m.," says Christen Terrani. "Then we sing Christmas carols together." Decorating the trees, lighting candles and singing the old Christmas carols in the old town of Zug is a moving event for many people, he says.

Graziella Christen Terrani and Stefan Meier invite you to Zug's Christmas Eve in Zug's “Rathauskeller” on Christmas Eve.

The beginning of Zug's Wiehnacht goes back to the early eighties. "The demolition-and-new-construction boom prevailed, and it was the time of the youth unrest," recalls the committed organiser, who was elected Zug Person of the Year last February. “On Christmas Eve, after 6 p.m., Zug became a silent city with locked guest house doors. No restaurant or bar was open to the public.” This was the reason for starting Zug's Wiehnacht. A bar was opened In the old town area, run by volunteers, where peaceful get-togethers would be possible for all those people and families who could not or did not want to celebrate at home. They found what they were looking for in the Rathauskeller.

"The landlords warmed up to our idea," says Christen Terrani.

The idea was also to make Zug's Wiehnacht better known in the city, and the poster was created, , designed by Christian Bisig, and has been updated annually with current information.

The Zug Wiehnacht takes place on December 24th from 7 p.m. in the Rathauskeller. A Christmas tree is decorated on the fish market at 10 p.m., and Christmas carols are then sung.