By Matt Mueller Culture Editor Published Oct 01, 2020 at 9:31 AM

Christmas is going to be a little less cheerful this year as Christkindlmarket announced that it canceled its 2020 holiday market in Milwaukee's Deer District as well as in Chicago and Wrigleyville. 

"The Christkindlmarket has been monitoring the health and public safety developments, travel regulations for visitors and vendors, and other guidelines throughout the past few months," writes a post to Deer District's Facebook page. "Since the top priority is the well-being of market visitors, vendors, partners, and staff members, the tough decision has been made to cancel the traditional in-person Christkindlmarkets in Chicago, Wrigleyville and Milwaukee for 2020."

The traditional German outdoor Christmas market and festival first came to Milwaukee in 2018, bringing hand-crafted Christmas collectibles, cheerful holiday decor, tasty winter treats and overall Christmas cheer in front of Fiserv Forum. 

The holiday happening isn't entirely shut down for 2020, however, as the Christkindlmarket is hosting a "Home for the Holidays" virtual version of the event. The virtual market will go live on Nov. 1 and run through the end of the year with an online marketplace of holiday goodies as well as special seasonal events and activities hosted behind the safety of a screen.

For more information on the virtual Christkindlmarket – and to even begin pre-ordering for some its events – go to Christkindlmarket's website. (The site appears to be down right now, but stay tuned there for all your updates when it comes back up.)

Matt Mueller Culture Editor

As much as it is a gigantic cliché to say that one has always had a passion for film, Matt Mueller has always had a passion for film. Whether it was bringing in the latest movie reviews for his first grade show-and-tell or writing film reviews for the St. Norbert College Times as a high school student, Matt is way too obsessed with movies for his own good.

When he's not writing about the latest blockbuster or talking much too glowingly about "Piranha 3D," Matt can probably be found watching literally any sport (minus cricket) or working at - get this - a local movie theater. Or watching a movie. Yeah, he's probably watching a movie.