December Newsletter

Christmas in London

With some of the biggest names in fashion, London is one of the world’s biggest retail centres. Coupled with a host of fabulous winter events Britain’s capital is the number one destination for Christmas shopping.

London boasts some of the most exclusive stores in the country, from Harrods and Harvey Nichols to Selfridges and Hamleys & Liberty’s, while Regent Street, Bond Street, Oxford Road and Piccadilly are home to some of the top names in fashion. In addition London’s famous markets offer a huge variety of unique gifts from international arts and crafts to traditional Christmas trinkets. Spectacular window displays and festive lights add to the Yuletide atmosphere of London and Christmas is one of the most enjoyable times to visit and shop in the city. Shop opening hours generally run from 9am to 6pm Monday to Saturday but at Christmas time many shops stay open until 8pm or 10pm and open during the day on Sunday.

On December 1st you can shop at Oxford Road and Regent Street stores VIP – Very Important Pedestrian. For this one day – Shop West End VIP Day, the roads are closed to all traffic from 10.30am to 8pm, making for a stress free shopping day when the stores roll out the red carpet with special offers and Christmas goodies galore. Along with street entertainments throughout the day, this is the perfect time and place to experience the magic of Christmas.

Also from December 1st until January 6th, London’s Hyde Park is transformed into a Winter Wonderland with a traditional continental Christmas Market, traditional carol singers, cafes, bars and amusement rides including a 50m Ferris wheel and London’s largest open air ice rink, big enough for 400 skaters.

The Natural History Museum is another place to get your skates on, with its Christmas Ice Rink, which is renowned for star spotting and a special Christmas Fair at the museum with a collection of over 30 stalls selling everything from clothing to jewellery, ceramics and toys.

Along with the stores and fairs, London’s Markets at Spitalfields, Covent Garden, Portabello Road and Camden buzz with festive spirit and hot mulled wine, while in Greenwich the Christmas Market offers a quirky collection of interesting and unusual shops and stalls with special discounts on Greenwich Theatre’s production of Dick Whittington.

At the Royal Botanic Gardens, the Kew Christmas Festival runs from December 1st to January 1st with a host of events and activities including a chance to visit Santa in his grotto and a special childrens’ panto or ‘Planto’ aiming to teach youngsters about conservation. While adults can enjoy the magic of Kew Gardens by Moonlight, with romantic winter walks, ice skating and candlelit carol concerts.

Also for the romantics, why not take a ride in Cupid’s Capsule – a private capsule of the London Eye, where you can impress your loved one with panoramic views of the capital while sipping on complementary champagne.

If it’s a medieval Christmas you’re looking for then head to the Tower of London for a journey back in time to 1284 to celebrate the festivities with King Edward I and Queen Eleanor of Castile. Medieval entertainments abound with court jesters, musicians, dancers and storytelling amid the walls of one of the world’s most famous castles and one of London’s most popular visitor attractions.

The festive season brings that great British tradition of Christmas Panto to the West End stages, with highlights such as Jack and the Beanstalk at the Barbican, Cinderella at the Old Vic and Dick Whittington at the Hackney Empire and the Greenwich Theatre. While other seasonal stage shows include ballet with the Nutcracker at the Royal Opera House and at Sadler’s Wells and Raymond Briggs’ Snowman at the Peacock Theatre.

Traditional Yuletide music can be heard with Carol services and impromptu street performances. You can even join in yourself at the Christmas Carol Singalong at the Albert Halls from 16th – 22nd December. But for something a little special try Handel’s Messiah performed at the Royal Festival Hall by the Mozart Festival Orchestra alongside the London Oriana Choir on December 14th or The Choir of Christ’s College Cambridge singing at St Martin-in-the-Fields on 13th December.

To witness Britain at its most bizarre visitors should head to Covent Garden on December 8th, where at 11.30am 150 people in fancy dress will take part in the annual Christmas Pudding Race. Contestants attempt to balance a Christmas pudding on a spoon as they run around an obstacle course of flour filled balloons and foam jets to raise money for Cancer Research UK.

And if you’re visiting London over the festive period, be sure to head to Hyde Park on Christmas Day at 9am as members of the Serpentine Swimming Club take to the freezing waters in the Peter Pan Cup - a 100 yard Christmas Day swimming race that has run each year since 1864.