Travel & Leisure


London we want you for Christmas!

London is not a city like any other. Exuberant and fascinating, this is a place where people live at a furious pace. If you wish to stay for a week-end and do some Christmas shopping, do not hesitate to take the Eurostar, even for one day, and you will get there in two hours and 20 minutes. That's enough to motivate the laziest of all! So, let's go!
London, we want you!

London we want you, London we need you! ...A little children song that turns out to be so genuine during Christmas time.London during the year-end celebrations is a paradise for those who want to recapture the child inside you. Go for a walk near Regent Street and enter the enchanting world of Hamleys, the treasure cave. Sole suppliers of the toys for the Royal Family for generations, Hamleys is built on seven storeys, enough to soften the grumpiest elf of Father Christmas. Once out, go to Selfridges, the essential shop on Oxford Street. A maze will await you, dotted with sweets and surprises leading you directly to Father Christmas. Have you got your list ready ?
You are not tired yet? Well, discover Harrods, the place to be for the fashionistas. You will undoubtedly succumb to the famous luxury shop. Enjoy the windows filled with sticks of barley sugar, garlands, colours and presents. But the journey into the heart of your childhood is not over yet, you still have to go and see the Christmas markets with their little candied fruits cakes, their "mulled wine", the warm cinnamon wine, and the famous pudding... So British!

London we need you!

Once your shopping day is over, it is now time to have fun and admire London by Night. Don't miss the Christmas illuminations on Oxford Street, throw yourself under a golden arch sprinkled with gems, concentrate and think of the magic of Christmas, your eyes full of stars, the fairy tale still exists! Lulled by the Christmas carols, admire the gigantic Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square, that is offered every year by Norway as a thanking present to the British people for their help during WWII.
To avoid putting on weight, run to the Somerset House, an open air skating rink, where you will be able to glide elegantly to the soft sound of Christmas carols. Go even further into the magic of Christmas by going to the evening opening of Kew Garden, on December 14 and 15. What can be more romantic than going for a walk under the moon light, hand in hand, in the most beautiful parks of London? Merry-go-rounds and gourmet stands, children and adults will both find happiness. All that is left is to wait for the presents on December 24th...
Janvier 2008
The inescapable Christmas in London
www.visitlondon/events/christmas