If you’ve made Manchester your home this year and are sticking around over Christmas, you may not be aware of quite how many ways you can enjoy the holidays, and to be honest, when it comes to celebrating the festive season, Manchester knocks it out of the park. Whether you’re celebrating alone or with friends, here’s a few great options to make your Christmas truly cracking!

Christmas Markets

Of worldwide fame (for a good reason!) are our Christmas markets. Head down, have a wander and pick yourself up some amazing international dishes from the hundreds of food stalls. Wherever you’re from, you’re certain to find delicacies that’ll make you feel at home. To learn a bit more about how to navigate the markets at this time of year, why not check out our blog post? And, even better, they are open until Christmas Eve and reopen on Boxing Day, so you can soak up some seasonal cheer all throughout the month, when the other restaurants and shops are closed.

Festive Hospitality

We love nothing more than a festive menu and Manchester has tonnes of great pubs, bars, and restaurants you can visit on and around Christmas Day to get your festive fix, such as The Bird at Birtle - a posh pub with top shelf grub that is a little out of the city centre, but the journey is more than worth it. Ducie Street Warehouse is another more central option that you can book your Christmas Dinner at, before sticking around for the DJ set that’ll take you right through to Boxing Day.

If you’d rather have your festive cheer served in a glass, then we highly recommend checking out the speciality cocktails at The Alchemist (their Biscoffee Martini is unforgettable!) although it’s worth mentioning that these guys aren’t open on Christmas Day, so it’s probably best going down for your Christmas Eve nightcap.

Woodland Walks

There’s something about the glow of fairy lights on balconies, windows, and roofs during the Festive period that makes everything feel so much more magical, so why not get wrapped up and head to one of Manchester’s most impressive parks to enjoy the award-winning illumination display, Lightopia? You’ll be treated to bright, immersive installations, colourful lasers, and water shows throughout the trail, with the added bonus of a tempting food court near to the beautiful Grade 1 listed Heaton Hall. The perfect Christmas activity.

Snuggle Up with a Christmas Classic

It seems like a rite of passage to spend December stuffing your face with mince pies as well as watching some classic Christmas movies, so why not head to the Everyman in Spinningfields to see Elf, Muppets Christmas Carol and Home Alone? For some more indie options try Chapeltown Picturehouse in the green quarter, where you can see Dial Code Santa Claus and Christmas Evil amongst other showings.

We’d love to hear how you’ll be spending your festive season, and if you try out any of our suggestions. Needless to say, Mancs welcome everybody into their city, homes and shops over the festive season so there’s no need to feel lonely or homesick. If you hear of other options that you’d like us to share, please let us know on our social channels. Season’s Greetings!