Things to do at Christmas Time in London

Christmas time in London is both manic and magical with or without snow. There is the drunken revelry of the Christmas parties; the maniacal mothers and fathers gathering goodies for their kin; the darkness in the evenings and the race for commuters to get home; the endless pressure to purchase and eat mince pies; and "The Fairytale of New York" playing on loop everywhere you go. There are good things too. All the sanctimonious advertising can sway people to the light side; you can drink everyday for a month without raising eyebrows; and if it a leap year and the calendars align you might get an extra seven minutes off work.

You can fantasise you are in a London version of Home Alone where you lose your most annoying family members and hope that the affect of Tory cuts on Police number result in their deaths at the hands of hoodies.

With our seasonal empathy for those of you that have stuffed mince pies in your mouth for three days straight without showering or changing out of your pyjamas; or you are having an affair that started at a Christmas party and looking to smooth things over with a family day out until you leave them in the new year, these are recommendations for some of our favourite things to do in London in November and December when you need a reason to leave the house.

Visit the Regent Street & Oxford Street Lights

Take the Kids to Hamleys Toy Store

Visit Santa at Selfridges on Oxford Street

Watch the Christmas Blockbuster at a Leicester Square Cinema

Go Ice Skating at Somerset House

Visit the Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park

If you are more of a "Christmas-ist" than a grouch or a scrooge we would love to hear what you love about Christmas time in London. If Christmas is not your thing then firstly why have you read this far and secondly you can find lots of interesting ideas for things to do in London which have little or nothing to do with Christmas; for example there is an article about Easter.