Yorkshire Christmas Markets
Yorkshire Christmas Markets
It's that time of year again when towns and cities play host to the colorful Christmas markets, welcoming visitors from near and far to join in the festive celebrations and soak up the unique atmosphere. I'm a bit of a sucker when it comes to Christmas Markets, so when a trip to the Yorkshire Christmas Markets I hadn't visited before came up, I had my bag packed and my Santa hat on faster than you could say mulled wine.
In a change to our usual working location in Leger's Design Studio, my colleague, Tammy, and I joined the tour to get some new photographs for the brochures and the website, and to check the tour out—listening to what the customers thought of the trip and experiencing the Yorkshire Christmas markets firsthand. After the Grassington Dickensian Festival, our final stop was York. Yule love York!
York
The medieval city of York is known for its impressive cathedral—the York Minster, its historic city walls, the famous Jorvik Viking Centre, and its various museums. But in the run-up to Christmas, the markets provide another great reason to visit. It was a clear, crisp day with bright skies as we arrived, and still quite early, so we decided to take a quick look around York's historic parts before the Christmas shoppers descended on the city.
We took a walk past Clifford’s Tower—the surviving keep of York’s main medieval castle—for a panoramic view of the city; walked down the famous, ancient street known as the 'Shambles', full of quaint shops in half-timbered, medieval buildings dating back to the 1400s; and had a very short stroll down 'Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate', the shortest street in York with the longest name—once the location of York’s pillory and whipping post. Some say this was the inspiration for the street’s name.
The center of York has no shortage of shops, ranging from big-name, high street stores to the unique little shops that can be found on The Shambles and among the maze of the city’s charming cobbled streets. We wandered along, listening to buskers and watching street entertainers who appeared on most corners.
St. Nicholas Fayre
Parliament Street, in the center of the city, was the location of this weekend’s Christmas market—the St. Nicholas Fayre. The market stalls were a mix of handicrafts and food and drink, with one half of the stalls selling wooden ornaments, handmade silver jewelry, and Christmas decorations; the other half, marked by the familiar smells of hot roast nuts, mulled wine, and roasting meat, with stalls offering fudge, cupcakes, different flavored toffees, and gifts from Yorkshire brewery.
We were never very far from something to sample, whether it be a locally produced chutney or sloe gin jam, and now and then, little stalls selling hot chocolate with rum or brandy appeared.
Tammy: "York was the highlight of the tour for me. The atmosphere on the coach was different by the third day, people were chatting, laughing, and joking—there was a real sense of camaraderie. Even though I've worked at Leger for a number of years, I've not been on a coach holiday before but definitely understand the appeal of holidaying by coach—everything was done for us: no driving, no navigating our way through the country roads, nothing to think about... we just had to turn up and get on the coach. Then we just sat back and enjoyed the scenery."
So that was it. Three days and three different markets, all full of festive cheer and an atmosphere you only get at this time of year. And here's one final observation: Christmas markets are not the place to be if you're on a diet! There are so many wonderful smells coming at you from every direction that it would be hard for anyone with even the highest levels of willpower to walk past without a taste. We didn't even try—after all, that's all part of the attraction of the Christmas markets! The diet will have to wait for another day!
For more information about the York St. Nicholas Fayre, Leeds Christkindelmarket, and the Grassington Dickensian Festival, visit our Yorkshire Christmas Markets Tour page.
