Things to do on New Year’s Day in London

There are so many great New Year’s Day parties happening across London, meaning that the NYE fun doesn’t have to stop on January 1. So if you’re still standing after New Year’s Eve, head to one of these great events and start 2022 in the best way possible.

Had a raucous New Year’s Eve? Grab a hat and shake off the cobwebs by heading out on a wintry walk around one of London’s picturesque green spaces. We reckon these routes are the most beautiful of the bunch. 

While there are always more than enough festive things to do in London – light displays, ice rinks, endless department-store browsing – sometimes we all need to get out of the capital. Away from the noise, smog and, yes, all that endless shopping. What’s needed is crisp country air, a stiff walk or a serene spa day. Here are our fave day trips from London to enjoy this winter, all under two hours from Zone 1.

Is there anything more wonderfully wintry than wrapping up warm, pulling on some ice skates and gliding around a frosty slab of ice with your loved ones? Each winter, London fills up with pop-up rinks, from the legendary Somerset House to the newer Glide at Battersea Power Station. At all, you’ll find festive vibes ramped up to the max – and a lot of fellow Londoners vying for a spot on the ice. Book in advance to guarantee you can show off your best ice moves (or your ability to stay upright, at the very least). Here are some of the best rinks to soar across this winter. 

As fun and festive as Christmas is, the idea of having to head out into the crowds and scour the shops for the perfect presents for everyone in your life might not fill you with excitement. Instead of turning to the temptation of online ordering, skip the high street and head straight for one of London’s many markets.

In the run-up to Crimbo, the capital becomes home to tons of wintry fairs, stacked with stalls selling unique pressies from small businesses and independent designers that you’d never find in the big shops online or off. They’re perfect for browsing as the big day looms and a good excuse to treat yourself to Christmas snacks and mulled wine as you tick gifts off your list.

In the days after Christmas Day, some markets are still going, so go for a stroll around and pick up some post-Xmas gifts for yourself – or those you missed off your list the first time around. 

Even if you’re the biggest Scrooge in the game, you can’t deny that London looks pretty magical once the Christmas lights have been turned on and tinsel-covered trees greet you at every turn. Luckily, the city is never in short supply of festive light displays, whether you’re looking for something classic – like Regent Street’s trumpet-playing angels, or a themed display, like those found on Carnaby Street. Each string beams bright enough to warm the coldest of hearts quicker than you can say ‘Bah, humbug’. Most of London's lights will stay up til the first weekend in January, so you'll be able to get in some final glimmers as 2025 hits. 

Okay, let’s just get this out of the way. ‘Hamilton’ is stupendously good. Yes, it’s kind of a drag that there’s so much hype around it. But there was a lot of hype around penicillin. And that worked out pretty well. If anything – and I’m truly sorry to say this – Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical about Alexander Hamilton, the first secretary of the US Treasury, is actually better than the hype suggests.

That’s because lost in some of the more waffly discourse around its diverse casting and sociological import is the fact that ‘Hamilton’ is, first and foremost, a ferociously enjoyable show.

You probably already know that it’s a hip hop musical, something that’s been tried before with limited success. Here it works brilliantly, because Miranda – who wrote everything – understands what mainstream audiences like about hip hop, what mainstream audiences like about musical theatre, and how to craft a brilliant hybrid. Put simply, it’s big emotions and big melodies from the former, and thrilling, funny, technically virtuosic storytelling from the latter.

There's been a gaping chasm, an unfillable abyss, in London's recreational heart ever since the Trocadero finally closed its doors in 2011. It has left the city crying out for an arcade experience, somewhere to go and lose yourself in gaming. And now, Power Up is here to answer all of your RPG prayers. Admittedly, it doesn't have a rocket-shaped escalator or countless dark corners for snogging, but what it does have is bank after bank of classic videogames.