Things to do on Christmas Eve in London

Slide into Christmas by spinning around on one of London’s best ice rinks, all of which are open on Christmas Eve. Winter Wonderland’s is the biggest; Canary Wharf’s is open for the longest period (18 sweet weeks!); Somerset House’s is the most fabulous; and Glide at Battersea Power Station is the newbie. Take your pick, lace up your skates and get swishing.

Want a winter walk with a difference? If you live near central London, why not take in some of the city’s Christmas lights, which make the capital dazzlingly beautiful each year? 

Pub mulled wine can be a bit hit and miss. So we’ve sought out the best cosy London pubs pouring mulled wine that’s a cut above the rest. Find yourself a nook and wrap your mitts around one of these steaming, spicy bevvies.  

Can you get any more Christmassy than wandering around the home of the man who wrote ‘A Christmas Carol’ on Christmas Eve – the very night when all the ghostly shit went down in the story? We don’t think so. See the museum’s original Victorian furniture and fittings kitted out festive greenery and tour the house as carols play in the background. Every Christmas Eve visitor guest will receive a free mince pie and mulled wine, be able to see adaptations of ‘A Christmas Carol’, and be entered into a festive prize competition. 

Whether it’s a cutesy puppet show for toddlers, a traditional family trip to see a pantomime, or a dazzling night at the circus, our guide to Christmas theatre in London has got you covered. Check out our comprehensive panto guide for the best places to sample this most entirely British of festive traditions. But if fabulous dames and shouts of ‘He’s BEHIND you!’ aren’t your particular bag of brussels sprouts, then don’t worry: there’s something out there for all tastes.