After weeks of festive themed socials and cosy movie nights in, Newcastle students now start to head home for the holiday period. However, plenty have chosen to celebrate Christmas in Newcastle and are faced with the all exciting question of how to spend it. Thankfully, the Northeast comes to life during the festive period, with plenty going on across the region that never fails to get people in the Christmas spirit!
The holiday period is definitely the perfect opportunity to venture out into Northumberland and explore what the Christmas magic it has to offer. The Winter Light Trail at Alnwick Garden in the beautiful market town of Alnwick has returned for Christmas 2022 for those tempted by a day browsing lovely local shops for gift inspiration followed by a wander through spectacular displays of sparkling lights. If one day in Northumberland isn’t quite enough, it’s also worth heading a little further North to Bamburgh Castle whose interior has been transformed into a cosy winter wonderland for Christmas!
Closer to home, there's the open-air ice rink by the Life Science Centre in Newcastle that guarantees festive fun, whether you gracefully glide across the ice or are the spitting image of Bambi! Newcastle Christmas markets, brimming with mulled wine and tasty, sweet treats, are also the perfect place for post-skating replenishment. No UK city has mastered Christmas markets quite like Edinburgh, so alternatively, make the easy day trip from Newcastle to Scotland’s beautiful historic capital and get lost in its endless stalls of gifts, food, rides, and drinks galore.
December also means panto season, so if you fancy a weird and wonderful evening of entertainment, there’s no better place than the theatre! Favourites in the Northeast include The Empire in Sunderland, showing Aladdin throughout December and Theatre Royal in Newcastle, where they're putting a festive spin on the classic Cinderella. Finally, for those still deliberating over New Year’s Eve celebrations, Newcastle is hosting a laser light spectacular, which for three nights over New Year will dramatically light up the skyline around the city’s famous Quayside.
So, with markets, lights, and panto galore, students planning to stay in Newcastle over Christmas are most definitely spoilt for choice, never having to travel far to enjoy all the festive fun that the Northeast has to offer!