Christmas will look a little different this year as three-tier lockdown restrictions remain in place across England. Usually people flock in their droves to visit traditional Christmas markets, which take place every year across the UK. However this year Christmas markets have been cancelled in several places.
Can you go to Christmas markets this year?
Outdoor Christmas markets are permitted to open throughout Tier 1, 2 and 3 areas of England this year.
However, each tier has its own rules on meeting people in indoor and outdoor settings.
With regards to Christmas activities this year, the Government guidance states: “From December 2, the rules on who you can meet with in shops will depend on your tier.
“The rules might be different for indoor shops and open air shops, such as Christmas markets or Christmas tree markets. Check the rules for your tier.”
People in Tier 3 are only allowed to meet up to six people in some outdoor public places, including parks, beaches, countryside, public gardens, allotments, heritage site grounds, outdoor sports facilities and playgrounds.
Christmas markets are not included in the Government guidance for places people can meet others outdoors in Tier 3.
In Tier 2 people are allowed to meet in groups of up to six people in all outdoor spaces, which includes private gardens, and people living in Tier 1 areas can meet in groups of up to six people indoors and outdoors.
Under the lockdown rules, people in Tier 3 areas are advised not to travel out of their tiers at the current time for non-essential reasons, which means people should not be leaving their tiers to visit Christmas markets outside of their area.
Are there any Christmas markets this year?
Although Christmas markets can go ahead this year, several markets have been cancelled due to the pandemic.
The Nottingham Christmas market has been closed for the rest of the year after large numbers of people turned up for the occasion this weekend.
Located in Tier 3, the Nottingham Christmas market was criticised for the absence of social distancing.
In a joint statement with Nottingham City Council, Mellors Group said: “Plans were in place to control access to help manage the number of people entering the site at any one time and to continually monitor this throughout Saturday.
“However, numbers were too large to implement these effectively.”
Some of the UK’s biggest Christmas markets have been cancelled this year, including Bath, Belfast, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Liverpool and Manchester.
Other Christmas markets have also been cancelled in Leeds, Exeter, Lincoln, Gloucester, Durham, Derby, Chester, Oxford, Rochester, Southampton and Stratford-upon-Avon, among many others.
London’s Winter Wonderland and the Southbank Centre’s Winter Festival has also been cancelled this year.
Some Christmas markets have moved online for virtual events, so it is worth checking out if your local Christmas market will be doing so.
However, some Christmas markets are still planning to go ahead this year, including the Cardiff Christmas Market and the Swansea Christmas Market in Wales.
In London, the Greenwich Christmas Market, Selfridge’s Christmas Market and Christmas by the River in London are planning to open this year as well.
