London at Christmas is the Perfect Time for a First Visit

London was decked out for Christmas when I first visited in December 1997. The stores down Oxford Street were bustling under the famed Christmas lights, and garland and lights crisscrossed over Camden Market. Visiting London for Christmas allowed my family and I to experience a London that only exists for one season a year.

Some sites of interest, such as the Parliament building, were closed, but the opportunity to celebrate Christmas at Westminster Abbey made up for it. Westminster Abbey is the site of royal weddings and coronations, and it is also an active church that holds services and participates in mission work. We were able to visit the Abbey twice; once during the week to tour this historic site, and once on Christmas Eve to worship.

Over 12,000 people attend a Christmas service at the Abbey each year. We went to the 11:30 PM service, and it was packed. The Abbey’s floor plan is roughly the shape of a cross, and we were tucked away on one short arm of the cross shape. I couldn’t see much, but just being at the Abbey after dark and hearing the choir music was one of the most memorable moments of our trip.

The other moment that made the trip for me was standing on the street looking up at Big Ben. We couldn’t go up in the tower, but just being in a crush of people on a busy street and seeing the iconic clock reminded me of all of the history that happened in the city, and of all of the literature that uses London as a setting.

London is a great destination because it’s a modern city surrounding sites of history. In one day, you can experience both. We were able to see the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace, tour the replica of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre and visit the Churchill War Rooms, where the cabinet meet during World War II. We also watched the world go by at Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square and ate dinner at the original Hard Rock Café.

During that first trip, I saw some typical tourist sites and enjoyed them. But because we went during Christmas, we experienced more than the average visitor does. While it was strange to celebrate Christmas at a hotel instead of at home, being in London for Christmas made my first visit special.

www.westminster-abbey.org/worship/christmas-at-westminster-abbey
www.cwr.iwm.org.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.851


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