Christmas on tap: six of the best UK pubs for the festive season

The Churchill Arms, London

It’s hard to imagine a list of Christmassy pubs without the maximalist Churchill in Kensington. Its outside is usually covered in flowers, while inside, where Thai food and pints of London Pride are served, the ceiling and walls are hung with a strange collection of artefacts: lanterns, butterflies, 100 assorted chamber pots, second world war memorabilia and pictures of Winston Churchill, whose grandparents were regulars. In winter there are extra decorations (fake greenery, presents, north pole signs), and the exterior swaps the pansies and petunias for dozens of fir trees and thousands of lights. There’s a post box by the door, reindeer near the roof and a giant Ho Ho Ho in lights over the window.

Of course, the Churchill is heaving with tourists, locals and Instagrammers. “This is the last quiet day until January,” says a barman on an already crowded afternoon just before the pub’s November lighting-up day.

When you’ve snapped a couple of pictures, you could stroll round the corner to the family-run Mall Tavern for real ales, comfort food and live blues. The Mall’s tasteful decorations include garlands and a tree in the candlelit bar. Both pubs are halfway between Holland Park and Kensington Gardens – well-placed for elegant, scarf-toting city walks.

Central London is peppered with atmospheric Dickensian pubs, such as the dark-wood-panelled Lamb in Bloomsbury, a short stagger from Charles Dickens’ former home on Doughty Street.
churchillarmskensington.co.uk

Sleigh & Reindeers, Harrogate, North Yorkshire

The seasonal Sleigh & Reindeers (usually known as the Coach & Horses) changes its name from mid-November and bills itself as Harrogate’s most festive pub. There’s a frame of baubles round the door and lights cascading down the building. The inside is relatively understated, but reindeer and a couple of glittery pheasants twinkle away in corners of the bar, sledge down the side of the stairway and watch over the upstairs restaurant, where a special menu offers wensleydale souffle with red wine-poached pear and sage-roasted turkey with pigs in blankets. Downstairs, staff in Christmas jumpers serve pints of a pistachio and cherry-flavoured milk stout called Fairytale of Brew York. December sees a musical night, curry and carols and a Christmas quiz.

Opposite the pub, ribbons of lights wind up the trees around the Stray, the town’ centres’ parkland area, and the neighbouring hotel is a blaze of festivity. With its cobbled streets and fairy-lit shops, Harrogate feels Christmas-card ready. There’s a fair in the centre of town, offering crepes and Glühwein, and a cheerful road train touring the streets at weekends. The garden at RHS Harlow Carr has its annual Glow trail and a new cafe in the redeveloped Harrogate Arms. A huge event at Stockeld Park, on the road to Wetherby, includes a snowflake maze, ice rink and craft village.
coachandhorsesharrogate.com

Queen Victoria Inn, Priddy, Somerset

The creeper-coated Queen Vic, high in the Mendip Hills between Cheddar and Wells, puts on a display each Christmas to raise thousands for the local children’s hospice.

“Lights cover the roof and walls,” says the landlord, Mark Walton, promising “something new” in this year’s decorations, which involve 15,000 metres of fairy lights. In the garden, there’s a giant snowman and tree, built out of more than 3,500 empty wine bottles .

Inside, they serve Butcombe bitter and Somerset ciders amid beams, wooden settles, stone walls and fireplaces. The surrounding hills are pitted with caverns and ancient barrows. The switch-on for the Queen Vic’s lights was at 6pm on 6 December; a fun run through the Mendips followed on 15 December with participants dressed as Santa, and there are carols on Christmas Eve. The events can get pretty busy. Is there any way of avoiding the crowds? “No chance!” says Mark. “Small village in the middle of nowhere – chaos!”
thequeenvicpriddy.co.uk

The Empress, Cambridge