Christmas in London?

Ice skating at several places including at Kew Gardens and Somerset House.

Christmas market, and visits to Leadenhall Market and Borough Market in the runup to Christmas - unless your children (and maybe you) are not prepared to see game hanging. Of course you could prepare them.

Be prepared for all public transport to come to a complete (very nearly) halt on Christmas Day in London and no or very few trains on Boxing Day.

Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park and the German Xmas Market on the South Bank are always fun, but busy, busy, busy!

Nice lights all over, particularly Oxford Street and Regent Street.

Avoid shopping areas at weekends, busy x10.

Expect rough weather.

Enjoy the Winter Wonderland extravaganza in Hyde Park. See the wonderful Oxford and Regent Street Christmas lights. Attend midnight mass at St Paul's. Next day if weather is amenable start early (7am) and watch the silly but traditional Peter Pan Cup race in the Serpentine Then walk or bike ride around the park , feeding the water fowl, people watching, etc. Prior to Christmas day see a Pantomime (Panto), visit the madness of Camden Lock Market, check this link for updates to find a Santa Dash http://www.santadash.co.uk to watch. Research what London walks are scheduled on Christmas day, www.walks.com. If you stay inside enjoy HM's speech on the telly while enjoying family time. As far as accommodations it's all about how much you are willing to spend. I'd check out the Airbnb website where you can set filters, i.e.; price range, number of bedrooms, type of accommodation (obviously with your family size a flat or an apartment). Be certain to stay within travel zones 1 & 2 to keep transport costs down. Lastly, you can and will find small shops and markets open in some neighborhoods. London is a multicultural city and for some residents it is merely another day on the calendar so their shops, cafes, etc will be open and doing business. Just be prepared to walk which in my humble opinion is a wonderful way to see a city.

Be sure and check out the offerings at the Royal Albert Hall. We attended a sing along with the Royal trumpeteers and the London Philharmonic that was just overpowering, singing the standard carols and rollicking along with the crowd. Another must see is the huge Norway spruce at Trafalgar Square, given to the British by the Norwegians in thanks for saving them from the Nazis, all lighted up and scores of carolers from across England attend and perform nightly. There is plenty of mince pie, roasted chestnuts, and hot mulled wine to be had while enjoying the carolers. Be sure and try to attend both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services at St Paul's for one and and Westminster Cathedral for the other. Go early. We are not church people but the settings and services were awe inspiring. Christmas in London was one of our best Christmases ever. We booked a Christmas dinner near our hotel and enjoyed the feast at the Paddington Hilton, adjacent to Paddington station.

Thank you, everyone, for these wonderful ideas! Your comments are so helpful!

Liberty department store is not as well known to us in the US as some others, but they do very pretty decorations for Christmas.

Harold's reply is brilliant. Liberty is an absolutely "oh my" moment simply because of its build and at Christmas time it's especially gorgeous. I think the teens will even express an "oh wow" as it will be something they've honestly never seen before nor would think existed. His post also reminded me that if you are looking for Christmas cards to send next year why not stop at St James of Piccadilly where there are tables set up with packets of cards being sold to benefit various charities. Excellent selection. I was very pleased with the ones I bought. Next to this church is a lovely hidden park. Good for a respite, far from the madding crowd. Lastly, check out Timeout magazine online. Listing for plays, concerts, galleries, music, etc.

Thank you, Harold, Claudia and Emma! That sounds like something we would all love to see. I'll definitely try to find the "Timeout" info online ahead of time too!

Even small local events like carol singing and "panto" theatre can be reflected in event schedules, perhaps through TimeOut or the tourist office: www.visitbritain.com.

We were there just before Christmas this year and found the following particularly interesting:

-- London Walks has a special walk that is only offered during the holiday season that is focused on "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens. Although Dickens didn't identify by name where various locations in the story were set (such as Scrooge's Office), the guide used the vivid descriptions in the story to identify likely places. Of course, he also gave good overview of the social history of the time upon which Dickens was commenting.

-- Kew Gardens had a special illuminated walk through a portion of the Gardens at night. For example, the Palm House was all lit up. They also were selling food and drink. The pulled pork sandwich and hot chocolate were big hits. There was also a few rides and other things done for the kiddos.

-- There was an ice rink in front of the Natural History Museum, as well as the one already mentioned at Somerset House.

-- St. Martin-in-the-Fields had a number of seasonal-oriented concerts scheduled. We caught one of them and really enjoyed it.

-- Fortnum and Mason usually has a good window display and a variety of seasonal items (Christmas pudding and biscuits) on sale in their food hall.

Just a few ideas. Hope this helps.

Sorry, Westminster Abbey for Christmas services, not Westminster Cathedral...

I've heard that Mayfair near Hyde Park is great at Christmas time. Especially Audley Street. The US Embassy is on this street.

We did this last Christmas with our 19 yr old daughter. Harry Potter was one of the few things open Christmas Eve.Transportation is tricky-bus wasn't dependable-took taxi to make sure we got there in time for our reservation, which I think I made in August! We went to Westminster Abbey Service on the 23rd., around 4 I think. You will need to check website for when tickets are available-free, but I made sure I got up in the wee hours of the AM so I could get tickets immediately when they became available. I think there's a limit of 4 tickets on one reservation. Watched Downton Abbey Christmas special in real time instead of delayed until Jan(of course, it was full of spoilers since we hadn't seen that season yet, but it was a quintesentially British Christmas experience!)

I'm sure Westminster Cathedral has Christmas services as well. If it matters to you, Westminster Abbey is Church of England (mildly Protestant) while Westminster Cathedral is Roman Catholic.