In previous years, Aberdeen had limited Christmas events. Sure, there was the Christmas parades and the lights being switched on in city centre but if we ever wanted to feel truly Christmassy, we had to venture down to Edinburgh and experience their amazing Christmas markets.
This year, Aberdeen has its own Christmas Village! How exciting! It's located just off Union Street and the council has closed off the entirety of Union Terrace for this event. Me and the boy took a trip into the city to see what the fuss was about. We specifically chose a weekday when we both had the day off work to have a wander around so it was a little quieter.
When you enter from the main city centre arch, you're already greeted with cute little shacks selling adorable Christmas gifts, food and little nick nacks. There are also vendors selling mulled wine and beer so you can have a little tipple whilst browsing the stalls.
There are also a few fun fair rides for the daring but also a cute little ice rink for those not wanting to be flung in the air at top speeds. The ice rink is adorned with twinkling Christmas lights which made it really festive. We took part in some warm Belgian waffles and fresh churros after our walk through the market and happily chowed down on it.
For Aberdeen's first Christmas Village, I think they've done quite well. The size of the ice rink was slightly disappointing as me and the boy love ice skating but it was a little bit too compact for our liking. It was still nice however to watch the ice skaters going round the rink. I really hope they do something like this again next year.
The Christmas Village is on until 3rd January 2016 so you have plenty of time to visit the festive market. There is also live entertainment and comedy performances on the weekends so check out the website for the timetable so you don't miss out.
Do you have a Christmas Market/Village in your town or city? What's your favourite part about it?
Vanessa
x
