UK city with Europe's best Christmas lights - 5 displays you must see this year

03 December 2023 , 07:14

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London has come out on top with a whopping five must see extravaganzas after being recently voted the world's "prettiest Christmas city" (Image: Getty Images)

A UK city is playing host to five of Europe's top 10 ten Christmas light displays, ready to dazzle and get Brits well into the festive spirit.

From sparkling Christmas trees, to giant baubles and electric-lined streets, festive displays offer a great way to get in the mood - and more importantly they are free. And after a recent list of the top displays in Europe was released, it seems London has come out on top with a whopping five must see extravaganzas after being recently voted the world's "prettiest Christmas city".

New research, conducted by ferry and cruise operator DFDS, used data and geolocated reactions from posts and likes on TikTok to determine where the best light displays in Europe were. And the UK capital beat the likes of Barcelona, Paris and Amsterdam (not featured in the list) to offer a wealth of displays to visit during the cold winter nights.

The UK capital beat the likes of European hubs Barcelona, Paris and Amsterdam, which were not even featured in the list (Getty Images)

Regent Street's annual angels display topped the list with a huge 2.3 million views on the social media platform. Covent Garden's Christmas light offering - which boasts 40 giant bells and bows, 12 big baubles and eight spinning mirror balls - came in second place with 1.4million views.

Also on the list was Oxford Street in fifth, with Carnaby Street in eighth place and Christmas at Kew rounding out the top 10. London also featured in a stellar list that includes Zurich's Lucy Christmas lights (27,000 views), Glasgow's George Square Christmas lights and the Colmar lights in France with just 26,200 views.

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Covent Garden's Christmas light offering - which boasts 40 giant bells and bows, 12 big baubles and eight spinning mirror balls - came in second place (SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, a study by ALA Insurance has crowned Windsor the best Christmas road trip destination, with Shrewsbury and Scarborough following close behind. Llandudno, Harrogate, Whitby, Stratford-upon-Avon, Hay-on-Wye, Mousehole, and Canterbury also feature on their list of the top 10 places to visit.

Top 10 best Christmas light displays in Europe

• Regent Street Christmas lights, London, 2,300,000 views
• Christmas in Covent Garden, London, 1,400,000 views
• Brussels by Lights, Brussels, 510,200 views
• Christmas at the Botanics, Edinburgh, 195,600 views
• Oxford Street Christmas lights, London, 60,800 views
• George Square Christmas lights, Glasgow, 39,000 views
• Bahnhofstrasse street/Lucy Christmas lights, Zurich, 27,000 views
• Carnaby Street Christmas light, London, 26,900 views
• Colmar Christmas lights, Colmar, 26,200 views
• Christmas at Kew, London, 21,500 views

Joseph Gamp