Edinburgh's Christmas

Christmas, or Xmas for non-believers, used to be a quiet period in Edinburgh. It's less so now, although (Edinburgh's Hogmanay aside) it's still not quite as mad as the hurlyburly of the Edinburgh Festival in August.

Edinburgh's Christmas is a package of Yuletide themed events running from late November, around St Andrew's Day, to early January as the Hogmanay celebrations wind up.

Edinburgh's Christmas was first launched in 1999 to compliment the hugely popular millennium Hogmanay celebrations, together also known as Edinburgh's Winter Festivals.

Deck the streets

You can't miss the brightly lit giant Christmas tree from Norway which is erected at the top of the Mound, and George Street and Princes Street are decked with fairie lights and yuletide decorations.

The switch-on of the Christmas lights is watched by several thousand people at the end of November.

It wouldn't be christmas without Santa, and there's no lack of portly, white-bearded chaps and, for that matter, ladies hitting the ground for the Great Scottish Santa Run. Hundreds of them.

There's, of course, many Christmas carol services at Edinburgh churches. The Bishop of Edinburgh leads midnight mass at St. Mary's Cathedral on the 24th, while the Christmas Eve carol services at St Giles on the Royal Mile are among the most popular - the pews are packed.

Winter Wonderland

You can get your skates on at Edinburgh's Winter Wonderland ice-rink which is set up temporarily in East Princes Street Gardens and there's rides on the Edinburgh Wheel, a ferris wheel that rises and falls beside the Scott Monument. The 33 metre high Edinburgh Wheel does over 2 million rotations during the festive period.

Meanwhile, West Princes Street Gardens is home to Santa (just one this time) and kids can meet live reindeer from Lapland. You can post your letters in his special letterbox at Santa’s Reindeer Garden and ride the train - Santa's Express.

A programme of popular, christmas themed storytelling events are held at the Scottish Storytelling Centre too.

Christmas Markets: Smell the glühwein

There's also various christmas themed markets running during the month. The daily Christmas German market is a popular one at the Mound Precinct with its steaming mulled wine, bratwurst, cheeses, roasted chestnuts, and other festive fare. There's also a crafty "Highland Village" set up in East Princes Street Gardens under the Edinburgh Wheel.

Carbon footprint

There are over 200,000 individual bulbs that light up Edinburgh’s Christmas, with over 10 kilometres of cabling.

Weather

To some extent Edinburgh's weather dictates the success of these christmas events. If we're lucky the city is crispy chilled and dry. But it can be dreich, windy and wet. Too warm and the ice rink melts.