Christmas at Castleton

Christmas at Castleton is a sight to behold and for many families, it is an annual pilgrimage to see the charming, seasonal activities that take place in undoubtedly, one of the most beautifully lit villages in the Peak District.

Every December, Castleton, can be relied upon to open its doors during the evening hours and welcome the entire family to enjoy Christmas across the whole village. The village of Castleton has a very magical appeal with matching beautifully lit Christmas trees outside nearly every shop, cafe, pub, with decorations attracting visitors from all over the country. So much effort is put into the village making it a welcome Christmas time resort and there’s nothing else in the country quite like the Christmas experience at Castleton.

The lights are usually turned on every November, heralding the Christmas season and delighting visitors and locals. In December, the activities are orientated with children in mind to help families celebrate the Christmas period. There’s a Santa’s grotto to visit every weekend during December and there is usually another Father Christmas who parades up and down the village in a horse-drawn cart for children to ride in and marvel at.

Many of the shops in Castleton are open a lot later than normal to accommodate the special Christmas shopping needs of their visitors and they always get involved in the festive spirit themselves, usually running competitions and a themed event throughout the whole community. Castleton visitor centre are normally the first to begin the festivities, with quizzes and themes, activity weeks including craft making and games the children and coinciding their competitions with the shops and eating establishments in the village.

Several of the Castleton show caves make a great effort during the festive period. Traditionally, carols by candlelight are held in Treak Cliff Cavern and the concerts are immensely popular and terrifically heart warming. Peak Cavern sells tickets for an evening of carol singing and features a brass band, which takes place several times over the course of the month. These are usually very festive with mulled wine and mince pies for everyone on arrival.

It’s all about the atmosphere when Christmas occurs at Castleton and it’s quite hard to get across how truly beautiful village looks little with coloured fairy lights and especially with the distinct possibility of a wonderfully festive snowy backdrop because Castleton is quite high up and normally gets the snow if there is any around at the time.

Christmas at Castleton