You’ll go down inn history… Meet the UK’s most festive pubs
After waiting two-years to celebrate Christmas, pub company The Inn Collection Group is pulling out all the stops to give their customers the most wonderful time of the year.
The group has appointed its very own Mrs Christmas who is spending the next three weeks transforming 10 of its inns into a bedazzling festive spectacle and decking the halls with more than just boughs of holly.
The Inn Collection Group – which has inns in the Lake District, Yorkshire, Sunderland, Northumberland and County Durham will decorate its sites with a dazzling three miles of Christmas lights, a whopping 2,400 feet of garland, 100,000 bulbs, 20,000 baubles and 60 Christmas trees.
And to mark the re-opening of its heralded historic Yorkshire inn, The Black Swan at Helmsley, the group is even installing a pop-up ice rink for the community of the North York Moors market town as it celebrates its first Christmas opening.
But the good will and cheer of The Inn Collection Group goes further than dazzling décor and towering trees as it embraces the true message of Christmas – which is giving.
The group is inviting older people living alone to join them for free Christmas lunch with entertainment at The Seaburn Inn in Sunderland, where 93-year-old pensioner Lyn Overend will also be switching on the inn’s Christmas lights on Wednesday December 1st.
Lyn, who is a widow and lives alone, staved off the loneliness and isolation of lockdown by watching the build of The Seaburn Inn. She said watching the inn’s construction kept her going throughout months of lockdown when she wasn’t able to meet with family or friends.
The Inn Collection Group operations manager Paul Brown said: “We do love to celebrate Christmas in style. While we’ve always been known for our amazing decorations, this year we really wanted to pull out all the stops and go all out for a showstopper Christmas spectacle and to make our inns among the most festive in the country.
“It’s the first time in two years that we’ve been able celebrate Christmas properly with family and friends and going to the pub or enjoying a Christmas stay away in a traditional inn is a part of that festive ritual for many of us.
He added: “But Christmas isn’t just about the tinsel on the tree and twinkling lights – it’s about goodwill and giving which is why we are inviting older people living alone in Sunderland to The Seaburn Inn so they can enjoy a home-cooked pub Christmas dinner and a party in the company of others.”
The Inn Collection Group is offering Festive staycation packages for the first time across its pubs with rooms with Christmas breaks from £549 and New Year stays from £399, both based on two people sharing. Also on the festive line-up are Festive Fayre menus, Christmas party nights and Breakfast and Afternoon Teas with Santa experiences.
And as The Inn Collection Group is dog friendly, they’re un-leashing further festive joy so dogs can have a paw-fect Christmas with special festive menus for furry friends.