WARRINGTON has been ranked as one of the most nostalgic Christmas towns in the UK – mainly down to the number of old pubs in the area.
Warrington came third in the UK following new data sourced by Buzz Bingo, with researchers using data collected from searches on Google maps.
Buzz Bingo looked into the top 20 most populous towns in the UK, ranked them, then indexed the towns on the following nostalgic Christmas qualities: the number of old-fashioned toy shops, average December snowfall, old pubs over 100 years old or listed, and the number of Christmas markets. Each data point was weighted equally to ensure consistency throughout the scoring.
Northampton was crowned the ultimate nostalgic Christmas town in the UK due to its huge number of festive markets. Made up of a mixture of community markets, shopping fairs, local craft stalls and makers markets, the town has 33 Christmas events lined up for 2025. Some of the markets are one-offs or sporadic events happening throughout December, so make sure you check in advance. It also boasts 14 old-fashioned toy shops, perfect for wandering around and looking at toys from years gone by to really put you in a retro mood.
Huddersfield ranks second with one of the highest amounts of average snowfall throughout December, which adds to the ultimate festive cheer. With snow on Christmas Day becoming less common in recent years, visiting a town with a higher amount of snowfall is sure to take you back to years gone by and help you experience all the nostalgic, retro feelings. You can also enjoy the 20 old pubs, with all of these being over 100 years old. Some are even listed buildings, so you can escape the retro snow inside a pub you know has been standing for many years. Make sure to plan in advance if you’d like to visit the Christmas markets here, as some don’t run each day.
In third place was Warrington, with 58 old pubs contributing to its index score of 68. Despite it having the lowest average snowfall in December, you can still experience nostalgic Christmas magic in the markets and old-fashioned toy shops. There’s no shortage of old pubs there to warm up, and with the UK experiencing cold snaps this month, you’ll not be too far away from an inviting fireplace.
*Methodology: Researchers used Google Maps and searched [Town name] + ‘old fashioned toy shop’, ‘toy shop’ and ‘traditional toy shop’, discounting major retailers and chains.
To find old pubs, researchers conducted data research to find pubs in each town that are older than 100 years, or are pubs that are historic listed buildings.
To find Christmas markets, researchers conducted desk research for each town, searching for phrases such as ‘Christmas market 2025 [town]’ and checked local news sites along with council pages and community listings. Christmas markets, pop-up fairs, artisan markets and church fairs were included in the final figure.
Totals were then ranked and given an index score out of 100 to create the final ranking.
@warringtonworldwide Spotlight on #warrington town centre #pubs ♬ original sound – warringtonworldwide
