With the festive season fast approaching, how better to offset any gift shopping stress than by combining it with a spot of travel?

With the festive season fast approaching, how better to offset any gift shopping stress than by combining it with a spot of travel?

Here are some UK Christmas Market holiday ideas from Travel PR

In the market for pet presents – Bath from £183 pp with Canine Cottages

Honeybee Cottage

Visiting the city of Bath is a treat at any time of the year, and especially so in the run up to Christmas. Bath Christmas Market runs this year from 24 November to 11 December, when the streets will be adorned with over 150 twinkling chalets selling stylish homeware, handmade jewellery and personalised presents. Those with dogs shouldn’t miss the Bath Country Pets cabin for quality quilted coats, fleece sweaters, and tweed bow ties and caps. Stay just seven miles away, in enchanting Bradford-on-Avon, at Honeybee Cottage (sleeps two, plus two dogs), a Grade II-Listed townhouse with shops and restaurants in walking distance. A three-night self-catering stay costs from £183 pp (£366 total). £20 supplement per dog. Visit Canine Cottages (www.caninecottages.co.uk).

A Cashmere & Cinnamon Christmas – Edinburgh from £182 pp with holidaycottages.co.uk

Edinburgh Christmas Market, which runs from 19 November until 3 January, is both traditional and romantic. Wrap up warm and amble around the stalls, hot mulled wine with cinnamon in hand, contemplating the beautiful cashmere scarves as a Christmas present for a special someone. Children will likely wish to experience the rides in Santa Land and take to the ice-skating rink. Stay at Arthur’s Seat Imperial Heights (sleeps four), a luxurious penthouse within walking distance of the historic Royal Mile, and with wonderful views over Holyrood and Arthur’s Seat. A seven-night self-catering stay costs from £182 pp (£725 total). Visit holidaycottages.co.uk (www.holidaycottages.co.uk).

it’s the most wonderful time of the year! Layer up in London – from £205 pp with Pride of Britain Hotels

No matter how old we get, somehow the magic of Christmas never seems to fade… and London offers myriad indulgent events and occasions to bring on the festive spirit. Rug up and head out to Covent Garden’s iconic Christmas Village (from 8 November): sample mulled wine and spiced sweet treats, walk through a majestic forest of Christmas trees and welcome the festive season under the luminescence of thousands of glittering lights. Alternatively, firm favourite, Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park (18 November until 2 January) is one of the biggest Christmas markets in the capital, offering cabins brimming with handmade crafts, the UK’s largest outdoor skating rink and hot chocolates and toddies to go around. Stay nearby at The Goring, where you can pause and drink in the exquisitely regal interiors that this hotel provides, from its Michelin-starred Dining Room to the Grand Piano in The Goring Bar. A double room per night (based on two sharing) costs from £410. To book, visit www.prideofbritainhotels.com or call 0800 089 3929.

Seasonal fun and spa indulgence – County Durham from £148 pp with Seaham Hall

One of the North East’s best Christmas markets returns this year, even bigger and better. From 2 - 4 December, Durham Christmas Festival promises a packed programme of seasonal fun. Visitors will be treated to no less than three themed markets; a craft & gift market, a festive outdoor market and - set in the stunning cloisters of Durham Cathedral - a regional producers’ market, showcasing the very best of what this delightful part of the UK has to offer. Just down the road, on the Durham Heritage Coast, five-star Seaham Hall is the perfect base from which to visit the Christmas Festival. With just 21 stylish suites in a grand, historic setting, as well as a superb spa, it’s an idyllic retreat in which to enjoy a little pampering after a busy day shopping for Christmas treats. A one-night B&B stay costs from £295 per room (based on two sharing). To book, visit www.seaham-hall.co.uk or call 0191 516 1400.

Europe Christmas Market Holiday Ideas:

Festive delights in Dubrovnik – Croatia from £1,346 pp with Sunvil*

British Airways resumes its winter flight service to Dubrovnik (from Heathrow) on 5 December, creating the ideal opportunity to check out this captivating Croatian city’s picturesque streets without the summer crowds. Known as the ‘Pearl of the Adriatic’, Dubrovnik’s temperate climate – combined with its magical Christmas Festival (from 27 November to 6 January) – make it a wonderful destination for festive break. Enjoy local delicacies, sparkling lights, Christmas trees aplenty and musical treats (ranging from traditional carols to rock) from your base at the grand five-star Hilton Imperial Dubrovnik, where a four-night stay costs from £1,346 pp (two sharing), including B&B, BA flights (Heathrow) with 23kg hold luggage and transfers. Departs 5 December. Call AITO* member Sunvil on 020 8568 4499 (www.sunvil.co.uk).

Christmas Markets on the Danube – festive river cruising for £1,455 pp with Jules Verne

What better time to cruise one of Europe’s most iconic rivers than during Advent, when charming Christmas markets await discovery during atmospheric shore stops? This four-night, full-board cruise travels from Vienna to Budapest on board the well-appointed MS Vivaldi, visiting both cities – as well as the Slovakian capital, Bratislava – for escorted sightseeing, plus ample time to browse for festive goodies. Christmas Markets on the Danube costs £1,455 pp (two sharing), including flights (Heathrow), four nights’ full board and drinks with meals on the cruise vessel, excursions, and the services of a UK Tour Manager, expert guides and representatives. Departs 1 December. Call Jules Verne on 020 3553 3722 (www.vjv.com).

Pickled herring while you pick out your presents in Malmö? Sweden from £517 pp with Sunvil*

Add some Scandi style to your shopping this year with a festive short break in Malmö, where Sweden’s third largest city holds its Christmas Market - in Gustav Adolf Square - from 9 - 23 December. Browse for handicrafts at the pretty stalls, take a ride on the brightly painted julkarusell (carousel) and work up an appetite with a few circuits on the ice rink, before feasting on local delicacies such as smoked sausage, gingerbread biscuits and glogg (mulled wine). Still peckish? Why not try the Julebord, a traditional buffet that’s served at most Swedish restaurants during the festive period and includes delicacies such as pickled herring, gravlax, paté, knäckebröd (crisp bread), meatballs, and beetroot salad? A three-night tailor-made Malmö Christmas Break costs from £517 pp (two sharing), including B&B at the Elite Plaza Hotel on Gustav Adolf Square, flights with 23kg hold luggage (Heathrow) to Copenhagen, and return train transfers to Malmö. Call AITO* member Sunvil on 020 8758 4722 (www.sunvil.co.uk).

Festive Franconia for culture and Christmas Market captivation – Germany small group tour from £2,465 pp with Kirker*

Home to some of the most evocative and well-preserved mediaeval art and architecture in Europe, Franconia is considered to be the cultural heart of Germany. It’s also rather glorious in the festive season, when the region plays host to Nuremberg’s famous Christkindlesmarkt, one of the world’s oldest Christmas markets. Browse the wooden booths of ‘the little city of wood and cloth’ for hand-made decorations, delicious local produce and classic sweet treats such as gingerbread and buttery Spekulatius spiced cookies. This six-night small group tour is based in the city, enabling discerning travellers to experience its seasonal delights, as well as visiting Franconia’s charming towns and cities – including Rothenburg, Bamberg, Würzburg and Wagner’s Bayreuth – and discovering its fascinating history. Nuremberg & Franconia costs from £2,465 pp (two sharing), including BA flights (Heathrow), six nights’ B&B at the four-star Le Meridien Grand Hotel in Nuremberg’s historic centre, three dinners, two lunches, wine tasting, all entrance fees and gratuities, and the services of the Kirker Tour Leader and local guide. Departs 5 December. Call AITO* member Kirker on 020 7593 2288, www.kirkerholidays.com.