The best shopping centres to visit this Christmas
Take a look at some of the best shopping centres across the UK for a festive shopping trip
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This page was updated in November 2024
With almost 46 million UK adults planning to buy Christmas presents last year, shopping centres across the country are bound to be as busy as ever this festive season.
So, if you’re ready to clock up the miles for the right present, where can you enjoy the best shopping experience in the lead-up to this year’s celebrations?
We've taken a look at shopping centres across the UK to find the best options for a Christmas shopping trip. We ranked 20 of the best options basedon size, number and price of parking spaces, number of shops and restaurants, and more.
Keep reading to find out which one takes top spot.
The top 10 shopping centres to visit this Christmas:
Bluewater (Greenhithe, Kent)
Metrocentre (Gateshead, Tyne and Wear)
Meadowhall (Sheffield)
Trafford Centre (Trafford, Greater Manchester)
Lakeside Shopping Centre (Thurrock, Essex)
Merry Hill (Dudley, West Midlands)
Westfield London (Shepherd’s Bush, London)
Westfield Stratford City (Stratford, London)
Braehead (Renfrew, Renfrewshire)
centre:mk (Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire)
The best shopping centres for your Christmas shopping
If you fancy a trip to the UK’s best shopping centre this Christmas, take a cruise to Kent – home of Bluewater Shopping Centre.
Sam Sheehan, our motoring editor, said: “It’s no secret how stressful Christmas shopping can be, so we wanted to find out where festive shoppers can have the most enjoyable experience.
“With a whopping 13,000 free parking spaces, 350 shops and restaurants spread across 1,800,000 square feet, and a Google review rating of 4.5 stars, it’s no surprise that Bluewater ranks top of our list.
“Gateshead's Metrocentre and Sheffield's Meadowhall round out the top three, with both having plenty of shopping and food options and offering more than 10,000 free parking spaces each.”
Size of a shopping centre
The busiest in-store shopping day of the year is, on average, 23 December. And, while it’s comforting to know we’re all guilty of leaving it to the last minute, it can all get a bit much.
To avoid being too squashed as you hop from one shop to the next, Westfield Shopping Centre in Shepherd’s Bush (London) is the place to be.
As the largest in the country, the shopping centre in Shepherd’s Bush covers over 2.4 million square feet - meaning plenty of space to roam and explore, despite the crowds.
Westfield in Stratford is another great option for London shoppers. Measuring about 1.9 million square feet, it’s the third-largest shopping centre in the UK, just behind Gateshead’s Metrocentre (around 2 million square feet).
The smallest shopping centre on the list is Brahead in Renfrew with 1,060,000 square feet of space.
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Number of parking spaces
During the festive season, finding a parking spot can be tricky. Luckily, not all shopping centres will leave you driving around in circles.
As well as topping our overall leaderboard, Bluewater takes the title of the shopping centre with the most parking available, with 13,000 spaces.
Meadowhall in Sheffield also deserves a special mention, featuring a whopping 12,000 parking bays. It’s followed closely by Lakeside Shopping Centre in Thurrock (Essex), where you'll find 11,857 spots. So, if you're looking for somewhere convenient to park your used BMW or used Audi while you shop - one of these spots is a good option.
Eldon Square in Newcastle offers a more limited 942 spaces, so can be a squeeze. It is in the city centre, though, so it makes sense.
Parking fees
Parking charges can set you back a few quid, and while it might not seem much at first, Christmas can be expensive enough as it is.
Sam explained: “The good news is that seven of the 20 shopping centres we looked at offer free parking. These include Bluewater (Greenhithe), Meadowhall (Sheffield), Lakeside Shopping Centre (Thurrock), Trafford Centre (Trafford), Metrocentre (Gateshead), Merry Hill (Dudley) and Braehead (Renfrew).
“St James Quarter in Edinburgh had the most expensive car park on our list, with a pricey tariff of £15.20 for a four-hour stay.”
Number of stores and restaurants
Unsure about what to buy your friends and loved ones? More shops means more choice, and if you can grab a snack to recharge your shopping battery, even better.
When it comes to stores and restaurants, there’s no beating the Westfield shopping centres in London. The Shepherd’s Bush location is home to an impressive 408 options.
If you’d rather avoid the London traffic, you’ll be spoilt for choice in Meadowhall and Bluewater, which both have 267 shops and restaurants.
Cabot Circus in Bristol has 107 shops and eateries, the fewest on our list – though still impressive.
Customer ratings
The customer’s opinion is what counts, right? So, we looked at Google review scores to see which centre is winning over the masses.
A fair few shopping centres, such as Bluewater, Trafford Centre, St David's, Westfield London, and Liverpool ONE, have earned Google review scores of 4.5 stars out of 5.
East Kilbride Shopping Centre in Lanarkshire gets the lowest Google rating on our list, with a score of 3.9.
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