With Manchester’s world-famous Christmas Markets opening in just over a week, the design of this year’s iconic limited edition Christmas mugs has been revealed – and fans of Manchester’s giant Santa, who returns to Albert Square this festive season for the first time in nearly a decade, are going to love them!
The retro-style design shows Manchester’s favourite giant Santa surrounded by gift-wrapped presents and fir trees, all set against a night sky as the snow falls gently down on a cityscape of Manchester, with the Town Hall and its unmistakable clock tower to one side.
Designed by the city council’s in-house design studio the mugs are the latest in a series of collectable Christmas mugs designed by them each year for Manchester’s world-beating Christmas Markets.
There are two different souvenir mugs to collect. Both mugs share the same retro design, but each one is a different colour and shape – a taller narrower mug with the unique design against a white backdrop for hot chocolate, and a shorter rounder mug with a green colourway for Glühwein.
With images of them set to fill the social media feeds of thousands upon thousands of visitors to the markets as Manchester counts down to Christmas, anyone wanting to bag a mug for themselves is advised to get down to the markets sooner rather than later and not leave their visit to the last minute.
The advice comes off the back of the mugs having been a sell-out sensation since the return of the Christmas Markets post Covid – with record sales of each year’s edition of the highly coveted mugs flying off the seasonal shelves – once they’re gone, they’re gone!
As always Manchester’s special edition Christmas mugs can either be bought outright by Christmas shoppers when they purchase a hot drink at one of the Christmas market stalls, or ‘rented’ and returned to the stall once they’ve finished their drink.
The price of the mugs is the same as last year with customers asked to pay a deposit of £3.50 for their mug when they buy a hot chocolate or Glühwein. They can then either choose to return their mug to the stall afterwards and get their deposit back, or keep the mug and take it home with them as a reminder of their visit to Manchester and the Christmas Markets.
The unique souvenir mugs that help spell the start of the festive season for everyone who visits Manchester in the run-up to Christmas, will be available – while stocks last – at each of the ten market locations in the city from the opening day of the markets on Friday 6 November.
Manchester’s Christmas Markets will open at ten locations across the city on Friday 6 November and close on Tuesday 22 December, except at Albert Square and Cathedral Gardens which will remain open throughout the festive season until Sunday 3 January 2027.
Christmas in Manchester will also see the Skate Manchester Ice Rink in Cathedral Gardens which opens for Christmas skaters from Friday 6 November until Sunday 3 January, and the Giant Ferris Wheel in Albert Square which will open and close on the same dates.
Families with young children will also want to put a date in their diary for the not-to-be missed magical Manchester Christmas Parade which this year will take place on Sunday 6 December.
For more information about Christmas in Manchester visit: manchester.gov.uk/christmas
