Manchester Christmas markets

For an affordable Christmas market break, look no further than the UK where you can stock up on festive treats and enjoy a hot glass of mulled wine or two in the vibrant city of Manchester.

Every winter, the world-famous Manchester Christmas markets open, attracting more than nine million visitors to Britain's first and largest continental-style Christmas markets.

With over 300 stalls, spanning nine market stalls, Christmas. In 2014, the markets will run from Friday 17 November to Sunday 21 December and will include two new sites: Market Street and Cathedral Gardens.

This year, Cathedral Gardens will be the new home of the 16-metre-high crafted windmill, sitting beneath the iconic National Football Museum and the medieval cathedral - the perfect spot to sip a warming gluhwein. In Market Street, there will be 28 stalls selling quality arts and crafts, along with Christmas gift ideas from independent traders and high street.

The original market in St Ann's Square is the traditional German heart of Manchester's Christmas Markets, while the French Market in King Street is another favourite for Christmas market shoppers visiting Manchester.

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Nearby, Exchange Street and New Cathedral Street are great places to stop for a drink at the coffee house and the covered German beer house. And Albert Square is where you can take the kids to marvel at the giant LED-lit Santa. Strolling around the market, overlooked by Manchester's Victorian town hall, you will be transported back to Dickensian Britain and into a scene from A Christmas Carol.

Each of Manchester's markets boasts wonderful gift ideas, including jewellery, ceramic, handmade toys, puppets, clocks, glassware, as well as the limited edition Manchester Christmas Market coffee and Gluhwein mugs.

Food lovers can sample the huge range of culinary delights on offer, with traditional delights from across Europe including Gluhwein, liqueur coffee, macaroons, pancakes and bratwurst.

With so much to see and do at the Manchester Christmas markets, it's the ideal destination for a winter city break in the UK.

And don't forget to check out Britain's other best Christmas markets below.