Christmas - Travel

Visit the settings of some of the best-loved Christmas movies.

Some invitations arrive with a polite formality. Others arrive with a quiet sense of history attached. The latter was very much the case for our recent visit to the White House Christmas Party—an afternoon that felt less like a social event and more like a living, breathing expression of America at its very best.

There’s a rumor that’s grown louder in recent years — that New York City has somehow out-priced itself, over-crowded itself, or out-commercialized itself right out of the Christmas conversation. That perhaps Europe has stolen the twinkle from our lights, that Chicago is suddenly the Christmas capital, that a warm-weather holiday will be more relaxing, less chaotic.

Since London knows how to celebrate the season better than almost anywhere on earth, we’re shaping this quick trip into a 48-hour holiday escape of elegance, music, and merriment.

As the holiday season approaches, Christmas markets light up cities across the globe, filling the air with the scents of mulled wine, roasting chestnuts, and fresh pine. These markets, steeped in...