{"id":562899,"date":"2025-11-11T05:23:27","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T05:23:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/562899\/"},"modified":"2025-11-11T05:23:27","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T05:23:27","slug":"all-i-want-for-christmas-is-for-people-to-stop-moaning-about-the-prices-at-manchester-christmas-markets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/562899\/","title":{"rendered":"‘All I want for Christmas is for people to stop moaning about the prices at Manchester Christmas Markets’"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Christmas market price increases have – as expected – caused a stir but is it taking some of the magic out of the annual festive event\"ManchesterManchester Christmas Markets 2025 (Image: Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

If you want to start a debate with someone on the street in Manchester, simply ask them what they think of the Christmas Markets.<\/p>\n

Love them or loathe them, they’re back for 2025, with 274 stalls dotted across ten city centre locations<\/a>. There’s all the staples that we’ve come to expect – Bratwurst, Gluhwein and a fierce reaction to the uptick in prices<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Never mind the grand return of Albert Square<\/a> to proceedings, because all people seem to want to talk about is how much a pint might cost them if they head to the city centre over the festive period and peruse the stalls.<\/p>\n

Now, they’re not cheap, that’s something we can all agree on. There’s an increase this year of around 50p to \u00a31 for drinks, and some independent food stalls have added a couple of quid onto returning items – so the backlash is understandable to a degree.<\/p>\n

Join our Christmas in Manchester WhatsApp group HERE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Lager is up 50p, meaning \u00a36.50 pints, while Gluhwein can set you back as much as \u00a35.50 to \u00a35.60, and Prosecco is up a pound, to around the \u00a36.50 to \u00a37 mark.<\/p>\n

(Image: Jason Roberts \/Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, independents, of which there are many more this year, have seen the starkest price rises – which given the current climate, I’m sure we can all understand the reasoning behind it.<\/p>\n

But it’s like we’re collectively becoming a stuck record.<\/p>\n

If we really look at those price rises, it’s hardly a surprise given the ongoing challenges for hospitality – from increases on ingredients and energy costs, to staffing and competition from chains.<\/p>\n

We’ve seen these price rises outside of the markets too – whether that’s the cost of our weekly shop, energy increases, or the bill at the end of a meal, it’s not unique to a six-week festive event.<\/p>\n

Crowds out for the first Saturday of Manchester Christmas Markets 2025(Image: Jason Roberts \/Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

My point is, it’s getting more expensive to go out regardless, and it’s something we all grapple with, but crucially you have the agency to decide whether you go to the markets on not.<\/p>\n

You can also simply walk around the city centre, meander around the wooden huts glowing with festoon lighting, listen to live entertainment and soak up the atmosphere without having to spend a dime.<\/p>\n

And if you want a quick pint or a Bratwurst to further enhance that fuzzy festive feeling, it’ll be around the \u00a315 mark, which is still cheaper than buying a pint at a gig or dining in the vast majority of chains.<\/p>\n

I fear we’re becoming such scrooges when it comes to talking about the Christmas markets that we take some of the magic and fun out of this time of year.<\/p>\n

\"ManchesterManchester Christmas Markets 2025 is in full swing(Image: Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

Having already been and gathered a lot of the prices for this year<\/a>, my immediate reaction was to roll my eyes at the number flashing up on the card reader too.<\/p>\n

But when I stepped back and thought about it, I realised it’s meant to be an experience – something that brings people together across the region.<\/p>\n

I worry like everyone else about how much it costs to go out for a drink now, but being realistic, there’s many places where it’s more expensive for a pint, burger or glass of wine in the city centre.<\/p>\n

Some of the prices I find hard to defend, but looking at the bigger picture, the markets also provide a platform for the city’s amazing, up-and-coming independent food and drink traders.<\/p>\n

(Image: Jason Roberts \/Manchester Evening News)<\/p>\n

This isn’t exhaustive, but it’s great to see the likes of Flat Baker, Rita’s Reign, Yard & Coop, Great North Pie Co, Oi Dumplings, Little Piece of Bahia, Waffle Kart, plus fledgling entrepreneurs dotted around the markets this year.<\/p>\n

It’s testament to our resilient food and drink scene that continues to bounce back and come up with new ways to engage with customers.<\/p>\n

I’m not saying it’s the most affordable day out, but with a bit of planning you can check the prices ahead of time, pick where you’re going to eat, and enjoy something that only comes around once a year.<\/p>\n

Alternatively, you can just not go.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Christmas market price increases have – as expected – caused a stir but is it taking some…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":562900,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[51,144780,146045,8086,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-562899","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-christmas-markets","10":"tag-manchester-christmas-markets","11":"tag-manchester-city-centre","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115529398198242692","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/562899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=562899"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/562899\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/562900"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=562899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=562899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=562899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}