Leeds Christmas Market brings 'seasonal surge' to the city as figures revealed
Leeds Christmas Markets have received praise for the seasonal surge they’ve brought to the city.
Figures show that Leeds city centre recently enjoyed its busiest day for five years. High tech cameras positioned at key locations across the city centre recorded their highest footfall figure since 2019 on November 30, the second weekend of the city’s Christmas attraction. Despite some difficult weather conditions, the run up to Christmas has also seen the city market.
The cameras, which measure the total numbers of people passing by cameras in eight areas including Briggate, The Headrow and Albion Street, recorded a total footfall of 327,346, that tally similarly impressive numbers, with cameras tracking more than a million people between December 12 and 15, with a total footfall of 1,006,180 in that period.
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Total city centre footfall across the whole year was also 1.3 per cent higher than in 2023, with footfall at Leeds train station 11 per cent higher than last year.
Councillor Jonathan Pryor, Leeds City Council’s deputy leader and executive member for economy, transport and sustainable development, said: “It’s inspiring to see the city centre doing this well in the face of a challenging financial climate coupled with some extremely difficult weather conditions, and the resilience of our local economy is there for all to see in these impressive numbers.
“This is also a real reflection of the partnership work which goes on across the city’s many different organisations, businesses and cultural attractions, who each year come up with an engaging and exciting programme of events and activities which make Leeds such a unique and attractive place to visit.
“The innovative use of our public spaces, including the fantastic Christmas market on City Square, has also really helped bring Leeds to life these past few weeks and as a city, we can all look forward to Christmas with a sense of pride in what we have accomplished together and optimism for the year ahead.”
This year’s Christmas market has seen around 70 traditional stalls on City Square and the Millennium Square areas, with pop up musical performances and Christmas food and drink along with outdoor bars on City Square, Victoria Gardens and Millennium Square.
The market has once again been delivered by Marketplace Europe, one of the UK’s largest Christmas market operators, at no cost to Leeds City Council.
Elsewhere, Trinity Leeds has reported seeing a footfall increase of 23 per cent. Steven Foster, centre director at Trinity Leeds, said: “It’s been an incredible year and it’s great to see it capped off with a remarkable rise in footfall – so far in December we’ve already had an extraordinary increase of 23 per cent more guests in the centre compared to the same period last year, so it’s set to be a bumper Christmas for Trinity Leeds.
“Our new arrivals – from the flagship Zara store and Nike to Jack & Jones, Knoops and Five Guys – have helped draw in the crowds who are keen to shop in-person and make their visit a memorable experience with loved ones rather than simply browsing online.
“We’re thrilled to be part of such positive results for city centre retail and we’ve got lots more to look forward to in 2025, from the arrival of Sostrene Grene to the exciting Trinity Kitchen expansion.”
To find out the latest shopping news in our city you can visit our Best in Leeds homepage. There you will also find a guide to great things to do in Leeds. Stuck at home and wishing you were there? Download your favourite artists from Amazon and Apple music.
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