Christmas in London: An unforgettable experience at the Royal Opera House

My favourite time to visit London, U.K. is end of November, just before the Christmas crowds rush into town. Around the third week of the month, all the major London shopping areas hang their Christmas lights, making London look like a town straight out of a fairytale. From Regent Street to Oxford Street and Piccadilly, London lights up. If you have never been there, you will find yourself lost in love with London during this magical time of the year.

In addition to the many great musicals you can see in the city, London’s churches also offer concerts this time of year – from Christmas carols to simple acoustic performances. Indeed, the music never stops in London.

One of my other favourite activities this time of year is visiting the London Opera House. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert used to frequent it three to four times per week! Dating back to 1728, this magnificent building is located in the Covent Garden Home for the Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House.  In the first hundreds of years of its history, the Opera House was mainly used as a playhouse. In fact, many of Handel’s operas and oratorios were commissioned specifically for the Royal Opera House. The first ballet performances there did not start until 1734.

If you happen to be in London during the end of the year, you won’t want to miss The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky at the Royal Opera House. The Nutcracker normally runs from the end of November until the first week of January every year. The staging, impeccable music, and excellent ballet performances will make your trip to London an unforgettable experience. The Royal Opera House also offers backstage tours. You can purchase tickets online. I took the tour with a friend last year and thought it was marvellous to see how the Royal Opera House is using latest most advanced VR (virtual reality) technology to help with lighting and staging. The tour takes about one hour, and the tour guide will also show you where the Royal Box is; you can even purchase advance tickets so you can sit in the very same seats where queens and kings have watched performances.

The interior of the Royal Opera House is nothing but majestic and beautiful. The orchestra of the Royal Opera House is comprised of over a hundred full-time musicians. These are the finest musicians in the world, and it is an extreme privilege to witness everything under one roof. From amazing music to the the finest ballet performances, The Royal Opera house is the top of the world’s stage.