Early December break recommendations

[KimmySchmitt]

Hello, looking for recommendations for a trip away for me and DP please. We've had a tough couple of years and are going through various stressful things so I'm looking for something a bit romantic so we can reconnect.

Can anyone recommend somewhere that might suit? Looking for a sort of cosy, festive, hygge vibe but maybe also somewhere pretty and with decent nightlife (nothing wild, just a bar with a nice atmosphere would do). Maybe a city break but with a nice spa hotel so we can relax? Location-wise, between Central Scotland and Manchester would be ideal. We would also consider Europe. Budget - we'd probably be looking at max 1k pp for 5 nights but that would be for travel, accommodation and food/activities.

Last year we went to York, which was lovely but we were on the go a lot so not very relaxing. I'd consider going back if anyone has specific hotel/restaurant recommendations?

Lakes Hotel and Spa in the Lake District

Edinburgh in December would be nice with all the Xmas stuff and markets. It’s a very pretty city especially with Christmas lights up and so on. There’s obviously a lot to do so you could end up quite busy though (or resist the urge to tick off all the tourist stuff). Plenty of good restaurants and bars.

But if you’ve got 5 nights I’d be tempted to go abroad TBH. Tallinn is lovely over Xmas and maybe has the cosy Hygge vibe you’re after - it’s all snowy Old Town, small cafes etc. Good value for money too. You can ferry across to Helsinki on a day trip which is amazing as well but if you want to not be too busy Tallinn itself is small, very walkable. Similarly somewhere like Prague, Bratislava, Bruges or other smallish cities might work and would be lovely over Xmas. I’d avoid eg Paris, Berlin and bigger cities if you want to not be running around too much.