Christmas Fair
The Oxford Botanic Garden Christmas Fair has become a highlight in the City’s Christmas calendar, enjoyed by many for the original artisan products on sale, the unique food and drink available, and the lively entertainment in beautiful surroundings. This year the Christmas Fair offers visitors the opportunity to discover a wide range of bespoke gifts, from ceramics to jewellery, to foods and drinks, to fashion - including Oxford Botanic Garden’s first ever perfume, Metaphysic, inspired by the scents and smells of the famous garden.
Metaphysic is a complex eau de parfum that captures the changing scents of the Garden through the year, imbuing a sense of wellbeing that comes from connecting with nature in the UK’s oldest botanic garden. It has been created in collaboration with artisanal English perfumier 4160Tuesdays. The perfume is inspired by plants grown in the former Physic Garden since the 1640s, and has notes of kumquat and bergamot, layers of elegant rose, magnolia and lily, and a warm autumnal woody base of frankincense and amber. It will launch at the Christmas Fair on 7 December. Metaphysic is also available to purchase online here and collect only from this year's Christmas Fair.
Following the success of last year’s event, two marquees will play host to a range of local craftspeople, suppliers, and producers, and delicious food and drink. There will be live music and plenty of activities for children to enjoy. The Oxford Botanic Garden shop will be open all weekend, along with pop-up stalls from the Bodleian Library and Ashmolean Museum.
Hospitality will be provided by The Conservatory Bar, Crafty Belle Crumpets and Crepes, Jericho Coffee Traders, Horsebox Coffee, Veni & Dough, and Fallow and Field.
Live entertainment will come from Oxford band Hot Crumpets on Saturday, and jazz vocalist Fleur Stevenson on Sunday. WhatNot Theatre will present ‘Mother Christmas’ in their magical grotto on both days.
Botanical folklorist Natty Mark Samuels, founder of Oxford’s African School and the author of ‘The Encyclopaedia of Rootical Folklore’, will host a series of interactive, drop-in workshops, celebrating the plants of the Caribbean with costumes, cuisine and musical instruments. A Christmas Pudding Trail will guide Fair-goers through the Garden’s glasshouses and flowerbeds, who will also be encouraged to participate in The Tree Council’s MistleGo mistletoe survey.
Please note there is no parking at Oxford Botanic Garden, we are easily accessible by bus (nearest stops are Queen's Lane and The Plain).
Ticket prices
Adult - £8
Concession (Friends, over-65s, disabled visitors and accompanying carers, students) - £7
Under-16s - £1
