Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Aldi, and Lidl are among the supermarkets to adjust opening hours at stores across the UK during the festive period.
As Christmas is fast approaching, most of us will have already started to stock up on food and drink for the big day ahead of time, but with so much to prepare for, it’s pretty easy to forget something important – which tends to leave us running to the shops before 25th.
While some have probably opted for home deliveries or Click & Collect services, others still prefer to shop in store.
To help you make sure everything is sorted, we’ve pulled together a list of all the major supermarket opening hours over the festive period, so grab your bags for life and get your shopping list at the ready, because Santa is on his way and he’ll be expecting his annual dose of mince pies.
Here’s a roundup list of supermarket opening hours.
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Tesco
Shoppers are being advised to check the Tesco Store Locator for the festive opening times at their local store, as different branches are operating different hours, however, most stores are operating reduced hours on Christmas Eve, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day, as well as being closed all day on Christmas Day.
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Here’s a rough guideline:
Christmas Eve: 10am / 11am – 4pm
Christmas Day: CLOSED
Boxing Day: 9am – 6pm
New Year’s Eve: 10am / 11am – 5pm
New Year’s Day: 9am – 6pm
Check the opening times for your local Tesco store here.
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Sainsbury’s
Just like Tesco, Sainsbury’s hasn’t released standard operational hours over this Christmas period, so shoppers are encouraged to head to the retailer’s Store Locator to find out the opening times for the nearest branch.
What we do know is that most stores will be open on Christmas Eve and Boxing Day, with hours varying from store to store, but all branches will be closed on Christmas Day.
You can check the opening times for your local Sainsbury’s store here.
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ASDA
Following along the same lines as Tesco and Sainsbury’s, ASDA shoppers are being advised to check the Asda Store Locator for the festive opening times at their local store, as different branches are operating different hours, however, most stores are operating reduced hours on Christmas Eve, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day, as well as being closed all day on Christmas Day.
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Here’s a rough guideline:
Christmas Eve: 11am – 5pm
Christmas Day: CLOSED
Boxing Day: 9am – 6pm
New Year’s Eve: 11am – 5pm
New Year’s Day: 9am – 6pm
Check the opening times for your local ASDA store here.
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Morrisons
19-23 December: 6am – midnight
Christmas Eve: 10am – 4pm
Christmas Da: CLOSED
Boxing Day: 9am – 6pm
27-30 December: 7am – 10pm
New Year’s Eve: 10am – 4pm
New Year’s Day: 9am – 6pm
Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Aldi, and more have adjusted their opening hours for the festive period / Credit: Tesco
Aldi
19-23 December: 7am – 10pm
Christmas Eve: 9:30am – 4pm
Christmas Day & Boxing Day: CLOSED
27-30 December: 8am – 8pm
New Year’s Eve: 9:30am – 4pm
New Year’s Day: CLOSED
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Lidl
Lidl’s opening hours vary from store to store over the festive period.
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The discount retailer has, however, confirmed it will be closed on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, with many of its stores shut for Boxing Day too, but with times differing on the other days around this, customers are encouraged to check the Lidl Store Finder for their local branch.
Check the opening times for your local Lidl store here.
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Co-op
Just like many other retailers on this list, Co-op’s opening times vary from store to store over the festive period, but the retailer has confirmed it will be operating reduced hours on Christmas Eve, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day – with all branches closed on Christmas Day across the UK as a standard.
Shoppers are being urged to check the Co-op Store Finder for the opening hours for their nearest branch here.
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M&S
Once again, M&S is another retailer where festive opening hours differ from store to store, so it’s best to check your local branch specifically – but what we do know is that all stores across the UK will be closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day as a standard.
Here’s a guideline:
19-22 December: 6am – 10pm
23 December: Open until 10pm (select stores)
Christmas Eve: Open until 4pm (select stores)
Christmas Day and Boxing Day: CLOSED
Check the opening times for your local M&S store here.
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Featured Image – Morrisons
Shopping
Manchester City opens brand-new store at the Trafford Centre
Daisy Jackson
Manchester City has opened the doors to its new Trafford Centre store just in time for the Black Friday shopping frenzy.
The club has launched the brand-new store in collaboration with retail partner Stichd.
The Manchester City store offers fans a bespoke City shopping experience, including this season’s PUMA kits, the Christmas collection (with a £5 donation to City in the Community (CITC) with specific products), and shirt printing.
Shoppers will be able to browse a range of sky blue shirts, hats, scarves, and gloves, as well as soft toys, mugs, and other collectibles.
There’s already a City store in the Manchester Arndale, which opened a couple of years ago, but its arrival at the Trafford Centre is a new development.
Other existing stores include sites in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, New York City, Seoul and Shenzhen.
Serena Gosling, Director of Retail and Licensing at Manchester City, said: “We’re proud to reveal our latest City Store in the iconic Trafford Centre, Manchester – our third location within the city.
“It provides another touchpoint for fans to interact with the club – at a venue that is a shopping favourite within the North West.
“We know the Trafford Centre attracts huge numbers of local shoppers, and tourists, so we are sure our newest store will provide a convenient location for fans, and of course, at this festive time of year, for those buying presents.
Manchester City opens brand-new store at the Trafford Centre. Credit: The Manc Group
“We look forward to welcoming everyone to the store.”
Will Rodnight, Head of Physical Retail, stichd, said: “We are thrilled to strengthen our partnership with Manchester City through the opening of this third City store in Manchester at the Trafford Centre.
“Our goal is to create an exceptional retail experience that reflects the passion of City fans. This new location adds another fantastic opportunity to connect with supporters in one of the UK’s most iconic shopping destinations, and we can’t wait to welcome them.”
Kate Pearson, Portfolio Leasing Director at Pradera Lateral – Trafford Centre’s Asset Managers, added: “We look forward to welcoming the new City Store to Trafford Centre. This bespoke new retail offering complements our current sportswear retailers whilst also adding a personalised experience for their supporters. We are excited to see their success once the doors open.”
Aldi has launched the world’s first lickable pigs in blankets wrapping paper… for some reason
Emily Sergeant
Aldi has launched its latest Christmas creation, and this one’s arguably wackier than anything else it’s brought out before.
There’s absolutely no denying that pigs in blankets are a staple of festive feasting, with millions of the little delicacies consumed throughout the UK each Christmas, but have you ever wished you could turn the taste of those pigs in blankets into a lickable wrapping paper to wrap all this year’s gifts in? Yeah probably not… Aldi‘s made it though.
It’s anticipated that more than 561 million pigs in blankets are going to be eaten over the festive period, new research has found, which is an average of 10 per person.
But if you just can’t bare to leave the taste of pigs in blankets behind, Aldi’s new wrapping paper is set to give shoppers a fun and tasty twist when it comes to gift-giving.
The limited-edition wrapping paper is inspired by Aldi’s very-own range of pigs in blankets, and is described as capturing the smoky, savoury flavour and smell of the festive treat, with stickers that peel back to reveal a truly unique ‘lickable’ experience.
Aldi has launched the world’s first lickable pigs in blankets wrapping paper / Credit: Simon Jacobs/PA Wire (via Aldi UK)
Not only does the novelty wrapping paper taste and smells like pigs in blankets, it also looks the part on presents too with its pastel pink design, festive holly, and snowflake patterns.
“Pigs in Blankets are a highlight of the festive season… so we wanted to create something special to celebrate the Christmas classic,” commented Julie Ashfield, who is the Chief Commercial Officer at Aldi UK, as the new creation launches.
“This unique, lickable wrapping paper is the perfect way to spread extra joy on Christmas Day.”
Want to get your hands on it then? Unfortunately, it won’t be as simple as popping to your nearest Aldi store and picking up a roll, as with a creation as unique as this, there’s only going to be limited stock and a special shopper competition to win it.
To be in with a chance of winning, you simply need to email [email protected] with your full name before the deadline at 11:59pm on 1 December.
Emily Sergeant -
18th December 2023 
