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Peterborough is ready for Christmas!

Cathedral Square will be transformed into a winter wonderland of festive shopping and dining in the run-up to Christmas. From Wednesday, 10 December a special Christmas market will be tempting you with an array of gift ideas, arts, crafts and clothing as well as a wide choice of culinary delights, mulled wine and spiced cider

A food court in seasonally-decorated chalets and marquees will be offering delicious snacks including a warming hog roast, duck wraps, sweet Spanish churros, traditional British sausages and speciality coffee. For those of you looking for the perfect present you can choose from a top quality selection of hats, scarves, handbags, felt slippers, gloves, cheese gift boxes, bottled craft beers and hampers, ceramic pans, lamps and decorative bowls, garden ornaments, wooden and metal handicrafts.

This year’s Christmas tree – a Sitka Spruce – is more than 40ft tall and is harvested from Kielder Forest in Northumberland. It is supplied by Elveden Farms in Norfolk, who also provide trees outside St Paul’s Cathedral and Parliament

There will also be a festive tavern with a small bar area where you can take a break from indulging in retail therapy and relax. If you’re driving into the city centre then it’s worth taking advantage of the city council’s cashless parking scheme with RingGo. RingGo is a new mobile phone service that allows you to pay for parking by bank card via your smartphone. Registration to the service can be made in advance via the city council’s parking page on www.peterborough.gov.uk or at www.myringgo.co.uk All you need to do is download the free RingGo app, which identifies your location, making paying to park even easier. You’ll be asked for your vehicle details, location code (a four digit number shown on the signs), payment card information and how long you want to park for. An optional text reminder can be sent 10 minutes before parking is due to run out, giving you the opportunity to top up your stay by text without returning to your vehicle.

Mick Dolan, Car Parks Manager at Peterborough City Council, said, ‘With phone parking there is no need to save up coins, go back to the machine to extend your stay or display a ticket on your dashboard. Cashless parking is convenient and it reduces the risk of receiving a parking penalty charge notice.’ Annette Joyce, Head of Commercial Operations at Peterborough City Council, said, ‘We are always keen to make services more attractive to motorists using our car parks and offering the ability to pay for parking by mobile phone allows for more flexibility. It means you can remotely top up your parking whilst shopping, dining or visiting the city centre this Christmas.’

The RingGo cashless parking service is available in all council-run city centre car parks with the exception of the Regional Pool Car Park. The service has also been installed in on-street parking locations. There are 11 city council operated car parks around the city centre. The Wirrina car park is a great location and is just £3 for all day parking. Pleasure Fair Meadow has the same tariff and it’s only 50p for the first hour. Parking for one hour is the same 50p charge at the Market Multi Storey Car Park. Dickens Street is the best value car park in the city at £2:30 all day and 50p for one hour.

For more information about Christmas in the city centre, telephone the Visitor Information Centre: (01733) 452336 or email

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