LONDON, Manchester, Bath and so many more other cities – the spots we usually associate with festive markets.
But did you know a major UK supermarket also does its very own Christmas market – where you can get a huge goodie bag for ”free” and it’s rammed with posh treats?
Tesco is launching a whopping 165 Christmas markets across the UK to help customers get into the festive spirit.
The pop-up events will take place throughout November and December and offer free food and drink samples to guests.
The supermarket giant said: “Coming to more cities and towns than ever, our free Christmas Market is heading to a store near you.
”Join us for free food and drink samples plus festive inspiration to perfect your Christmas celebrations with family and friends.”
The markets are open between 11am and 7pm from Monday to Saturday and 10am to 4pm on Sundays.
They will appear at selected Tesco Extra and Superstore locations, featuring a wide variety of well-known brands, such as Costa Coffee, Chocomel, Castello, Boursin, Daily Express reported.
Shoppers can also expect samples from Drambuie, Glen Moray whiskey, Baileys, Harveys, ZIP, Nemiroff, Toffifee, Thatchers, Teapigs, Tassimo, Pepsi, Quality Street, McCain, Lurpak, Lindt, Purina, Aveeno and more.
Here are just some of the locations taking part:
- Abingdon Extra, Oxfordshire (22 November)
- Accrington Extra, Lancashire (8 November)
- Aldershot Superstore, Hampshire (15 November)
- Amersham Superstore, Buckinghamshire (8 December)
- Andover Extra, Hampshire (25 November)
- Aylesbury Extra, Buckinghamshire (20 November)
- Bedford Extra, Bedfordshire (8 December)
- Bellshill Extra, Lanarkshire (16 December)
- Blackpool Clifton Extra, Lancashire (26 November)
- Bournemouth Extra, Dorset (1 December)
- Bristol Brislington Extra, Bristol (13 December)
- Cambridge Milton Superstore, Cambridgeshire (15 November)
- Chichester Extra, West Sussex (5 December)
- Colchester Extra, Essex (10 November)
- Doncaster Extra, South Yorkshire (26 November)
- Edinburgh Corstorphine Extra, Edinburgh (14 December)
- Harrogate Superstore, Yorkshire (1 December)
- Liverpool Allerton Road Superstore, Merseyside (29 November)
- Reading Extra, Berkshire (13 November)
- York Tadcaster Road Extra, Yorkshire (30 November)
To find out if your local Tesco is hosting a Christmas market this season, check out the supermarket’s website here.
One delighted visitor, Cissy Jones, recently took to TikTok after popping down to the market nearby.
Raving over the epic festive deal, the TikToker said in her video: ”If you go to Christmas markets at Tesco, you get a free huge goodie bag.”
The ”heavy” goodie bag came with Bailey’s Squirty Cream, Lindt chocolate, Chocomel, Thatchers Alcohol-free Cider – and more.
Whilst strolling around the festive market, the visitor also got her hands on more free nibbles to enjoy, such as mince pie, Toffifee – and more chocolate.
According to Cissy (@cissyjoness), who visited the market based in Manchester Parrs Wood, ”you need to buy two things” at the stalls to qualify for the ”free” goodie bag.
”I had to get two items for the bag! Which was £ 3.50 – or just enjoy the goodies at the market!” she wrote in the caption.
”How cute and fun! And how GOOD is the bag!” Cissy couldn’t get over the bargain find.
Posted less than 24 hours ago, the festive clip has already gone viral, racking up an astronomical 1.2million views and hundreds of comments.
One fan of the retailer revealed that those keen to get their hands on the ”freebies” will have to be quick.
”Nooo, this was my best kept secret last year!!! But they only do it for like 10-15 minutes you’ve got to time it right.”
”A Tesco Christmas market? Why have I never heard of these?” another was totally stunned.
”Ours didn’t have any bags left when we got there and all staff looked fed up wanting to go home,” a customer shared their unfortunate experience.
”This would be a lovely thing to put in the food bank donation box they have in most stores if anyone is able to do without the extras,” someone else suggested.
How to save money at Tesco
EVERY little helps when it comes to saving money at Tesco.
The Sun’s Head of Consumer Tara Evans explains how you can save money at the UK’s biggest supermarket.
Clubcard points
Tesco first launched it’s loyalty scheme back in 1995. You get one point for every £1 you spend in store. If you spend points in store then 100 points is worth £1. You can spend your points via its reward partners and get triple and even sometimes quadruple the value.
Extend Clubcard points
You can find lost Clubvcard points and find the last two years of unused vouchers by logging into the Tesco Clubcard site.
Clubcard prices
If you don’t have a Clubcard then you will miss out on its cheaper Clubcard prices. However, don’t forget to check prices before you shop because it might not be cheaper than elsewhere, especially on big value items like washing powder and loo roll.
Yellow stickers
Shops do vary the time they reduce groceries with yellow stickers but Tesco tends to be between 7pm and 9pm.
Save money if you shop online
If you get your Tesco food shop delivered then it might be worth buying a delivery saver pass to help cut the cost of delivery fees.
If you live near a Tesco then you can get click and collect slots of as little as 25p, so it might be cheaper than getting your food delivered.
