THE Holiday is one of the UK’s favourite Christmas watches – and who hasn’t wanted to step into the magic of the film?
From the Cotswolds to Yorkshire, here are five of the best villages that will make you feel like you’re Cameron Diaz exploring England for the very first time.
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To feel like you’re in The Holiday – check out these beautiful English villagesCredit: AlamyIn Shere, Surrey, you can pop into one of the real-life filming locations – The White HorseCredit: Alamy
Shere, Surrey
Of course first up is Shere in Surrey which fans of The Holiday will know that it was actually used as a filming location.
Found in the Guildford district, the pretty village is considered to be most photographed of all Surrey towns.
You can actually have a pint in the pub where Amanda (played by Cameron Diaz) and Graham (Jude Law) have their first date.
The couple visit The White Horse, a cosy pub that serves up hearty breakfasts, Sunday Roasts and lunches.
You can also pop into The Dabbling Duck cafe, or take a hike around the nearby Surrey Hills.
The Holiday isn’t the only film to have set scenes in Shere – it’s also been the backdrop of Four Weddings and a Funeral, Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, and The Wedding Date.
Kettlewell, Yorkshire Dales
The Yorkshire village of Kettlewell is filled with classic stone cottages – just like Iris’.
But there’s also traditional tea rooms, and a quaint High Street and incredible views of the countryside – perfect for a weekend walk.
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The village has three pubs, The Blue Bell Inn – a homely spot which serves up tasty home-cooked food by its crackling fire.
Or check out The King’s Head and The Falcon Inn.
Elterwater is a tiny village in The Lake DistrictCredit: Alamy
Elterwater
Elterwater is a village in the Lake District, Cumbria.
The village lies half a mile north-west of the lake of Elter Water – where it gets its name.
It’s tiny with around 100 residents, some of whom live in its charming slate or stone cottages along the narrow roads.
The local pub is The Britannia Inn which serves seasonal food by its log fire – and during the summer has a pretty beer garden.
The village has incredible views of the Langdale Pikes which are famous mountains in the Great Langdale Valley.
You can also go for a stroll along the River Brathay or go further afield and you might even spot a waterfall or two.
Burford in the Cotswolds has beautiful stone cottagesCredit: Alamy
Burford, Oxfordshire
The Cotswolds is an obvious choice when it comes to pretty English villages – and Burford is a very charming spot.
It has the classic pretty stone cottages and a very traditional feel to it.
Along the High Street are antique shops, tea rooms and pubs like The Angel at Burford, The Prince Of Burford and The Lamb Inn.
The oldest pharmacy in England can be found here, and there’s a medieval bridge that crosses over the River Windrush as well as a Grade I listed church.
And for even more magic from The Holiday, actress Kate Winslet used to live very nearby.
The other Cotswolds village, Stanton, has a traditional English feelCredit: Alamy
Stanton, Gloucestershire
Another very English-looking Cotswolds village is Stanton.
40 minutes up the road from Burford is Stanton, which looks very ‘The Holiday’ with its limestone and half-timbered cottages.
The village is on the smaller side so there isn’t too much to do, but it makes for a charming trip – and there will be great photo opportunities.
Nearby you can hike the Cotswold Way or visit Snowshill Manor, and if you fancy it, you can even book to go horse-riding through Stanton.
The Mount Inn pub is the only pub in the village and has incredible views of the Malvern Hills.
This past week, my dear friend Bob and I went to Griffith Park in search of a little bit of holiday magic in the hillsides. We were looking for bright red toyon.
In the fall and winter, toyons produce iconic red berries, a signal that the temperatures are lowering around L.A. and that winter is coming.
“Though the most common name ‘toyon’ is thought to be a Spanish alteration of the plant’s Ohlone name (“totcon”), Indigenous peoples around California have given the plant many names,” according to environmental nonprofit TreePeople. “It has also more recently been referred to as ‘California holly’ or even ‘Christmas berry’ due to it’s similar appearance to English holly in the winter months.”
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For many Angelenos, myself included, toyon brings about a warm sense that the winter holidays are nearing too.
“During the fall season, after several months of growing and maturity, toyon fruits change color from green to red; it’s a signal to birds and other larger animals that a meal is ready for them,” wrote Jorge Ochoa, a professor of horticulture at Long Beach City College. “It is also during the fall that the hills of Griffith Park are adorned with striking red colors reflecting the many toyon plants growing in the hills of the park.”
Although Los Angeles County is warmer in the winter and thus doesn’t produce iconic scenes of a winter wonderland, you can easily drive nearby and find it, whether it’s by hiking past toyons, frolicking in the mountain snow or, as you’ll see here, catching a cosmic light show during Hanukkah.
If L.A. is your ho-ho-home for the holidays, I hope visiting these three natural places below helps you catch the holiday spirit, regardless of how you celebrate. Let’s sleigh these trails! (I had to!)
Bright red toyon berries in Griffith Park.
(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)
1. For red berry bliss: Griffith Park’s Five Points-Beacon Hill Loop
The Five Points-Beacon Hill Loop is a six-mile moderate hike past several toyon trees, laurel sumac and California black walnut (with bright yellow leaves at the moment).
Friends of Griffith Park developed that trail option as part of the Griffith Park Explorer, 15 routes along more than 50 miles of trails in L.A.’s outdoor sanctuary. As someone who has gotten lost (or just forgot where I parked) in Griffith Park more than I will readily admit, I am grateful for these efforts.
Also, the Griffith Park Explorer makes it easy to discern which trails will provide the best red berry bliss! If you’d like to determine the best trail for your physical conditioning that has toyons, you can look at iNaturalist, a citizen science app, to see where toyons grow in the park and match that with the best Explorer trail.
That’s how I identified the Beacon Hill loop. As Bob and I started our hike, I quickly spotted red berries on the hillside. We also savored the quiet that Griffith Park offers just before sunset as the hillsides become blanketed in yellow, orange and scarlet light. At Beacon Hill, I paused and took in the clear views that winter brings. I felt grateful to be here now, which, to me, evokes gratitude and joy, two essential elements of the winter holiday season.
Distance: A six-mile loop Elevation gained: About 1,200 feet Difficulty: Moderate Dogs allowed? Yes Accessible alternative:Bette Davis Picnic Area
The snow-covered road to the Buckhorn Campground in Angeles National Forest in 2024. The campground is a common spot for anyone near L.A. who wants to snowshoe and frolic in the powder.
(Jaclyn Cosgrove / Los Angeles Times)
2. For snow-dappled trees: Buckhorn Campground trail
The Buckhorn Campground in Angeles National Forest is a special place to me, bringing me and my family joy every season. In the winter, it is often covered in snow, as it sits above 6,000 feet in the San Gabriel Mountains.
Crunching over the snow-covered road into the campground this past March — the campground is closed for camping in the winter — I was transported back into a childlike sense of wonder. The evergreen conifers towered above, like giant Christmas trees for squirrels, deer and bobcats.
The view of the snowy mountains near Mt. Hawkins from Angeles Crest Highway in the Angeles National Forest on Nov. 23.
(Raul Roa / Los Angeles Times)
If you celebrate Kwanzaa, Buckhorn would be a great place to visit to observe multiple of the seven principles, including unity, as you and your friends and family slog through the elements together. (Microspikes recommended!)
And if you can’t make it up to the mountains, but still want to observe Kwanzaa with community, the annual Unity Run/Walk is scheduled for Dec. 27 at Balboa Park in San Diego. Either way, you can be in a natural environment hopefully in unity with each other and nature.
Distance: Varies Elevation gained: 300 to 500 feet Difficulty: Easy to lower-level moderate Accessible alternative: Large turnouts after snow along Highway 2 east of Camp Valcrest
A Perseid meteor streaks low in the sky in this 16-second exposure, as seen from White Tank campground in Joshua Tree National Park early on Aug. 12, 2024.
(Raul Roa / Los Angeles Times)
3. For cosmic candlelight: Joshua Tree National Park
On Dec. 21, during the second to last night of Hanukkah (and also the start of the winter solstice), the Ursids meteor shower will peak, allowing anyone watching to see around five to 10 meteors per hour, according to the American Meteor Society.
If you’re celebrating Hanukkah, you can experience your own cosmic Festival of Lights as the sky lights up during the meteor shower at Joshua Tree National Park. I checked, and there are still several campsites available at the park on the peak night. It’s also a great place to celebrate the winter solstice, lighting a campfire (if allowed under fire restrictions) and taking in the natural elements. There are endless hiking options too.
If you want to camp closer to home, you could try Chilao Campground in Angeles National Forest for a darker sky option. (Chilao is at 5,300 elevation, and it’ll be cold. And it is sometimes closed because of snow.) To check whether it’s open, you can call the Angeles National Forest office in Acton at (661) 269-2808. The office is generally closed Wednesday and Thursday, so another option is to call the Gateway District office at (818) 899-1900.
Either way, be prepared for an awe-inspiring light show, a beautiful way to be together with the people you love (who can also keep you warm, in body and spirit).
Happy holidays to you, my dear Wilder!
3 things to do
Members of Paddle LA and OC participate in annual Christmas paddles near Long Beach, dressing in festive costumes.
(David Sanchez)
1. Paddle past pretty lights in Long Beach Paddling LA and OC will host an evening paddle from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Saturday through Alamitos Bay to observe holiday lights near the water. Guests are encouraged to don holiday costumes and light up their boards with good cheer. All skill levels are welcome, but paddlers need to be comfortable in the water after dark and around slow-moving boats. Register at eventbrite.com.
2. Secure Fido’s ranger badge in Calabasas Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area will host its B.A.R.K. Holidays event from noon to 2 p.m. Saturday at the King Gillette Ranch visitor center. Dogs and their owners can visit ranger-led booths and take part in a special swearing-in ceremony where pups will earn their official B.A.R.K. Ranger badge. Learn more at the park’s Instagram page.
3. Hike among native plants in Sylmar Scorpio Gardens, a queer, Latinx-owned native plant landscape design company, will host a hike along the May Canyon trail from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Sunday at Veterans Memorial Community Regional Park in Sylmar. Guests will first be guided in mindfulness and stretching before heading onto the trail. Hike leaders will help participants with native plant identification, discussing the roles the plants play in the larger San Fernando Valley ecosystem. The event is free, but donations are welcome. Register at eventbrite.com.
The must-read
(Ruthy Kim / For The Times)
In highlighting these hikes and natural places where you can celebrate the holidays, I don’t want to seem oblivious or excessively positive. It would be a massive understatement to say it has been a hard year for L.A. “In the past 12 months, we’ve witnessed homes destroyed by fire, families broken up by ICE, skyrocketing anti-trans hate and massive layoffs across the entertainment and media industries leaving thousands in our city unemployed,” wrote Times staff writer Deborah Netburn. Amid all this devastation, it is even more important to try to find joy. That was the message Netburn heard from experts she spoke to about how to still find joy this holiday season in L.A. Joy is an essential element of our lives, refilling our tanks not only to help us survive but also to keep doing good in the world. “The purpose of oppression, hatred and discrimination is to disconnect us and dehumanize us,” said Thema Bryant, a psychologist and minister at First AME Church in Los Angeles. “It is an act of resistance to say, ‘I’m not going to give all my peace to those who are working to stress me out.’”
Happy adventuring,
P.S.
For almost 20 years, the Mojave Desert Land Trust has worked to preserve prime desert habitat, protecting more than 125,000 acres of California desert. Recently, the trust acquired 1,280 acres at the entrance to Mojave Trails National Monument, a massive swath of federal land south of Mojave National Preserve that had been suffering from illegal dumping, graffiti and more. If you’d like to help support the trust’s efforts to protect the desert, consider attending a fundraiser at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Last Bookstore in Studio City. Barret Baumgart, author of “Yuck,” and Josh Jackson, author of “The Enduring Wild,” will discuss their books that underscore the importance of protecting our diverse desert landscape. Guests can imbibe free beer and buy signed books and limited-edition desert posters and tote bags. Half of sales will support the trust. 🏜️
For more insider tips on Southern California’s beaches, trails and parks, check out past editions of The Wild. And to view this newsletter in your browser, click here.
