UK hospitality venues see longer stays and higher spend over festive period
While UK pubs, bars and restaurants weren’t actually busier during the festive season, customers stayed longer, spent more per visit and splashed more cash on special occasions, new data has revealed.
UK hospitality venues saw Christmas trading increasingly concentrated into a smaller number of high-value occasions, rather than being spread evenly across December, according to new analysis from The Oxford Partnership using insights from Vianet’s Beverage Metrics.
The research suggests that pubs, bars and restaurants were no busier overall during the festive period, but customers stayed longer, spent more per visit and were more willing to trade up on days they viewed as special.
Average dwell time rose to 145 minutes, up 16% on the previous year, pointing to a shift towards longer, more immersive festive occasions. By contrast, average occupancy stood at 63.2%, broadly unchanged from last year, revealing that venues were not actually fuller.
Spending figures
This change supported steady, inflation-aligned growth in spend per head. Average total spend per customer reached £26.37, with drink spend averaging £21.02. The figures reflect continued price sensitivity on drink-led occasions such as Christmas Eve and Mad Friday.
Commenting on the findings, Alison Jordan, CEO of The Oxford Partnership, said: “This Christmas showed a clear shift towards fewer but more meaningful occasions. Consumers are still willing to spend, but they’re increasingly selective about when they go out.
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“Success is no longer about filling venues every day in December, it’s about winning the right moments with offers that justify longer stays and higher-value visits.”
Key trading dates
Food proved more resilient, with average spend per head at £31.43, underlining its role in adding value to longer, planned visits.
Measured by the average number of pints sold per pub, festive trading was dominated by a small number of standout days. Christmas Eve was the strongest day for volume, while New Year’s Eve delivered one of the largest year-on-year uplifts.
Mad Friday remained a high-volume trading day, though a slight decline compared with last year pointed to shorter visits and tighter control of spending. Boxing Day benefited from longer stays and food-led socialising, supporting solid growth.
Drinks performance
Drink category performance mirrored these wider trends. Stout was the strongest festive performer, benefiting from slower-paced, premium-led occasions, while premium and world lagers also performed well.
On the other hand, core lager and craft beer underperformed on high-volume days, as consumers opted for more familiar, recognisable choices.
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