Just a couple of hours by train from the North-East, the bright lights of London beckon Christmas shoppers and theatre-goers. Jenny Needham has a capital time

FOR many different reasons, London attracts tourists all year round, but during the festive season, two things come to the fore: shows and shopping. And just like gin and tonic, or apple pie and ice cream, the two go together very well thank you.

After a day in search of great Christmas presents in the bustling streets of funky boutiques and famous department stores, supper and a show in the West End finish off things very nicely.

Covent Garden is awash with theatres and if you want to know a bit more about their history, a guided tour is a great way to discover things that, left to your own devices, you would probably walk straight past. The lovely One Aldwych, a luxury hotel in the heart of theatreland, arranges walks for guests from The Lobby Bar every Saturday at 11am. The absorbing one-and-a-half hour meanderings led by a Blue Badge Tourist Guide uncover the hidden world behind the busy shops and theatres, leading you down dark courts and into secret gardens, as you hear tales of actors, musicians, writers, royal mistresses and modern celebrities. It's the perfect way to get out and about in the run-up to Christmas, when Covent Garden twinkles with a million festive lights and decorations and the streets and covered market are abuzz with activity.

If your feet feel a bit bruised after pounding the pavements, another nice way to see the capital and its dramatic, ever-changing skyline is from the river. MBNA Thames Clippers run every 20 minutes between key London piers, stopping off at attractions such as the Tate Modern, the Tower, and Greenwich with its observatory and the beautifully restored Cutty Sark. Just sit back and relax and enjoy the scenery as it sails past.

Embankment is the nearest pier to One Aldwych, and a short stroll takes you back to this welcoming haven. The grand Grade II-listed Edwardian building once housed the Morning Post and it is where the hotel’s swimming pool now sits that the newspaper’s printing presses were situated.

The hotel has a lovely atmosphere, the most attentive and friendly staff, a glamorous, art-filled lobby bar (which serves cracking cocktails and was named one of the top five hotel bars in the world by The Sunday Telegraph), a health club and two restaurants. The newest, Eneko at One Aldwych, opened in the summer and showcases three-Michelin star chef Eneko Atxa’s relaxed and unfussy take on traditional Basque dishes. You can really make an entrance here, stepping down a gleaming copper staircase into the subterranean dining room. In a fitting nod to its location, it’s all very theatrical. Another option is One Aldwych’s Indigo restaurant, where chef Dominic has created tantalising festive lunch and dinner menus.

If One Aldwych hotel is perfectly situated for theatre-going, those who prefer a bit of retail therapy might like to try the Radisson Blu Edwardian Berkshire. It really is just a few paces from the shopping mecca of Oxford Street to the lobby, not too far to carry all those gift-filled bags, and a front-facing room gives a wonderful view of shoppers buzzing about in all their festive fury. As a special winter getaway gift to guests the hotel chain is offering a complimentary breakfast at all Radisson Blu Edwardian hotels in London until February. A Sunday Soirée package costing from £149 is also available and includes dinner for two, a Sunday night stay and breakfast on Monday morning. Given that the train journey from Darlington now takes well under two and a half hours, you can be back home in time for lunch.

While you are in London, it would be remiss not to take advantage of some of the fantastic exhibitions at the capital’s museum’s and galleries. Highlights this autumn include Wildlife Photographer of the Year at the Natural History Museum; Undressed: A Brief History of Underwear at the V&A; and photography from Elton John’s incredible collection at the Tate Modern. And since the advent of Google Maps, it’s so much easier to find your way to all these places… underground, overground, wandering free. We followed directions to the British Library, where a new maps exhibition has just opened. Maps and the 20th Century: Drawing the Line has on display just 200 of the library’s four million maps, and each one tells a story, from the funny to the chilling. There’s a very detailed Soviet map of Brighton, one of number found after the fall of Communism. “It shows individual houses … it is a wonderful thing,” says curator Tom Harper. “The existence of this map does not mean that the Soviet Union was going to invade Brighton. It is military intelligence – it is just in case.”

A large proportion of the maps represent the drawing up of battle plans and national boundaries in war and peace, but there are also Middle-earth maps drawn by JRR Tolkein, and EH Shepard’s map of Winnie-the-Pooh’s Hundred Acre Wood. There is also Harry Beck’s early sketch for his ground-breaking London Tube map. Beck believed that Underground passengers were not concerned with geographical accuracy and were more interested in how to get from one station to another and where to change trains. At first his design was rejected, but he persisted, and in 1933, after a trial printing, the overwhelmingly positive public reaction proved he was right.

Some reports say he was never paid for his invention, others that he was given a few guineas for his trouble. It became the template for transport maps and now 4.8 million passengers daily use the updated version of his schematic invention. And even with all the modern technology at our fingertips, it was at the colourful map on the Underground wall that we paused to work out our way back to the hotel.

TRAVEL FACTS

One Aldwych. The Covent Garden tour is available as part of a package through the hotel or can be bought separately for £25. Wonderful Winter package room rates are £305 including breakfast, available throughout the winter months. E: reservations@onealdwych.com

T: 020 7300 1000; W: onealdwych.com; Eneko at One Aldwych, T: 020-7300-0300

Radisson Blu has hotels across London including Covent Garden, Oxford Street, Leicester Square and South Kensington. Rooms from £116 per room per night. For more information visit radissonblu-edwardian.com

Thames Clipper River Roamer tickets cost from £14.70 for adults and £7.35 for children online. A family River Roamer costs from £32.50. Single tickets are also available, charged according to a zonal system.