The National Museums Liverpool are celebrating the Christmas season with all kinds of free events for the whole family.

The Lady Lever Art Gallery, home of British fine and decorative arts from the 18th and 19th century, plans a late night opening with shopping, free food and drink, music and sparkling decorations this Wednesday and a Victorian Christmas celebration on Sunday.

Throughout the month, the World Museum Liverpool stages a multi-media interactive performance of Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol featuring the museum's resident actor and offering an audience member the chance to play Tiny Tim. And The Walker Art Gallery comes over all Victorian this Saturday.

There are fascinating, themed Christmas Crafts workshops at The Merseyside Maritime Museum and The National Conservation Centre, where conservators look after Liverpool Museums' diverse collections. And, don't miss the Christmas Carol evenings at Sudley House amid a wonderful collection of Victorian and Pre-Raphaelite paintings that are original to the house.

• Find details of all the free Christmas events at Liverpool's National Museums
• Learn more about visiting Liverpool
• Find cheapest flights to Liverpool John Lennon Airport
• Compare prices on Liverpool hotels

_{©Christopher Furlong/Getty Images}

If you are heading for the UK for the holidays and plan on bringing gifts for friends and family, the good news is that, as of today, Britain's Duty Free Allowances for goods from outside the EU have more than doubled.

In line with the rest of the EU, the UK has raised the allowances of goods individuals can bring into country to reflect the needs of modern travelers and the real prices of goods today. This is the first change in Duty Free Allowances in 15 years.

Here's what's new:

• The allowance for still table wine has risen from 2 liters to 4 liters
• A new allowance of 16 liters (28 imperial pints) of beer has been introduced
• Limits on perfumes and colognes have been removed
• Limits on tobacco products and spirits or fortified wines remain the same but can now be made up of a mix and match selection of products.
• In the biggest change of all the Duty Free Allowance for all other goods, including small electrical goods, gifts and souvenirs has more than doubled, from £145 to £300, and will rise again, to £340, on January 1.

  Get the full story on what you can - and cannot - bring into the UK, along with the latest Duty Free Allowances

If you're pinching pennies - and who isn't these days - flying away during the winter holiday period could save you quite a bit of money. A quick review of airfares reveals that if you pick your days right, you could save as much as $400 on non-stop, round trip flights from North America to UK destinations. Can you fly on Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve? You could save even more.

And, if you've always made independent travel arrangements, consider changing to a travel package. Some of the best air, car and hotel deals for UK travel are available through packages and, once you cross the Atlantic, you don't have to stay with a regimented tour if you don't want to.

Last minute deals change quickly at this time of year so the best way to find a cheap flight, flight and hotel package or total vacation deal is by searching and deciding fast. Try these:

• Search Kayak for great Travel Deals
• Search Travelocity for an All-Inclusive Vacation Package

Did you know there are 18 High Roads in London, about 50 High Streets? There are four Manor Places and 29 Manor Roads. Without Postal Codes, you'd have no way of distinguishing one from the other or finding your way between hundreds of duplicated street names in London and countless other cities and towns around Britain. So when you are noting down the key information you need for your trip to the UK, don't forget to make a note of all those letters and numbers at the ends of addresses.

Postal Codes are about more than just the Post - Find out why.

_{Map fragment photo by Ferne Arfin}

Take the Forum Poll and Tell Us

Has the credit crunch put a cramp in your holiday or vacation plans? Will you be staying closer to home? Taking shorter trips? Forgetting about travel all together?

Or, are you one of those people who believe that you can't take it with you and bad times call for indulgent treats? Like trips to take your mind off things, perhaps?

Wherever you stand, let us know how the current economic climate is influencing your travel choices by taking our forum poll or by clicking the comment button below.

_{Getty Images}

If you're thinking of heading for Edinburgh for Hogmanay, the city's four day New Year's bash, you'll need a ticket for the New Year's Eve street party and all its concert stages.

This year, there will be four stages with loads of local, UK national and international acts. Each stage will have a different musical theme but one Street Party Pass is good for admission to all four:

• The Waverley Stage - One of the UK's the hottest new bands, Glasvegas, along with The Complete Stone Roses, Attic Lights, Broken Records.
• The Scott Monument Stage - Scottish sounds, featuring Peatbog Faeries,Moishie’s Bagel, Burach and Watergaw.
• The Mound Stage - Pop sounds with Great Calverto, Pop Idol winner Michelle McManus and the Concrete Jungle Collective.
• The West End DJ Stage - New this year, with DJ sets from The Hoosiers, Hot Chip and B-Side & the Bandit.

All this and one of the biggest street parties in the world.

• Buy a Street Party Pass online to guarantee your place in the action
• Find out more about Edinburgh Hogmanay before you decide

From Thanksgiving, later this week, to well after New Year's, people all over the world will be on the move for the holidays. Credit crunch? What credit crunch? When it comes to the festive season, people always find a way to travel - even if it's only up the road to grandma's.

If you are looking for more inspiration than that for your holiday break, check out the Blog Carnival pulled together by About.com's guide to Theme Parks, Arthur Levine. About travelers from all over North America, Europe, South America, the Caribbean and the Far East - including yours truly - have contributed great holiday travel ideas.

• Check out the latest Blog Carnival -It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year...to Travel
• Find a Thanksgiving Dinner in the UK
• Discover what's happening in the UK during the festive season

Don't let anyone tell you that the only way to get an Oxford education is to work hard, get good grades and save up a bundle of money. With The Oxford Experience, you can take part in Oxford seminars, delivered by Oxford professors, and enjoy student life at a historic Oxford University college - without taking a single exam, writing a single essay or even getting a single grade - and all for the cost of a mid-priced UK vacation.

Registration closes May 1 (for mail, fax or email) and May 15 (for online enrolment) for a choice of 50 different, week-long seminars taking place from July 5 2009. In case you think we're jumping the gun, keep in mind that these are first come first served enrolments for a limited number of places on a coveted course. And besides, what a nice holiday gift for an intellectual friend. (We seem to be coming back into fashion these days). Find out more about Oxford University Summer School.

_{©Ferne Arfin}

The Sun and its transit through the seasons seems to have been essential to ancient worship. On Orkney, several Neolithic monuments are aligned with sun and moon to suggest some ritual purpose.
At Maeshowe, the island's awesome Neolithic chambered burial mound, the setting mid-winter sun lights an inner chamber for about three weeks before and after the winter solstice. You can watch it happen via the live Maeshowe webcams. They're scheduled to come to life on November 30 and will continue transmitting until February 5, 2009. But dates are always approximate, so keep checking in to make sure.

©VisitOrkney

Valerie France, our have-a-go girl in the Northeast, has just spent a day being pampered at the Verbena Spa in Helmsley, not far from York. She has awarded the place 5 stars!

I guess she liked it...On the other hand, maybe it was that naked Pierce Brosnan look-alike.

Have you tried the Verbena Spa? Agree or disagree with Valerie's review? You can add your own two-cents (or tuppence as the case may be) by making use of our new "Rate and Review" feature. Just scroll down to the bottom of any review with a star rating on About.com: United Kingdom Travel. That includes restaurants, hotels, attractions, books and, of course, spas. Click the "Write a Review" button and let 'er rip.

To get you started, here are a few reviews just waiting for your point of view:

• English Country House Chic at Verbena Spa
• The AA Bed and Breakfast Guide
• Brown's Cafe - Cheap Eats in Oxford Covered Market
• Kids Review Longleat Safari Park
• Simpsons - Fine Dining in Birmingham
• Ardanaiseig Hotel on Loch Awe in Scotland