How to make your Christmas abroad feel a little more festive

Are you spending Christmas abroad? Whether you're an expat, travelling around Australia or jetting off to the Alps on holiday, here are a few ways to get you feeling festive away from your fireplace.

Love Christmas trees? READ: Find out what your Christmas tree says about you

Have a very Merry Christmas!

Don't scrimp on presents (or on wrapping!)

Gifts wrapped beautifully in festive paper will provide the same excitement and squeals as at home. It may be 30 degrees outside and you may be opening presents next to a palm rather than a fir tree, but gift giving with your travel buddies will definitely get you feeling a little festive.

Facetime friends and family at home to have a familiar face

Christmas is about family and friends, so if you can't be with them make sure you call or Facetime them to prevent homesickness and to make their Christmas a little merrier too.

Have a roast dinner

Most people would agree that the best bit about Christmas is the food, so try and get yourself a turkey, some crispy roast potatoes and a luxury Yule log for the ultimate festive feel abroad. Even if you are tucking into a packaged pud on a remote Indian island, there is something about the taste of Christmas...

Read more: Christmas decorating ideas to celebrate the season in style

Find a local Christmas market and have a ramble around

Whether it's a Souq or an Asian food market, have a mill around some local stalls for a festive German Market feel. It will give the feeling of a traditional Christmas market that you get at home, plus you may find a treasure or two that make the perfect gift.

Source a mini tree and have it put up in your hotel room

Whether your hotel can get hold of a mini tree or you can find a fake one to prop up in your sweltering apartment, Christmas trees are the epitome of Christmastide and should stand centre stage, even if you have to decorate a palm tree or bedroom plant! Spend your morning around the tree with some bubbles and gifts.

Surround yourself with people

Go out for dinner, socialise by the pool, pop to the mountain top bar - whatever it may be, surround yourself with people on Christmas Day. No one wants to spend it alone, especially when they are miles away from their family, and fun friendships can be formed with a little festive cheer and bubbles in heavy dosing.

Find a church and attend Christmas service

There's not a lot that's more festive than attending Midnight Mass or a choir service over the Christmas period. It may not be your local church and you may not be surrounded by neighbours, but it will give you that glowy buzz and remember what's important at Christmas time.

How will you be spending your Christmas abroad?