FIVE PLACES TO GET AN AFFORDABLE FESTIVE DRINK IN NYC ON CHRISTMAS DAY

1. It might be known as the city that never sleeps, but it’s harder than you think to just pop in for a pint in New York on Christmas Day. If you do what I did a couple of years ago and blow the budget on Christmas dinner – hello Plaza

Hotel where I paid $700 for two meals and two glasses of wine – chances are you’ll want to move on for a post-dinner treat. If you’re staying in a hotel your residents’ bar will of course be open. The Beacon Hotel bar on the Upper West Side of the city is child-friendly and has a sidewalk café and bar if it’s not too chilly in December. 2. If you’re in Grand Central area, the Gotham

Hotel has a steakhouse and bar downstairs, with a very relaxed atmosphere and ‘back-room’ dining experience.

3. If you really want to escape all things Christmas, why not head to the cinema, where the bar is always open! Nitehawk cinema in Brooklyn has a cool history, being the first dine-in theatre to open in New York after it overturned a Prohibition-era law stating it could not sell alcohol. The cinema now screens retro film classics as well as new indie releases and offers full-service meals as well as booze.

4. If you’re near the Financial District, and want to pretend it’s not Christmas Day at all,

Ulysses sports bar is open December 25 offering a wide variety of beer and ale. You can get your hands on Guinness here if you’re missing home.

5. If you want to keep it fancy on Christmas Day, the Blue Rooftop Bar on East 32nd Street, below, offers a wide range of cocktails such as the Mediterranean Martini, all priced at around $20. You can also get wine and beer.