Tourists have been left frustrated after travelling to Buckingham Palace in hopes of experiencing its supposed “first-ever Christmas market” — only to discover the attraction doesn’t exist.
Widely circulated images on social media promoted what appeared to be a magical winter market outside the royal residence, complete with snowy stalls, glittering lights and an enormous Christmas tree. However, upon arrival, visitors were met not by festive cheer but by construction scaffolding, security fencing and rain-soaked pavements.
The misleading images were created using artificial intelligence and shared across Instagram, TikTok and Facebook by accounts with large followings. Closer inspection revealed telltale signs of AI manipulation — floating fairy lights, distorted faces and illegible signage. Some scenes even depicted the market taking place behind the palace gates, which would constitute a major security breach.
TikTok user Shivani Khosla, filming herself outside the site, said: “The truth behind the Buckingham Palace Christmas market is actually insane. The picture was AI-generated. Instead, this is what’s actually here — just a shop.”
Content creator Kate Ovens also visited and confirmed the market was a fabrication, warning viewers: “If you’ve seen it online — it’s not real. I’m here right now on the supposed opening day, and I kind of knew it before coming, but this definitely isn’t it.”
London-based “what’s on” page @loveandlondon urged followers to unfollow any accounts promoting the false event, saying: “Where are these lights being hung from — the heavens?”
The image had been posted by @London.travelers to its 2.5 million followers before being deleted.
Despite the disappointment, there is a festive pop-up shop at the Royal Mews gift shop located nearby. Visitors can still browse Christmas-themed items such as baubles, corgi toys and gift sets — but it is not, as clarified by the Royal Collection Trust, a Christmas market.
The Trust issued a statement on its website: “Please note that the Royal Mews Christmas Shop is a pop-up shop selling festive products within the existing Royal Mews shop space and is not a Christmas market. There will not be a Christmas market at Buckingham Palace.”
Londoner James BJ, 36, told Metro: “It was a complete waste of time. It was dark, cold and nothing was there. About 30 of us were just walking back and forth before giving up.”
One visitor told the BBC: “I came for a Christmas market and ended up with chicken sandwiches.”
Separately, a festive mural spotted in Kingston has sparked amusement after apparently being hastily AI-generated, depicting distorted humans and creatures. One resident likened the scene to “Lovecraftian horror,” with images including dogs with bird heads and a snowman-like figure with human eyes and teeth.
Social media users were baffled, with one commenting: “How did this get approved? Did they even look at it once before printing it?”
