What does black tie mean for a Christmas party?

A dinner jacket and bow tie, or an equivalent evening dress or formal outfit. In practice at these London shared parties, most men wear a dinner jacket and a good proportion of the room wears a dark suit; nobody is turned away for the latter.

Which black-tie shared Christmas party is cheapest?

Skyball at Hilton London Syon Park, at £129 + VAT per person — £20 below the same James Bond format at the InterContinental London – The O2. It is in west London rather than east, so the right answer depends on where your team travels from.

Formal

Black-Tie Shared Christmas Parties in London 2026

Winter balls, masquerade galas and red-carpet arrivals — the parties where a dinner jacket is the right call.

8 parties
£129 – £180 + VAT per person

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Which London shared Christmas parties are black tie?

The ballroom galas: Winter Wonderland Ball, Gatsby's Grand Soirée, Hollywood Gala and the Royal Nutcracker Banquet at Tower Hill; the Grand Masquerade Ball at St Paul's; Masquerade in the West End; and Skyball at the O2 and Syon Park. Most are £149 + VAT per person and all-inclusive; Masquerade at £145 + VAT and Skyball Syon Park at £129 + VAT are the exceptions.

Black tie changes what a Christmas party is for. It signals that the evening is the occasion rather than an extension of the working day, and in practice it gets a much better turnout from the people who would otherwise have gone home at eight.

Every party here has the same structural elements: a staged arrival, a proper dining room, live music through dinner and a band afterwards. What varies is the building. A hotel ballroom at Tower Hill and a Grade II* listed Art Deco hall in Covent Garden deliver very different versions of formal.

If you want the formality without the dinner-jacket conversation, Gatsby's Grand Soirée is black tie with a 1920s licence attached — people enjoy dressing for it rather than enduring it.

All 8 parties

Holborn & Covent Garden

Masquerade

60 Great Queen Street

£145+ VAT per person

Sat 12 Dec, Thu 17 Dec

Dinner · Live band · DJ

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St Paul's

Grand Masquerade Ball

Leonardo Royal London St Paul's

£149+ VAT per person (from)

5 dates, Thu 3 Dec – Thu 17 Dec

All-inclusive · Dinner · Live band

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Tower Hill

Gatsby's Grand Soirée

Leonardo Royal London Tower Bridge

£149+ VAT per person (from)

Thu 10 Dec, Fri 11 Dec

All-inclusive · Dinner · Live band

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Syon Park

Skyball Syon Park

Hilton London Syon Park

£129+ VAT per person

Fri 11 Dec

All-inclusive · Dinner · Live band

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Tower Hill

Winter Wonderland Ball

Leonardo Royal Hotel London Tower Bridge

£149+ VAT per person (from)

Thu 3 Dec, Fri 4 Dec

All-inclusive · Dinner · Live band

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Tower Hill

Hollywood Gala

Leonardo Royal Hotel London Tower Bridge

£149+ VAT per person (from)

Thu 10 Dec, Fri 11 Dec

All-inclusive · Dinner · Live band

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Tower Hill

Royal Nutcracker Banquet

Leonardo Royal Hotel London City

£149+ VAT per person (from)

Thu 10 Dec, Fri 11 Dec

All-inclusive · Dinner · Live band

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North Greenwich

Skyball

InterContinental London – The O2

£149+ VAT per person (from)

Thu 10 Dec

All-inclusive · Dinner · Live band

View party

The venues, by character

Architecturally the best — Masquerade at 60 Great Queen Street. Grade II* listed Art Deco, towering ceilings, the Grand Temple dining room. Free parking, two dates, £145 + VAT.

The most formal — Winter Wonderland Ball. Candelabras, twinkling lights, live band, all-inclusive. Early December.

The most fun to dress for — Gatsby's Grand Soirée. Black tie with feathers, sequins and flapper dresses encouraged.

The best value in this tier — Skyball Syon Park at £129 + VAT, £20 a head below the same Bond format at the O2. West London, so it depends where your team is.

The most dates — Grand Masquerade Ball at St Paul's, running five nights across December.

Is black tie compulsory?

No party here turns anyone away. Black tie is the stated dress code and the overwhelming majority of the room will be in it, so a guest in a suit will not stand out but a guest in jeans will. The realistic advice for an organiser is to put the dress code on the invitation six weeks out, not two — it is the detail people most often miss.

FAQs

Frequently asked questions

What does black tie mean for a Christmas party?: A dinner jacket and bow tie, or an equivalent evening dress or formal outfit. In practice at these London shared parties, most men wear a dinner jacket and a good proportion of the room wears a dark suit; nobody is turned away for the latter.
Which black-tie shared Christmas party is cheapest?: Skyball at Hilton London Syon Park, at £129 + VAT per person — £20 below the same James Bond format at the InterContinental London – The O2. It is in west London rather than east, so the right answer depends on where your team travels from.

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