 and recyclable – except for the bows, which can be reused. The gifts inside them are no longer plastic rubbish, but things you can use. My reviews are below but if you're in a rush, here are the highlights: Prices for crackers this year range from £1 to over £1,000, but for the purposes of this guide I've kept it to under £50, with the emphasis on the lower end of the range. I've only reviewed crackers that are made from recyclable, plastic-free materials, with no plastic tat inside. And, because there's nothing sadder than pulling a cracker on your own, each one comes with my husband and children's seal of approval. If you're preparing for Christmas, you may also want to read my guide to the best artificial Christmas trees and Emilie Hill's guide to the best beauty advent calendars. Best Christmas crackers £19.99 for six, Lakeland Best overall We like: the traditional handpainted figurines For ages 6+Each contains a joke, a hat and a handpainted nutcracker soldier Because plastic tat is out, cracker designers have had their work cut out trying to think up a better class of gift. I'm particularly drawn to Lakeland's Nutcracker set (my favourite festive ballet) because they){kind=link}
Tried and tested at home, here are the 18 best Christmas crackers of 2022, from M&S to Hotel Chocolat, with not a plastic moustache in sight
The best Christmas cracker is the one that brings your Christmas table settings to life. Formal, silly, vintage, luxury or traditional, there are styles to suit all tastes and budgets.
Crackers containing games can be a fun choice. This year Marks & Spencer’s range includes crackers with charades and family trivia inside. Grown-up food and drink crackers – such as those from Fever Tree, Daylesford or Melt – are easy crowd pleasers, while it pays to give children crackers with a properly entertaining treat. Meri Meri’s, one of my favourite discoveries this year, contain gifts that kids wouldn’t be disappointed to get in their stockings.
Where crackers used to be extremely eco-unfriendly, this year that is not the case. The best crackers I’ve found tend to be glitter-free (or to use eco glitter) and recyclable – except for the bows, which can be reused. The gifts inside them are no longer plastic rubbish, but things you can use.
My reviews are below but if you’re in a rush, here are the highlights: