Designer Christmas Trees 2025: Art, Fashion, and Whimsy at The Connaught, Claridge’s, and Global Luxury Hotels

Published on December 6, 2025

In the world of luxury hospitality, a Christmas tree is never just a tree. It is a canvas, a statement, and a coveted annual event. Every festive season, the grand lobbies of the world’s most iconic hotels are transformed into pop-up galleries, commissioning giants of fashion, art, and architecture to reimagine the traditional holiday centerpiece. These aren’t just decorations; they are designer Christmas trees—towering, conceptual sculptures that blend seasonal warmth with high culture, drawing crowds and photographers from around the globe.

The 2024-2025 holiday season sees this tradition reaching new artistic heights, particularly in London’s Mayfair, where two hotels, Claridge’s and The Connaught, anchor the movement with installations that are profoundly personal, playfully whimsical, and deeply conceptual.

London’s Creative Coronations: A Tale of Two Trees

For nearly a decade and a half, the unveiling of these artistic conifers in London has marked the unofficial start of the capital’s festive calendar.

Claridge’s: The Whimsical World of Sir Paul Smith (2024)

For 2024, the highly anticipated Claridge’s Christmas Tree was designed by the beloved British fashion designer, Sir Paul Smith. Known for his signature stripes, optimism, and playful take on British tradition, Smith transformed the 20-foot Mayfair centerpiece into a whimsical symbol of home and community.

• The Concept: The tree’s design centered on the charming and optimistic image of a birdhouse. It was a deeply personal choice for Smith, who often visited the hotel with his family during the holidays.
• The Details: The magnificent tree sat in a Signature Striped barrel and was adorned with Paul Smith colorful baubles and ribbon. Most captivating were the over 100 bespoke birdhouses, crafted in collaboration with British artist Nik Ramage. These birdhouses featured eccentric roofs decorated with everyday ephemera like playing cards, postage stamps, and dice, giving them a witty, mechanical twist.
• The Ambiance: Adding to the sensory experience, the lobby was scented with Smith’s ‘Merrymaker’ fragrance, and a chorus of birdsong played throughout the day, immersing guests in the designer’s eclectic and warm world. The base was further animated by whimsical ‘Off Cut Creatures’ made from scrap wood by the design studio Studiomama. Smith successfully created a joyful installation that felt both deeply traditional and irreverently modern.

The Connaught: A Luminous Celebration of Togetherness (2025)

Just a short walk away, The Connaught’s annual outdoor tree on Carlos Place continued its decade-long tradition of commissioning contemporary artists. For the 2025 season, the honor went to Swiss-born visual artist Urs Fischer.

• The Concept: Fischer’s installation transformed the 31-foot Nordmann Fir into a luminous sculpture focusing on the universal theme of togetherness and global community, inspired by his earlier work, People.
• The Details: The tree was conceptually draped with spheres filled with AI-generated human faces, each softly glowing from within with LED lights. These faces represented people of all ages, races, and places, gathered in a collective moment of joy and light.
• The Legacy: Urs Fischer joins an illustrious roster of previous Connaught tree artists, including Damien Hirst, Dame Tracey Emin, and Conrad Shawcross, solidifying the tree’s status as a must-see piece of public art that explores deep themes using a festive medium.

Global Design Statements: Couture, Origami, and Ceramics

The artistic tree trend isn’t limited to London. Hotels around the globe are commissioning equally bold statements that tie into the local culture, the hotel’s heritage, or the designer’s personal aesthetic.

• Claridge’s (2025, Upcoming): Looking ahead, Claridge’s will continue its legacy with Chief Creative Officer of Burberry, Daniel Lee, designing the 2025 tree—a 16-foot celebration of British heritage adorned with vibrant bows made from surplus Burberry fabrics and Scottish thistle, a nod to the house’s connection to the Highlands.
• Pulitzer Amsterdam & Riggs Washington DC: The Sculptural Pleats of David Laport (2025): Dutch couture designer David Laport dressed two sister hotels with his signature architectural style. His Pulitzer Amsterdam tree, Festive Sparks, was inspired by fireworks, while the Riggs Washington DC installation, Golden Origins, paid tribute to the building’s history as a “Bank of Presidents” with shimmering, gold-toned, hand-shaped sculptural pleats and ornaments.
• The Madrid Edition: Mercedes Bellido’s “The Flight” (2025): At the Madrid Edition, artist and ceramicist Mercedes Bellido created a stunning sculptural tree featuring 250 hand-shaped porcelain doves, suspended in a moment of stillness, reimagining the traditional evergreen as a dynamic, soaring artwork.
• The Dolder Grand, Zurich: Charles Kaisin’s Golden Origami (2025): Belgian designer Charles Kaisin transformed the spa area with a floating golden constellation, utilizing origami techniques to create a delicate and intricate festive landscape.
• The St. Regis Hotels: Ladurée’s Parisian Elegance (2025): The St. Regis in New York and Washington D.C. partnered with the iconic Parisian patisserie, Ladurée, bringing French elegance to the season with custom holiday trees and decor that evoked dazzling displays of glitter and gold.

These collaborations elevate the Christmas tree from a seasonal prop to a legitimate work of installation art. By inviting celebrated artists and designers, luxury hotels are not only providing guests with a unique visual experience but also reinforcing their brands as patrons of creativity and culture. This tradition ensures that a festive stay is not just about comfort and service, but also about experiencing a dazzling, often thought-provoking, piece of artistic innovation.