The Essex towns and cities Coca Cola Christmas truck tour could visit this winter

Christmas is fast approaching which means shoppers will soon be making trips to stores and retail parks to the tune of Mariah Carey or Wham!. It also means the Coca Cola Christmas truck will soon be touring the country.

The fizzy drinks giant has promised this year's tour will be "bigger and better than ever before". Visitors will be able to enjoy festive games, participate in a lucky dip to win Coca‑Cola merchandise and experience a food truck serving seasonal goodies.

Exact details for where and when the truck could come to Essex are currently unknown and they are often announced just a few days before the truck arrives. But there's a strong possibility that this year's tour will include a visit to Essex again.

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In 2023 the truck visited the Sainsbury's on Cricketer's Way in Basildon before returning days later for a visit to Lakeside Shopping Centre. In 2022, meanwhile, the truck was at Bluewater Shopping Centre in north Kent and Beckton on the Essex/London border.

In 2015, the truck only came to Romford, but the following year it visited two parts of Essex. It came to Harlow on December 7, 2016, and Southend on December 15 of the same year.

The truck was on tour at Market Square in Harlow and Victoria Circus in Southend-on-Sea. And the truck visited the same places the following year too, as the Coca-Cola truck visited Harlow, Southend, and also adding Lakeside as a stop off.

In 2018, the truck didn't come to Essex unfortunately, but Lakeside was blessed with a visit on December 13 and 14 in 2019. The same year, the truck visited Basildon's Sainsbury's. The tour was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Florence Wheatley, Marketing Manager for Coca‑Cola Great Britain Coca‑Cola, said: "Coca‑Cola has and remains synonymous with Christmas, with many people eagerly awaiting the Coca‑Cola Christmas Truck Tour and Holidays Are Coming advert to create a little festive magic.

"This year, we’re delighted to continue our relationship with FareShare to support its mission to reduce hunger and surplus food waste. We hope that every person that attends the Truck Tour not only experiences the magic of Coca‑Cola Christmas, but also supports FareShare, knowing that the equivalent of a meal has been donated on their behalf, acting as a little moment of kindness to ensure that thousands of people across the country enjoy a more meaningful Christmas."

As well as being an exciting family attraction the tour tries to raise as much money for charities as possible. For every person that attends the Coca‑Cola Christmas Truck Tour, the equivalent of a meal will be donated on their behalf. Coca‑Cola aims to donate the equivalent of up to a total of one million meals via FareShare this festive season.

Kirsty Ford, Head of Fundraising at FareShare said: "We are so grateful to Coca‑Cola for their continued support for FareShare. These invaluable donations help us get good-to-eat food to the people who need it rather than going to waste.

"Every day, the food we redistribute to a network of over 8,000 charities in every region helps to strengthen communities. Coca‑Cola’s generous support for FareShare is instrumental in helping people affected by the cost-of-living crisis. This support means charities can unite more people through food to form connections and access essential support services. Thank you for helping FareShare make the food go further."