Christmas in London 2026, Dated

London’s Christmas season now starts in the first week of November and runs into the second week of January, which gives advisors a long selling window and a clear rule: the experiences clients ask about by name sell out first. Timed rink sessions, evening light trails and the big December shows are where advance booking pays off. Here are the 2026 dates, checked against each organiser’s own listing.

Lights

The West End switch-ons set the season’s start. According to Londonist’s 2026 round-up, Carnaby Street lights go on Wednesday 4 November, Regent Street and St James’s from 5 November, Marylebone Village and Old Spitalfields Market on 11 November, and Covent Garden on 12 November. Oxford Street and Piccadilly had not confirmed 2026 dates at the time of writing; both have switched on in early November in recent years. Regent Street’s overhead displays are the classic photograph, and the street is best walked after dark from Oxford Circus down to Piccadilly Circus.

Markets and festivals

Hyde Park Winter Wonderland. 19 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, closed Christmas Day. Entry is ticketed, with off-peak slots from £1 on selected November weekdays and savings of up to 25% for booking ahead, according to the organisers. Highlights listed for 2026 include a 70-metre observation wheel, an ice kingdom built from 500 tonnes of ice, an indoor ice bar kept at −10 °C, and what the event calls the UK’s largest open-air ice rink. Book weekday daytime for families and evenings for adults.

Southbank Centre Winter Market. From 2 November 2026 to 4 January 2027, daily 11:00 to 22:00, closed 25 and 31 December. Alpine-style chalets along the Queen’s Walk, between the Royal Festival Hall and Jubilee Gardens. Free to enter and an easy add-on to a South Bank theatre night.

Other markets. Visit London lists Kingston’s Christmas market from 12 November to 3 January and the King’s Cross Canopy Market from 27 November. Trafalgar Square’s market was expected from 9 November; confirm before sending clients.

Ice rinks

Skate at Somerset House. 11 November 2026 to 10 January 2027 in the 18th-century Fountain Court, under a 40-foot tree. Adult tickets run £13 to £28.50, plus a £1.50 booking fee; entry to the courtyard itself is free. “Skate Lates” sessions add DJs in the evenings. This is the rink to book for couples.

Hampton Court Palace. The palace ice rink runs 20 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, in front of Henry VIII’s palace. Historic Royal Palaces adds a new seasonal show, Winter Palace: The Christmas Beast Ball, from 28 November to 3 January, included in palace admission (adults £32 off-peak, £35 peak). The Festive Fayre runs 4 to 6 and 11 to 13 December. The palace closes on several December weekdays and from 24 to 26 December, so check dates before building a day around it.

Light trails

Christmas at Kew. 13 November 2026 to 3 January 2027 on selected dates, from 16:20 to 22:00, with tickets from £25.50. New for 2026 are adult-only evenings on 3 and 9 December. Kew advises public transport because parking is limited. Pair with lunch in Richmond and a late afternoon in the gardens before the trail opens.

Shows

The Nutcracker, Royal Opera House. 3 December 2026 to 13 January 2027. Peter Wright’s Royal Ballet production, in his centenary season. Tickets run £10 to £238. The production is recommended for ages five and up; book late-December performances early.

Cinderella, London Palladium. 5 December 2026 to 10 January 2027. Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders play the Ugly Sisters, their first West End stage appearance together in 17 years, according to the producers, with Julian Clary as the Fairy Godfather. A British pantomime is worth explaining to overseas clients before they book: loud, knowing, and aimed as much at adults as at children.

Plan it

• Book in this order: The Nutcracker and the Palladium, then Kew and Somerset House time slots, then Winter Wonderland. Markets and lights need no tickets.
• Best weeks: mid-November to early December has all the lights and markets before the school-holiday peak.
• Christmas Day: most attractions close and London’s public transport largely stops on 25 December. Book a hotel Christmas lunch and arrange private transfers.
• Boxing Day onward: the run from 26 December to the first weekend of January keeps most rinks, Winter Wonderland and the shows open, and suits families on school holidays.
• Watch for: Oxford Street, Piccadilly and Trafalgar Square confirming their 2026 dates.

Sources

• Hyde Park Winter Wonderland
• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Christmas at Kew
• Somerset House, Skate
• Time Out London, Skate at Somerset House 2026
• Historic Royal Palaces, Winter Palace release
• South Bank London, Winter Market
• Visit London, Christmas markets
• Londonist, Christmas lights 2026
• Royal Ballet and Opera, The Nutcracker
• Crossroads Pantomimes, London Palladium Cinderella