UK Christmas Holidays 2026: School Dates by Nation

1. When school holidays start and end, nation by nation

The UK has no national school calendar. England leaves the dates to local councils and academies, Wales sets them by local authority, Scotland by council, and Northern Ireland lets schools close at their discretion. The table below combines dates from council and government pages, search result excerpts and, for Glasgow, a third-party site. Entries marked to be confirmed are not settled dates.

In England, there is no national calendar: each local council and academy sets its own dates. No English date is listed here, because no official page was checked for a specific council. Only the school’s word counts.

In Wales, 21 local authorities approved the end of the autumn term on Friday, December 18, 2026 and the return on Monday, January 4, 2027 (Welsh Government, search result excerpt checked October 18, 2026). Powys, however, finishes four days later, on Tuesday, December 22.

In Scotland, the variation is the widest. North Lanarkshire closes on Friday, December 18, gives its holiday from Monday, December 21 to Monday, January 4 inclusive and returns on Tuesday, January 5, 2027 (North Lanarkshire Council, search result excerpt). South Lanarkshire returns on Wednesday, January 6, 2027 (official 2026-2027 list, search result excerpt).

In Northern Ireland, the non-operational period runs from Monday, December 21, 2026 to Friday, January 1, 2027, and schools may open at their discretion during these dates (official Northern Ireland education site, search result excerpt). The return date is not confirmed on the page checked: don’t treat it as settled.

Source: Welsh Government, North Lanarkshire Council, South Lanarkshire Council, Northern Ireland Education (search result excerpts); multischolar for Glasgow (third-party site, conflict on January 6); French decree of October 22, 2025 (Service-public.fr); checked October 18, 2026.

Three things to plan around. December 18 is the last school day for many pupils, especially in Wales and North Lanarkshire: families in those areas can leave on the evening of the 18th. January 4 is the last holiday day for most Scottish councils, with the return on the 5th. Northern Ireland is the least precise case: check with the school before you book.

2. London: lights, markets and pedestrian streets

London has most of the end-of-year events. On December 25, Winter Wonderland and Kew are closed, along with almost every market. The figures below come from official pages checked on October 18, 2026, or from excerpts labeled as such.

London, December 19 to January 4

Standard entry to Winter Wonderland: £5.50 Open until January 3, 2027 Closed on December 25 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., last entry 9:30 p.m.

Hyde Park hosts Winter Wonderland from November 19, 2026 to January 3, 2027, closed on December 25 (official ticket guide, page checked October 18, 2026). Kew runs its light trail, Christmas at Kew, from November 13 to January 3, from £25.50 (Christmas at Kew page, search result excerpt: the site page did not load when we opened it).

Highlights

• Winter Wonderland and Kew are listed as open until January 3, 2027, longer than the markets in York, Cardiff and Bath.
• Winter Wonderland opens 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., so a late-afternoon visit still works.
• Kew and Winter Wonderland are closed on December 25, like almost every market in the city.

Pixidia tip: book your Kew and Winter Wonderland time slots in advance. Kew says the most popular slots sell out fast.

If you’re in London between December 19 and 23, a walk of about 90 minutes leaves Covent Garden for Trafalgar Square, with spiced mulled wine during the tour (Viator product description). The price below covers sessions from December 19 to 23, 2026: all five dates were open when checked on October 18. Between December 28 and January 10, no session appeared across the 14 days of that window at the time: check this window again before you book.

Christmas Lights and Markets Guided Walking Tour with Mulled Wine £45 per person (based on 2 adults, sessions December 19 to 23, 2026), 90 minutes · ★ 5.0 (72 reviews)

Book my walking tour

3. Trains, Eurostar and the Tube: day by day

National Rail covers the Christmas period from Thursday, December 24, 2026 to Monday, January 4, 2027 inclusive, depending on the version checked (National Rail Christmas page, checked October 18, 2026). There are no trains on the 25th. On the 26th, almost no operators run. On Monday, December 28, a substitute bank holiday, rail service must be confirmed as the holidays approach.

Eurostar. We found no Christmas 2026 timetable on an open Eurostar page: check the trains for Christmas week when you book. Christmas tickets cost more in peak season, according to the Eurostar winter tickets page (search result excerpt). The new direct London-Antwerp route, which starts in December 2026, is covered in our dedicated article.

Tube. TfL had not published its 2026-2027 timetable on the date checked. Last year’s pattern, presented as such, has a reduced service on Christmas Eve, no Tube on the 25th, a reduced service on the 26th, and a night service from December 31 to January 1, with possible station closures when it is busy (London Travel Watch). On December 25, last year’s guides list taxis and private hire cars as the only transport option signaled; the pub situation that day was not checked, and TfL’s 2026 timetables still need to be verified.

Oxford Street. From Monday, October 26, 2026, about 1 km of Oxford Street, from Orchard Street to Great Portland Street, will be closed to vehicles, buses and taxis included (ITV News, search result excerpt). Westminster disputes the method, according to the press. For shoppers, walking is the simplest option, and drop-offs happen at the ends of the zone.

Source: National Rail, gov.uk for bank holidays; 2025 Tube pattern according to London Travel Watch; checked October 18, 2026.

4. ETA and EES: formalities to sort out before you leave

Every traveler needs a UK Electronic Travel Authorisation, the ETA, including children and babies. It costs £20 per person, and the authorization covers up to 6 months per visit. Holders of a British or Irish passport are exempt (gov.uk, ETA, checked October 18, 2026). The press mentioned a rise from £16 in spring 2026: the official page is the reference. Our guide ETA before London walks through the application step by step.

The EU Entry/Exit System, EES, produced queues reported in July 2026 at the Dover, Folkestone and St Pancras entry points, according to the press. These are press reports, not guarantees. Get to the terminal early, especially for the return on January 4 to France.

5. Budget: the prices we checked and the ones missing

No train, Eurostar or hotel fare for December 19 to January 4 was published on a page checked on October 18, 2026. The table below therefore only lists dated, checked prices.

Source: Winter Wonderland ticket guide, Kew, edinburgh.org, Viator API; checked October 18, 2026.

Our reading, with no figures: with no published fare for the period, plan the budget per person, not per family, because the Kew and Winter Wonderland prices are individual entry fees. The day you leave also matters for trains, and no 2026-2027 fare was published on the date checked.

6. Markets and light displays: what stays open after December 18

Nearly all markets and light displays are closed on December 25. The table lists dates city by city. Entries marked « forecast » or « conflict » flag a date that no official source confirms: don’t treat them as settled.

Source: Hyde Park Winter Wonderland, Kew, Visit Wales, Le Shuttle, Manchester’s Finest, edinburgh.org; checked October 18, 2026.

7. Outside London: York, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Bath

Outside the capital, most markets close earlier: Bath on December 13, York on the 21st and Cardiff on the 23rd, while Edinburgh runs until January 3, 2027. No regional train timetable was checked for the period: confirm with the operator. Driving in historic city centers is best avoided; check city by city.

York: a compact market, closed on Tuesdays

November 12 to December 21, 2026 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Closed on Tuesdays Wednesday to Monday

York’s market runs Wednesday to Monday, 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., from November 12 to December 21, 2026 (VisitYork page, checked October 18, 2026). Its last day falls on a Monday, December 21.

Highlights

• A compact format you can see in half a day.
• Closed on Tuesdays: plan another day.
• Last day: Monday, December 21, 2026.

Pixidia tip: aim for a Wednesday or Thursday, before the December 21 closing. The market is closed on Tuesdays.

Cardiff is the quiet option: free entry, from November 12 to December 23, 2026, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Saturday, until 7 p.m. on Thursday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday (Visit Wales, search result excerpt). The market closes before London and before the end of the holidays.

Edinburgh hosts the market and attractions from November 14, 2026 to January 3, 2027, with free entry to the market (edinburgh.org). Hogmanay runs from December 29 to January 1, with the Torchlight Procession on the 29th and the Street Party on the 31st on Princes Street (Hogmanay Edinburgh). Our article Christmas in Edinburgh 2026 covers the city; we don’t repeat its details here.

Bath closes even earlier, on December 13, 2026, before most pupils’ holidays begin. Our Bath Christmas market guide covers getting there from London.

What other guides don’t tell you

Christmas guides often reuse a single calendar and 2025 prices. Here are six points checked on pages or dated excerpts from October 18, 2026.

• The calendar changes from one authority to the next. In Wales, the autumn term ends on December 18 for 21 authorities, but on Tuesday, December 22 in Powys. In Scotland, North Lanarkshire returns on January 5 and South Lanarkshire on January 6, according to the Welsh Government for Wales and North Lanarkshire Council for Scotland (search result excerpts, checked October 18, 2026).
• No trains on December 25. National Rail runs no services that day, which rules out every departure planned for the 25th. Source: National Rail, Christmas page (checked October 18, 2026).
• The substitute Boxing Day falls on Monday, December 28, 2026, not the 26th. With the 26th a Saturday, guides that announce a bank holiday on the 26th are out of date for this year. Source: gov.uk, bank holidays (checked October 18, 2026).
• The ETA costs £20 per traveler, children included. The press and older guides still quote £16. Source: gov.uk, ETA (checked October 18, 2026).
• Oxford Street will be closed to vehicles from October 26, 2026. About 1 km, from Orchard Street to Great Portland Street, buses and taxis included. Announced measure, source ITV News (search result excerpt).
• Some guides still quote Winter Wonderland prices from 2025. The official prices checked on the same date are £5.50 for Standard and £8.25 for Peak. Source: official ticket guide (checked October 18, 2026).