Christmas in the Cotswolds means light trails at the big estates, a Christmas tree standing in the river at Bourton, and a run of market weekends in the towns from late November. It also means shorter days, a handful of places shut for the winter, and buses that stop running earlier than you’d hope. This page covers what’s on in 2026, what’s closed, and how to get to it all, including without a car.
When to go
The last weekend of November is the busiest of the run-up. Bourton switches on its lights on the Friday, Broadway has its first late-night shopping evening the same night, Moreton and Cirencester hold their markets on the Saturday, and Westonbirt’s trail opens. If you want atmosphere, that’s the weekend. If you want room to move, aim for a weekday in early December.
Two dates to plan around: there are no trains on Christmas Day or Boxing Day (Friday 25 and Saturday 26 December 2026), and the Boxing Day bank holiday falls on Monday 28 December this year. If you’re coming for Christmas itself, arrive by the 24th and check what’s running before you book anything for the 27th or 28th.
The light trails
Blenheim Palace
Christmas at Blenheim Palace runs from Friday 13 November 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027. The Illuminated Trail winds through the gardens with more than a million lights (Father Christmas is on the route), and inside the palace this year’s theme is Cinderella. There’s also the Great Skate ice rink in the Great Court, an observation wheel, and a Christmas market of wooden chalets that runs until Sunday 20 December.
It’s all timed entry and booked online in advance, and if you’re driving you have to book parking separately. Dogs are only allowed on the trail on set dog-friendly nights. Check current prices when you book.
If you want food while you’re there, either arrive in time to have it before you go, or book an early enough slot that the vendors will still be open when you’ve finished. Don’t book a late slot and then hope there will still be food available by the time you finish.
Without a car: take the train to Hanborough, then the S7 bus to the palace gates. The S7 runs late into the evening on the current timetable, so getting back to Hanborough after a trail slot is fine, and trains from Hanborough back towards Moreton run until around midnight. Check both for your date, as Christmas timetables change.
Sudeley Castle
Spectacle of Light at Sudeley Castle runs on selected evenings from 20 November to 30 December 2026, with entry from 4.45pm. It’s the trail’s 11th year and the theme is Alice’s Amazing Adventures in Wonderland, with the route taking in the castle’s water features and ruins.
One thing that catches people out: tickets aren’t sold at the castle. You book through the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham (online, by phone or in person), and advance tickets are cheaper. Parking is free.
Without a car: the trail runs after dark, and getting back from Winchcombe in the evening isn’t easy by bus, so plan on a taxi and book it ahead.
Westonbirt Arboretum
Christmas at Westonbirt, near Tetbury, runs on set dates from 27 November to 31 December 2026, roughly 4pm to 8pm. Parking has to be booked in advance with your trail tickets. There are quieter sessions for visitors with additional needs on 28 November and 4, 10 and 16 December.
It’s the one to pick if you’re based in the south Cotswolds. Cirencester is the nearest town to stay in.
Cotswold Farm Park
Adam Henson’s Cotswold Farm Park, near Guiting Power, runs Christmas on the Farm in 2026: a daytime Father Christmas visit with a present room, teddy bear workshop, gingerbread decorating and marshmallow toasting around fire pits. It’s designed for younger children. Dates are 27-29 November, 4-6 and 11-13 December, then every day from 17 to 23 December, with access from 9.30am. The farm park itself stays open, though not all the animals are out in the fields in winter.
Christmas lights and markets in the towns
Bourton-on-the-Water
Bourton puts a Christmas tree in the middle of the River Windrush every year. The lights go on at 5.30pm on Friday 27 November 2026, with a small event on the Village Green, and some shops are expected to stay open into the evening. The High Street is closed to traffic from 5.15pm to 6.15pm. One of the tree’s sponsors is Pulhams, the company that runs the bus you’ll probably arrive on.
It’s quite novel to see a Christmas tree in the middle of a river but, if you come to Bourton-on-the-Water that’s exactly what you will see.
Without a car: the 801 runs from Moreton-in-Marsh to Bourton and back roughly hourly into the evening on weekdays, so the Friday switch-on is easy to do from Moreton.
Broadway
Broadway holds late-night Christmas shopping on Friday 27 November and Friday 4 December 2026, 4.30pm to 8.30pm, with street entertainers, pony sleigh rides, Father Christmas, and mince pies and mulled wine. The Tree of Light on the Green, lit in memory of local people who’ve died, goes on in early November and stays lit until Twelfth Night. The main Christmas lights usually go on at dusk on a Saturday in mid-November (it was 15 November last year), but the 2026 date hadn’t been announced at the time of writing.
Every year Broadway puts on a fantastic light display. If you want to get into the festive spirit then it’s worth a visit just to see this. Make sure you wait until after dark to get the full benefit.
Without a car: Stagecoach buses run between Moreton station and Broadway, Sundays included, but on the current timetable the last one back to Moreton leaves Broadway at around 6pm. That gets you the first part of the evening and the lights after dark, but not the whole event. For the full evening, book a taxi back. Honeybourne is the nearest station.
Moreton-in-Marsh
Moreton holds its Christmas market on Saturday 28 November 2026, from 10am to 5.30pm, with stalls along the High Street, and the town’s lights go on at 5pm. It’s the one big Christmas event you can reach by train and walk to from the station.
Chipping Campden
Chipping Campden’s Christmas market is on Saturday 5 December 2026, 12pm to 5pm, with the High Street closed to traffic, stalls in the Market Square and Town Hall, and the town’s Christmas lights switched on at dusk. The indoor market in the Town Hall carries on into Sunday 6 December.
Without a car: on a Saturday you have two ways in from Moreton: the Stagecoach 1 and 2, and the Number 11 heritage bus, which runs on Saturdays until mid-December. On the current Saturday timetable the last Stagecoach bus back to Moreton leaves Chipping Campden in the early afternoon, so check the Number 11’s return times before you go, or book a taxi back for after the lights go on.
Winchcombe and Cirencester
Winchcombe’s Christmas Festival starts with late-night shopping on Thursday 3 December, when the streets are lined with real Christmas trees, and continues on Friday 4 December with a shopping trail. Cirencester holds its Advent Market on 28-29 November, with more than 100 stalls, and switches on its lights on the 28th, with further gift markets on 5-6 and 13-22 December.
What’s closed in December
The light trails and markets are what’s open. Some of the summer places aren’t:
- Snowshill Manor (National Trust) closes after 29 November, and its last weeks run on reduced hours with early last entry.
- Chastleton House only opens from March to October.
- Hidcote (National Trust) opens Friday to Sunday in November, but its calendar currently shows it closed in December, so check before you plan around it.
- Broadway Tower is open through the winter but closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
- The Number 11 heritage bus runs on Saturdays only from October and finishes in mid-December.
- The Robin, the bookable bus, runs Monday to Saturday, 7am to 7pm, so it’s no help for evening light trails.
Getting around without a car in December
Most of what’s good about a Cotswold Christmas happens after dark, and most rural buses stop by early evening. So the evening events that work without a car are the ones in a town with a station or on a bus route that runs late:
Moreton (station in the town), Bourton (the 801 runs into the evening) and Blenheim (Hanborough station and the S7) are easy. Broadway, where the last bus back leaves at around 6pm, and Chipping Campden mean going early or getting a taxi back. For Sudeley and Westonbirt, plan on a taxi.
Base yourself in Moreton-in-Marsh and three of those are a short train or bus ride away. For how the buses and trains fit together the rest of the year, see our guide to the Cotswolds without a car.
Rural timetables change over Christmas and New Year. Check the times for your dates before you set off, and book taxis ahead: there’s no hailing one out here, least of all in December.
Christmas in the Cotswolds: FAQ
When do the Christmas lights go on in the Cotswolds?
Most towns switch on in the last week of November. In 2026 Bourton-on-the-Water’s lights go on on Friday 27 November and Moreton-in-Marsh’s on Saturday 28 November. Blenheim’s trail opens earlier, on 13 November.
Can you get to the Cotswolds by train at Christmas?
Yes, up to Christmas Eve and again after Boxing Day, but no trains run on Christmas Day or on Saturday 26 December 2026. Check the timetable for 24, 27 and 28 December, which hadn’t been published at the time of writing.
Which Cotswold light trail is best?
They’re different sizes. Blenheim is the biggest and has the ice rink and market alongside the trail. Sudeley is smaller and set around a castle. Westonbirt is set among the trees of the arboretum. If you’re travelling without a car, Blenheim is the easiest to reach and get back from.
Is the Cotswolds worth visiting in December?
Yes, if you plan around the short days. The villages are quieter than in summer, and the light trails and markets fill the evenings. Check what’s closed for winter before you build a day around it.