London Christmas Markets 2026: Dates, Tips, Prices, and Which to Skip

The first of the London Christmas markets open in early November 2026, and most have packed up by the first week of January 2027. You can wander around nearly all of the central ones for free. Only a few, like the Chelsea Physic Garden Fair, charge you to get in.

The big paid one is Hyde Park Winter Wonderland, where entry starts at £1 off-peak and goes up to around £9.50 at busy slots, while Southbank Centre, Covent Garden, Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square and Leadenhall are all free to browse.

I can never resist a Christmas market, especially when we’re only a week or so away from the big event. London has plenty to choose from, all with something different to offer, so which one to choose depends on what you’re after and where you want to go afterward.

The London Christmas Markets 2026 Guide

This list tells you at a glance what’s on and where, including dates and prices, though check the official website for each market as things can change and it’s best to double-check.

Market	2026 Dates	Entry Cost	Nearest Tube	Best For
Hyde Park Winter Wonderland	19 Nov – 3 Jan 2027	From £1 off-peak	Hyde Park Corner	Rides, families, big night out
Southbank Centre Winter Market	2 Nov – 3 Jan 2027	Free	Waterloo	Riverside street food
Leicester Square (Skate)	31 Oct – 3 Jan 2027	Market free, skating ticketed	Leicester Square	Skating plus a few stalls
Trafalgar Square	December (tree lighting TBC)	Free	Charing Cross	The Norwegian tree and carols
Covent Garden	Lights switch-on 12 Nov	Free	Covent Garden	Lights, shopping, theater
Old Spitalfields	Switch-on 11 Nov, then daily	Free	Liverpool Street	East London crafts
Leadenhall	Switch-on 19 Nov	Free	Bank	A short City evening out
Greenwich Market	From 20 Nov, daily 10 am–6 pm	Free	Cutty Sark (DLR)	Independent gifts
Chelsea Physic Garden Fair	26 – 29 Nov	£8 pre-booked, £10 on the door	Sloane Square	Curated shopping fair
Hampton Court Festive Fayre	4 – 6 and 11 – 13 Dec	Included in palace admission	Hampton Court (rail)	Artisan gifts at a palace

Covent Garden

Covent Garden will always be my favorite; although it’s not strictly a dedicated Christmas market, it’s full of history, and wandering around the cobbles and the little alleyways that weave in and out of the main market square is really magical.

The light switch-on is Thursday, November 12, 2026, with more than 300,000 bulbs across the piazza, plus the gold bells and mirror balls on the Market Building and a British-grown tree on the West Piazza. 

For me, it’s the most traditional, with chestnut sellers and the fabulous old building that’s stood there for over 350 years and houses a variety of market stalls.

It’s free, the nearest Tube is Covent Garden on the Piccadilly line, and it works best for shopping, dinner and a show.

Hyde Park Winter Wonderland

I went to Hyde Park Winter Wonderland with my daughter in 2021, and we loved it. Yes, it was busy, but there was so much to see and do that you didn’t feel as though you were fighting the crowds.

As a figure skater, my daughter, Summer, couldn’t wait to try out the ice rink, though she told me it was no fun wearing what she called “mental rentals” when she’s used to her own boots. The Magical Ice Kingdom is themed as Neverland for 2026.

We also loved all the different bars; none were crowded, and the ice bar was a lot of fun.

It runs from November 19, 2026 to January 3, 2027, open every day except Christmas Day, with gate times that shift a bit depending on the day you go. 

The nearest Tube is Hyde Park Corner on the Piccadilly line, with Green Park and Marble Arch both a reasonable walk away if the queues at Hyde Park Corner are doing their usual Saturday thing.

Off-peak entry on Mondays to Thursdays in November starts at £1. Peak entry goes up to around £ 8.25 per person. 

Southbank Centre Winter Market

I haven’t been to the Southbank Centre Winter Market, but friends of mine have and enjoyed it. Behind all the stalls, you’ve got the London Eye and the city skyline all lit up. Plus, there’s so much else on the South Bank that you can easily make a whole day of it.

It runs from November 2, 2026 to January 3, 2027 on Queen’s Walk, under Hungerford Bridge. Stalls open from 11 am to 10 pm, and the bars go on until 11 pm. The nearest Tube is Waterloo, with Embankment just across the footbridge. 

It’s free to browse, and best for alpine-style chalets along the river selling street food, mulled drinks and independent craft. Southbank Centre is cash-free

Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square is more a Christmas moment than a market, but hey, it’s Trafalgar Square, and you can’t get more London than that. The Norwegian spruce, a gift from Oslo every year since 1947, is lit in a ceremony in early December, and one-hour carol singing sessions run at the base of the tree throughout the month. 

Charing Cross is the nearest Tube. It’s one of London’s smaller Christmas markets, so it’s easy to fit in while you’re out exploring. Leicester Square and Covent Garden are both a short walk away, so you can visit all three for a full festive day.

Christmas in Leicester Square

Most of the big film premieres in London happen in Leicester Square. Come Christmas, the red carpets give way to fairy lights and a market, where you can buy handmade crafts and something sweet to eat as you browse.

You can also lace up your skates at Skate Leicester Square, the ice rink that’s back for a second year after its first run in 2025, or catch one of the festive shows that pop up over the season.

My favorite thing to do here is hunt down the Scenes in the Square statues and grab a photo with them. They’re dotted all around the square in their Christmas finery, and you’ll spot Mr Bean, Mary Poppins, and Paddington Bear among them. 

The market is enclosed, and it gets packed in the evenings.

Leadenhall Market

If you only visit one Christmas market for the history, make it this one. Leadenhall sits on the site of Roman London’s forum and basilica, which were the largest north of the Alps by 120 AD. 

By the 1300s, it was a meat and poultry market, and Sir Horace Jones, the architect behind Smithfield and Billingsgate markets, rebuilt the beautiful covered arcade you walk through today in 1881. Cobbles, painted ironwork, and a glass roof make it feel like you’ve stepped back into Victorian London.

At Christmas, it’s simply gorgeous. A giant real tree stands under the central atrium, a twinkling light tunnel invites you to walk through, and garlands hang from the shop fronts. Last year, an Alpine bar also served mulled wine, gingerbread men, and mince pies.

On 14 November and 12 December 2026, makers from Solo Craft Fair set up their stalls right beside the tree, so plan your visit for one of those days if you want to do some gift shopping.

Harry Potter fans, you’ll recognize it. Leadenhall played Diagon Alley in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, and the blue door of the optician’s shop on Bull’s Head Passage was the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron.

Leadenhall Market switches on its lights on Thursday, November 19, 2026. It’s on Gracechurch Street EC3V, free, with Bank and Monument the closest stations.

Old Spitalfields

Spitalfields has been a market for almost 400 years. In 1638, King Charles I licensed traders to sell “flesh, fowl and roots” here, and Charles II made it official with a royal charter in 1682. French Huguenot refugees later settled in the area and made Spitalfields silk famous worldwide.

The airy Victorian market hall you shop in today dates from 1887, and when they rebuilt it in the 1990s, archaeologists even found a Roman woman’s stone coffin beneath the site. I find that sort of thing fascinating.

The lights go on at Spitalfields on 11 November 2026, and that’s when the Christmas stalls arrive too. They stay right up to Christmas Eve. Most of the traders make what they sell. I’ve always thought it’s a good spot to buy for the person who has everything, as there’s jewelry, art prints, and plenty of vintage stuff to rummage through.

In past years, the market has hosted late-night shopping evenings with a gospel choir, wreath-making workshops, and plenty of mulled wine, so keep an eye on the market’s website for this year’s dates.

Greenwich Market

A market has been in Greenwich since the 1300s, but it became official on 19 December 1700, when the Commissioners of Greenwich Hospital were granted a royal charter to run it. That charter lasts for 1,000 years, so it’s good until 2700. 

The steel-and-glass roof went up in 1908, was damaged by flying bombs in 1944, and the old fruit-and-veg market became an arts-and-crafts market in 1985. It’s also the only market I know of inside a UNESCO World Heritage Site, right in the middle of Maritime Greenwich.

Greenwich’s Christmas market starts on 18 November 2026 and goes on until Christmas Eve. About 120 traders squeeze in under the old roof, and many of them make their own stock, so it’s a good place to pick up a bit of jewelry or a print for someone. Don’t leave without trying the street food. It’s very good.

Every Wednesday in December, it stays open late for evening shopping, which is a much nicer way to tick off your gift list than battling the crowds on Oxford Street. In past years, the season has started with a lantern parade, with local schoolchildren carrying handmade lanterns past the Old Royal Naval College and Cutty Sark before the market lights are switched on.

Hampton Court Palace Festive Fayre

If you want a Christmas market with a royal backdrop, this is it. Cardinal Wolsey built Hampton Court in the early 1500s, and Henry VIII took it over, making it his own and adding the Great Hall and those enormous Tudor kitchens. 

Christmas here has a long history, too. After the Christmas celebrations of 1603, James I held the Hampton Court Conference at the palace in January 1604, which led to the King James Bible. 

The Festive Fayre runs over two weekends, on 4 to 6 and 11 to 13 December 2026, from 10 am to 5 pm. More than 100 artisan producers set up their stalls in the palace gardens, selling handmade gifts, festive food, and drink. 

While you’re there, step inside for the Winter Palace, which is new for 2026. The palace is dressed up for a Christmas Beast Ball, with mythical creatures gathering in the state rooms. The kids or grandkids will love it. 

And if you fancy a skate, the palace ice rink is open from 20 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, with sessions until 8 pm, so you can finish your day gliding around under the fairy lights.

The Fayre is included in your palace admission ticket, and members go free but still need to book. The ice rink is a separate ticket. The easiest way to get there is by train from London Waterloo to Hampton Court station, just across the bridge from the palace.

Chelsea Physic Garden Fair

Tucked behind a high brick wall on the Chelsea Embankment, Chelsea Physic Garden is London’s oldest botanic garden. The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries planted it in 1673 to teach their apprentices how to spot medicinal plants. 

In 1722, Sir Hans Sloane, after whom Sloane Square is named, leased the land to the apothecaries for £5 a year in perpetuity, and the Cadogan Estate still collects that same £5 every year. 

For just four days each year, the garden hosts its Christmas Fair, and it’s one of the loveliest in London. This year, it runs from Thursday 26 to Sunday 29 November 2026, with more than 100 stalls from small, independent British makers. 

It’s a little more upmarket than your average Christmas market, with handmade jewelry, merino wool socks, lavender from a Welsh farm, English sparkling wine, and posh chocolates from Rye. 

Cheese lovers can find Paxton & Whitfield there, and an artist draws red chalk portraits of you while you wait. Best of all, every penny from ticket sales goes to the garden’s charity work.

The nearest Tube is Sloane Square, as there’s no parking at the garden.

Which London Christmas Markets to Skip in 2026

Trafalgar Square is the first to flag. It’s a stunning tree and carol singing, but it isn’t a market. If you want stalls, go instead to Southbank Centre’s chalets along the river, a ten-minute walk away.

I love the Chelsea Physic Garden Fair, but it isn’t a street market. You need a ticket, which costs £8 if you book ahead or £10 on the door, and it’s only on from 26 to 29 November 2026. Inside, you’ll find over 100 small businesses selling gifts. If you’re after a bratwurst and a mooch around the stalls, go somewhere else.

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