Magical Christmas in London With Kids: What to Do and Book Early
Christmas in London is a great option for a family trip over the holidays. The season runs about seven weeks, so you’re not forced into the expensive dates, and a lot of the best parts cost nothing. Ice rinks in courtyards, markets along the river, and lights on every main shopping street.
There’s one thing you need to know before you book, and it’s the part most guides leave out. London closes on Christmas Day. Not partially. The Underground does not run, the buses do not run, most attractions are shut, and so are most restaurants. If Christmas Day is in the middle of your trip, you need to plan for it.
Christmas in Europe has been on my travel list for a while, and London keeps coming up every time I look into a holiday trip. I’ve spent a lot of time researching what the city is like at Christmas, so I pulled together this guide with this year’s dates and prices, plus what needs booking ahead.
When to Go and What Is Open
Most of the big events for Christmas in London run from early or mid November to early January, so you have a long window.
Here are the 2026 season dates.
- Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park runs November 19, 2026 to January 3, 2027.
- Christmas at Kew runs November 13, 2026 to January 3, 2027.
- The ice rink at Somerset House opens November 11, 2026 and runs to January 10, 2027.
- The lights on the main shopping streets go up in early November and stay into January.
That means you don’t have to travel the week before Christmas to get the full experience of Christmas in London. Late November and early December give you the same lights and the same markets with smaller crowds and cheaper flights and hotels. If your kids aren’t in school yet, or you can pull them out for a few days, this is the better trip.
The last two weekends before Christmas are the busiest of the year. Everything is bookable and everything sells out.
What Christmas Day Actually Looks Like in London
This is the one part of Christmas in London that catches people out, so plan around it.
On December 25 there is no Underground, no bus service and no trains. Not a reduced schedule. Nothing. It’s been this way for decades, but check the TfL website before you travel in case anything changes. Most museums, shops and attractions are closed, and so are most restaurants. Winter Wonderland is closed. The ice rinks are closed.
What’s open is your hotel, taxis and rideshares at high prices, and your feet. A lot of hotels do a Christmas lunch, and they book up months ahead, so if you want one you need to reserve it when you book the room.
The upside is that London on Christmas morning is empty in a way it never is otherwise. You can walk down the middle of streets that are normally impossible. Families who plan for it end up liking that day. Families who assumed they’d go to a museum do not.
Boxing Day on December 26 is the opposite. The sales start, the shops are packed, transport runs a limited service and most attractions reopen. If you only have one day for shopping, this isn’t it.
The simplest fix is to book a hotel within walking distance of somewhere you want to be on Christmas Day, and to accept that day as a slow one.
Not sure where to stay?
I’m a travel advisor with Fora, and I help families plan thoughtful, memorable trips, starting with the right hotel. Booking through me generally costs nothing extra, and I’ll look at cash, points, or a mix to get you the most value.
The Christmas Lights
The lights are the best part of Christmas in London, and they’re completely free.
Oxford Street and Regent Street switch on in early November and run into January. Regent Street does the large angel installations that arch over the road, and they’re the ones people photograph. Carnaby Street does something different every year and it’s usually the most fun of the three.
Covent Garden puts up an enormous tree and hangs giant baubles through the market building. Seven Dials, just north of Covent Garden, is worth the five-minute walk.
The tree in Trafalgar Square has been a gift from Norway every year since 1947, as thanks for British support during the Second World War. It goes up in early December. It’s a simple tree compared to the ones in the shopping streets, and the story behind it is the reason to go and see it.
The department store windows are the other free thing worth doing. Fortnum and Mason, Liberty and Selfridges all do proper displays, and they’re within walking distance of each other.
Go after dark, which in December means from about four in the afternoon.
London Christmas Markets
London Christmas markets have their own character. They’re smaller than the ones in Germany, France and Austria, and they’re spread through the city rather than filling one big square, which means you come across them while you’re doing other things. That suits a family trip. You get an hour of lights and hot chocolate on your way somewhere else instead of building a whole day around it.
Most of them open in early to mid November and run until just after Christmas or into the first week of January. Nearly all of them close on Christmas Day. They’re free to walk through, so you can see several in an evening and only spend money if you want to.
Winter Wonderland Market
The largest Christmas market in London is inside Winter Wonderland, along with the rides, the ice rink and everything else. It’s the only one on this list you pay to enter, and it’s big enough that it gets its own section further down.
Southbank Centre Winter Market
The Southbank Centre Winter Market runs along the Queen’s Walk beside the Thames, between the London Eye and Waterloo Bridge, and it’s a line of alpine chalets with lights above them and the river on one side. The walkway is flat and wide the whole way, so there’s room for kids to move and no crowding into a narrow lane.
It leans more toward food than gifts, which is a plus with children. Expect hot chocolate, toasted marshmallows, cheese toasties and mulled wine for the adults. Go after dark so you get the lights reflecting on the water.
Winter by the River
This one is at London Bridge City, on the south side of the river between London Bridge and Tower Bridge, near HMS Belfast. The setting is the reason to go. You’re looking straight across at Tower Bridge and the Tower of London with everything lit up.
It’s smaller and calmer than Southbank, with wooden cabins selling gifts and food from local makers. If you’re already doing the Tower of London that day, this is the natural place to end up in the evening.
Christmas in Leicester Square
Leicester Square gets a market with stalls, food and live performances, and there’s usually a rides area alongside it. It’s in the middle of the West End, so it works well before or after a show, and it’s a short walk from Trafalgar Square and Covent Garden.
This is the busiest and loudest of them. With younger kids, go earlier in the day rather than in the evening.
Covent Garden
Covent Garden is less a market than the whole area dressed for Christmas. There are stalls through the market building, an enormous tree in the piazza, and giant baubles hanging from the roof. The street performers keep going all through December.
It’s free, it’s covered, and it’s a great place to be when it starts raining.
Trafalgar Square
The market here is small, but it sits next to the Norwegian tree and there are carol singers most evenings in December. It costs nothing, the National Gallery is right there and free if you need to warm up, and it works as a stop rather than a destination.
Spitalfields and Borough Market
Both are permanent markets that decorate for Christmas rather than pop-up Christmas markets. Borough is the better one with kids because it’s all food and everything is sampleable. Spitalfields is more about gifts from independent makers.
If Christmas markets are the whole reason for your trip, Germany and Austria go deeper, and I’ve written about the best Christmas markets in Europe. But London gives you markets plus everything else the city does in December, which is a good trade with kids.
Hyde Park Winter Wonderland
Winter Wonderland is the biggest single event of Christmas in London and the one your kids will ask about. It fills a large section of Hyde Park with a fairground, a Christmas market, an ice rink and more than 100 rides and attractions. It runs on the dates listed above and is closed on Christmas Day.
You need a timed entry ticket booked in advance, and entry is staggered by the hour. Here’s the useful part: Off-Peak time slots cost one pound, and in November most of them fall Monday to Thursday. Look for the green slots when you book. It’s by far the cheapest way in, and weekday afternoons in November are also the quietest it gets all season.
Entry doesn’t include the rides. You pay for those separately or buy one of the ride passes, and with kids the costs add up quickly. Work out your budget before you walk in, because everything inside is designed to be tempting.
The last two weekends before Christmas are the busiest of the whole run. If those are your only dates, book the earliest entry slot you can get.
Christmas at Kew
Christmas at Kew is a light trail through Kew Gardens after dark. The 2026 dates are listed above.
Tickets start at £29.50 for adults and £20 for children, while children under four go free. Entry slots start at 4:20pm, and the gardens close at 10pm, except on Christmas Eve, when they close at 9pm. Advance booking is essential.
It’s an outdoor walking trail in December, so dress everyone properly. And, as always when visiting London, remember to bring umbrellas and waterproof clothing.
Kew is in southwest London, close to Richmond, so it pairs well if you’re already heading that way. I have a full guide to spending a day in Richmond with kids.
Ice Skating
There are outdoor rinks all over London in December and they’re one of the easier things to do with kids.
- Somerset House is the one people picture, in a courtyard with a tall tree in the middle of it. Sessions are about forty-five minutes and they sell out, so book ahead.
- Hampton Court Palace has a rink set in front of the palace, which is the prettiest setting of the lot and worth the trip out if you’re going to Kew or Richmond anyway.
- Winter Wonderland has the largest outdoor rink in the country, though you need a Winter Wonderland ticket to reach it.
- Leicester Square has one right in the middle of everything, which is the easiest to fit into a day you’re already spending in the West End.
Every rink is closed on Christmas Day.
Pantomime
Panto is a very British Christmas tradition that doesn’t really exist in the United States. It’s a comic stage show based on a fairy tale, the audience shouts at the actors, and there’s always a man playing an older woman. Theatres all over London put one on in December.
It’s funny, completely over-the-top, and aimed squarely at children. If you want to experience something during Christmas in London that’s properly British rather than just Christmassy, this is it.
What to Pack
Christmas in London is cold and damp rather than freezing, usually somewhere in the forties Fahrenheit. It rains and it gets dark around four in the afternoon.
Bring waterproof coats rather than heavy ones, warm layers underneath, hats and gloves, and shoes that handle wet pavement. If you’re doing Kew or an ice rink, everyone needs proper warm layers because you’re outdoors for hours after dark.
Most indoor places are heated, so layers you can take off matter more than one thick coat.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Christmas in London worth it?
Yes, particularly if you go in late November or the first half of December. The lights, the markets and the ice rinks are all up, the crowds are smaller and the prices are lower than the week before Christmas.
What is open in London on Christmas Day?
Very little. There is no Underground, no bus service and no train service on December 25. Most attractions, shops and restaurants are closed. Many hotels serve Christmas lunch but book up months in advance. Taxis and rideshares run at higher prices.
When do the Christmas lights go up in London?
The main displays on Oxford Street and Regent Street switch on in early November and stay up into January. The Trafalgar Square tree goes up in early December.
When do the Christmas markets start in London?
Most open in early to mid November and run until just after Christmas or into early January. Winter Wonderland opens November 19, 2026 and Christmas at Kew opens November 13, 2026.
How many days do you need in London at Christmas?
Four or five works well. That gives you two days for the regular London sights, one evening for the lights, and one for Kew or Winter Wonderland. If Christmas Day falls in the middle, add a day.
Do Americans need anything to enter the UK besides a passport?
Yes. US citizens now need an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) to visit the UK, and that includes babies and kids. It costs £20 per person and you apply through the official UK ETA app or on the UK government website. It usually takes a few minutes, but give yourself at least three working days before your flight in case yours needs extra review. Your ETA is linked to the passport you apply with and lasts two years or until that passport expires, so if you renew anyone’s passport before the trip, apply with the new one. Only use the official app or gov.uk, since other websites charge a lot more for the same thing.
Final Thoughts
Christmas in London is an easy trip to like. So much of it is free, the season runs for seven weeks so you’re not locked into the expensive dates, and the whole city takes it seriously.
Plan around Christmas Day, book Kew and the ice rinks before you go, and go in late November or early December if you can choose.
One more thing. I’m now a travel advisor with Fora, which means I can help with the actual planning and booking, not just the research. If you’ve ever wanted to ask where to stay, whether a hotel is worth it, or how to book something with points, that’s what I do now. And because you know me, you know I’ll look at cash, points and miles, or a combination of the two, depending on what gets you the most value.
If Christmas in London is on your list, or anything else is, fill out my Travel Planning Inquiry Form and we can plan it together.
For more family trips and points tips, find me on Instagram, and feel free to send me a DM anytime. I’m always happy to help other families travel more.
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