The Best Christmas Markets in the UK

England's best markets are done before Christmas, while Edinburgh and Glasgow run to 3 January, so each country covers half the season.

This season

Market food and drink prices are from 2025 until the stalls publish this year’s.

Plan a trip across the UKCompare two markets →Trains between them →

Our pick in

Edinburgh7.4/10 · № 49 of 195

The short answer

If you only go to one Christmas market in the UK this year

Our pick, and the runner-up worth the detour.

Our pick in the UK

Edinburgh

Edinburgh · 14 Nov–3 Jan · 130+ chalets under the castle

Edinburgh has the best backdrop of the big UK markets, with more than 130 chalets in East Princes Street Gardens under the castle from 14 November to 3 January. That long season is the other reason to choose it. It's still going after Christmas, when Bath, York and Newcastle are long gone, and Hogmanay waits at the end. Skip the mass-produced chalets and spend your money at the Winter Arts Markets.

Bath scores a touch higher on the Index and has the prettier streets, but it runs only 26 November to 13 December.

Hotels in Edinburgh Tours in Edinburgh

This is the shortlist

It's ranked on atmosphere, stall quality and how well the city works as a base.

Edinburgh

Best overall · Princes Street Gardens · 14 Nov–3 Jan

Bath

Prettiest streets · 18 days only · 26 Nov–13 Dec

Manchester

Best market crawl · ten sites · from 6 Nov

York

Yorkshire makers by the Shambles · shut on Tuesdays

Newcastle

Grey's Monument and Grey Street · 19 Nov–23 Dec

London

Southbank and the Thames · free · to 4 Jan

Birmingham

Frankfurt-style · steps from New Street · to 24 Dec

Glasgow

St Enoch Square from 6 Nov · Glasgow Green rink to 3 Jan

Peterborough

Cathedral craft market · 20–22 Nov only

Still torn? Take the market quiz and get your top three →

This season

When does every UK Christmas market open and close?

This list is updated as official dates land

UK · opening dates

MarketOpensClosesSizeEntrySince

London

Sat 31 Oct

Mon 4 Jan

LargeMostly free

Birmingham

Birmingham's Frankfurt Christmas Market

Thu 5 Nov

Thu 24 Dec

MediumFree2001

Glasgow

Glasgow's Winter Wonderland

Fri 6 Nov

Sun 3 Jan

SmallFree

Manchester

Manchester Christmas Markets

Fri 6 Nov

Sun 3 Jan

LargeFree1999

Bristol

Fri 6 Nov

Wed 23 Dec

MediumFree

Chatsworth

Sat 7 Nov

Sun 13 Dec

MediumFree

York

St Nicholas Fair

Thu 12 Nov

Mon 21 Dec

MediumFree1992

Nottingham

Thu 12 Nov

Thu 31 Dec

MediumFree

Exeter

Fri 13 Nov

Sun 13 Dec

MediumFree

Edinburgh

Edinburgh's Christmas

Sat 14 Nov

Sun 3 Jan

LargeFree1999

Belfast

Sat 14 Nov

Tue 22 Dec

MediumFree2004

Chester

Wed 18 Nov

Tue 22 Dec

MediumFree2013

Newcastle

Newcastle's Christmas Market

Thu 19 Nov

Wed 23 Dec

MediumFree

Leeds

Thu 19 Nov

Thu 31 Dec

MediumFree

Peterborough

Christmas Craft & Gift Market

Fri 20 Nov

Sun 22 Nov

MediumTicketed

Winchester

Fri 20 Nov

Tue 22 Dec

LargeFree

Bath

Thu 26 Nov

Sun 13 Dec

LargeFree2001

Runs into January Closes before the New YearDates change from year to year, so check the market’s own page before you book.

Going further? Every market’s dates in one place, in the market calendar →

Browse by country

One Christmas season, country by country

Every market, ranked

All Christmas markets we visited in the UK

Bath

7.5

26 Nov – 13 Dec · Free

Atmosphere8

Food and drink7

Value6

Elbow room4

Read the guide Find hotels

Edinburgh

7.4

14 Nov – 3 Jan · Free

Atmosphere8

Food and drink7

Value7

Elbow room5

Read the guide Find hotels

Manchester

7.0

6 Nov – 3 Jan · Free

Albert Square and Cathedral Gardens stay open until 3 January 2027. The other eight sites close at 18:00 on 22 December.

Atmosphere7

Food and drink6

Value7

Elbow room5

Read the guide Find hotels

Winchester

6.9

20 Nov – 22 Dec · Free

Atmosphere8

Food and drink6

Value5

Elbow room5

Read the guide Find hotels

York

6.8

12 Nov – 21 Dec · Free

Atmosphere8

Food and drink6

Value6

Elbow room4

Read the guide Find hotels

Newcastle

6.8

19 Nov – 23 Dec · Free

Atmosphere7

Food and drink7

Value6

Elbow room4

Read the guide Find hotels

Belfast

6.7

14 Nov – 22 Dec · Free

Atmosphere7

Food and drink6

Value7

Elbow room4

Read the guide Find hotels

Chester

6.6

18 Nov – 22 Dec · Free

Atmosphere7

Food and drink6

Value7

Elbow room6

Read the guide Find hotels

Leeds

6.6

19 Nov – 31 Dec · Free

Ice Cube's rink, stalls and rides on Millennium Square carry on until 31 December, after City Square closes on 23 December.

Atmosphere6

Food and drink7

Value7

Elbow room7

Read the guide Find hotels

The Covent Garden Christmas tree lit up at night beside St Paul's Church, with crowds filling the piazza — Photo: Matt Brown, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0

London

6.5

31 Oct – 4 Jan · Mostly free

Southbank stays open until 4 January 2027, and Hyde Park, Winter by the River, Trafalgar Square and King's Cross run to 3 January.

Atmosphere7

Food and drink7

Value4

Elbow room4

Read the guide Find hotels

Chatsworth

6.4

7 Nov – 13 Dec · Free

Atmosphere8

Food and drink6

Value4

Elbow room5

Read the guide Find hotels

Peterborough

6.4

20 Nov – 22 Nov · Ticketed

Atmosphere7

Food and drink5

Value6

Elbow room5

Read the guide Find hotels

Exeter

6.4

13 Nov – 13 Dec · Free

Atmosphere7

Food and drink6

Value6

Elbow room4

Read the guide Find hotels

Nottingham

6.1

12 Nov – 31 Dec · Free

The rink, the wheel and the bars stay open until 31 December, after the chalets close on 24 December.

Atmosphere6

Food and drink6

Value7

Elbow room4

Read the guide Find hotels

Birmingham

6.1

5 Nov – 24 Dec · Free

Atmosphere6

Food and drink6

Value6

Elbow room4

Read the guide Find hotels

Bristol

5.7

6 Nov – 23 Dec · Free

Atmosphere5

Food and drink6

Value7

Elbow room5

Read the guide Find hotels

Glasgow

5.2

6 Nov – 3 Jan · Free

St Enoch Square closes on 27 December, while Glasgow Green carries on to 3 January.

Atmosphere5

Food and drink5

Value6

Elbow room6

Read the guide Find hotels

Side by side

How they compare

Tick any two markets to put them head to head. The Index is the overall score out of 10, and elbow room is a planning signal that sits outside it.

MarketAtmosphereValueFoodElbow roomAccessStallsIndex

8674887.5

8775877.4

7765977.0

8565876.9

7674966.8

8664866.8

7764866.7

6777866.6

7766766.6

7474966.5

7655966.4

7664766.4

8465476.4

6664956.1

6764856.1

5765755.7

5656845.2

Swipe the table sideways to see all six scores and the Index →

Sorted by Index. Tick a third market and it swaps out the one you picked first.

Head to head

Index

Atmosphere

Value

Food

Elbow room

Access

Stalls

Compare them in full →Plan both in one trip →

The full comparison adds who each one suits, how cold it gets and the real trains between them.

On the map

How far apart are the Christmas markets in the UK?

Every line is a train between two markets, with the fastest journey time. Tap a market to see its dates, the trains from there and hotels nearby.

Staying in one place? See everything in reach.Pick your base and the big map colours every Christmas market by train time from there. Add your dates and it hides the ones that are closed.

Open the big map →

Planning the trip

Christmas markets you can pair by train

Pick a day and you get that day’s real trains, the last one back and where to buy the ticket.

London King's Cross → York

How often1h45 fastest · LNER

London Euston → Manchester Piccadilly

How often2h06 fastest · Avanti

London Paddington → Bath Spa

How often1h13 fastest · GWR

London King's Cross → Edinburgh

How often4h fastest · LNER, hourly

York → Newcastle

How often49 min fastest

Newcastle → Edinburgh Waverley

How often1h22 fastest · LNER or CrossCountry

Edinburgh Waverley → Glasgow Queen Street

How often42 min fastest · every 15 min

Manchester Piccadilly → York

How often1h11 fastest

Birmingham New Street → Manchester Piccadilly

How often1h27 fastest

Fastest train that day, station to station. Last back is the last train back to where you started. Check the exact train before you pay.

Trip planner

Got a few of these in mind? We’ll build the days.

Pick your dates and the markets you want. The planner checks every market is open on the day you’re there, saves the lit-up squares for after dark, times the trains between them and lists what to book, in the order it sells out.

Open on your dayNo turning up the day after a market has closed.
Real trains, timedFrom the timetable for your date, with the last one back.
Bookings in the right orderHotels, trains and tours, with the ones that sell out first at the top.

Your trip

About a minute. Nothing to sign up for.

First nightNights

Markets

Who’s going

Build my trip →

Opens the trip planner with your days already built. From there you can print the trip pack or save it as a PDF, add the trip to your calendar or share the link.

The UK on our theme lists

Which cities here made each list, so you can pick by what you’re into.

Dog-friendlyWinchester, Leeds, Birmingham and Glasgow Ice skatingBath, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds, London, Birmingham, Nottingham and Glasgow Good for kidsEdinburgh, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds, London, Peterborough, Nottingham and Glasgow MedievalWinchester, York and Chester Ferris wheelEdinburgh, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds, London, Birmingham, Nottingham and Glasgow By the waterLondon and Glasgow For foodManchester, Newcastle, York, Belfast, Leeds and London

A ChristmasWanders pocket guide, a street map of every market on one side and hours, prices and transport tips on the other

A pocket guide, both sides

Free pocket guide

Every market in your city, on one sheet of paper

Tell us which city you’re going to and we’ll email you its pocket guide. It’s a real street map with every market on it, plus the opening hours, what things cost and how to get from one market to the next. Print it, fold it, and it still works when your phone dies in the cold.

Where are you going?

Your email

Yes, send me new city guides and the odd Christmas market email.

Two A4 pages, made to print on both sides of one sheet. After that, a few emails a season, and you can unsubscribe in one click.

Quick picks

The Best Christmas Markets in the UK

If you only go to one Christmas market in the UK this year

Edinburgh

This is the shortlist

When does every UK Christmas market open and close?

One Christmas season, country by country

All Christmas markets we visited in the UK

How they compare

How far apart are the Christmas markets in the UK?

Christmas markets you can pair by train

Hotels in each city on these routes

Got a few of these in mind? We’ll build the days.

Your trip

The UK on our theme lists

Every market in your city, on one sheet of paper