Cotswolds Christmas Markets 2026: Dates, Tickets & How to Get There

The Cotswolds Christmas market season for 2026 begins at Blenheim Palace on Friday 13 November and is busiest over three weekends: 27–29 November, 3–6 December and 10–13 December. Those are the dates when Cirencester, Moreton-in-Marsh, Broadway, Winchcombe, Chipping Campden and Bath all have something on. The market at Blenheim is free to walk into, but book parking ahead, and book Christmas at Blenheim if you want the light trail or the Palace, which have timed entry. Most of the village and town markets are free and need no booking. One more thing before you plan: Great Western Railway has no trains in or out of London Paddington on 28–29 November 2026, the biggest market weekend of the season.

Below are the dates, checked against organisers' sites where they had published, notes on the size of each market, and how to get there with or without a car. Anything still marked TBC or "expected" hadn't been officially confirmed when we checked in October 2026.

New to winter in the Cotswolds? Start with our hub guide, is the Cotswolds worth visiting in November?, then come back here to plan your festive shopping.

Quick answer: our top 5 Cotswolds Christmas markets for 2026

Blenheim's Christmas tickets are sold on GetYourGuide from $33 as well as on Blenheim's own site; the GetYourGuide listing is new and has no reviews yet.

Master calendar: Cotswolds Christmas markets 2026

Times are as published by organisers or, where marked, by secondary listings. Small events often finalise times in November, so check the organiser's site before you travel.

"Expected" means the date follows the organiser's usual pattern or a third-party listing, but the organiser had not confirmed it for 2026 when we checked. "Secondary" means the date comes from a listings site, not the organiser.

Best Cotswolds Christmas markets by type

• Biggest: Blenheim Palace has a five-week run, with around sixty chalets according to the organiser's 2026 exhibitor site. As a one-weekend event, Cirencester's Advent Market (100+ stalls) is the largest.
• Prettiest village setting: Chipping Campden. The High Street closes to traffic, there are stalls around the 17th-century Market Hall, and the tree is lit at dusk.
• Best evening atmosphere: Broadway's two Friday late-night shopping evenings, with Winchcombe's Thursday festival a close second.
• Best for foodies: Daylesford's Heritage House market (ticketed), Cirencester's farmers' markets, and the street-food-heavy Gloucester Quays weekends.
• Best for families: Cirencester's Advent Saturday (Santa, big screens and low-noise fireworks), Moreton-in-Marsh, and Blenheim if the light trail is in the budget.
• Best for a long season: Cheltenham (10–23 December) and Blenheim (13 November–20 December).

The markets in detail

Blenheim Palace Christmas Market, Woodstock

Dates: Friday 13 November–Sunday 20 December 2026. The wider Christmas at Blenheim event (Illuminated Trail, Cinderella inside the Palace, the Great Skate ice rink and an observation wheel) carries on until 3 January 2027, open 10.00–20.00.

What to expect: Blenheim fills its Great Court with a village of wooden chalets, around sixty of them according to the organiser's 2026 exhibitor site, selling designer-maker gifts, homewares, ceramics and seasonal food, with mulled wine beside the covered ice rink. You won't find a grander backdrop for Christmas shopping in England. It's also the most commercial and most expensive experience on this list.

Ticket or free? The market is free. Blenheim's ticket agent Ticketek says in its Christmas at Blenheim FAQ that you don't need a Palace or trail ticket to enter the Christmas Market, which opens 10.30am–8.30pm on trail nights and closes at 5.30pm on other days. Parking is charged after 10am (£10 if pre-booked, £12 on the day if any spaces are left), and Blenheim's official page asks all visitors to pre-book it. The light trail and the Palace rooms are separately ticketed with timed entry.

Peak dates: annual pass discounts don't apply on 5, 6, 12, 13 and 19 December, which tells you which days Blenheim expects to be busiest. Go on a weekday in November if you can.

Getting there by car: follow the signs to Woodstock (A44) and pre-book parking through Blenheim. Blue Badge parking is at Hensington.

Without a car: Stagecoach's S3 runs up to every 30 minutes from central Oxford (Oxford station and Gloucester Green) to the Palace gates, and other routes link Oxford Parkway and Hanborough station. Sunday services are thinner, so check the last bus before you go.

Where to stay: Woodstock's coaching inns put you within walking distance of the gates.

Blenheim's light trail is compared with Sudeley's and Westonbirt's, with dates, prices, dogs and pushchairs, in our Christmas light trails guide; for everything else on in November, see what's on in the Cotswolds in November.

Cirencester: Advent Market, Christmas Market and gift markets

Dates:

• Advent Market & lights switch-on: expected on Saturday 28 November 2026 (10am–6pm) and Sunday 29 November (listed as 9am–5pm in one place and 10am–4pm in another). A third-party listing citing the Town Council gives these dates; the council's own 2026 page had no details when we checked.
• Christmas Market: expected on 5–6 December 2026. In past listings the council gave Sunday 10am–4pm; Saturday times were TBC.
• Christmas gift markets: 13–22 December 2026 (secondary sources). Farmers' markets run on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of every month, 9am–2.30pm, which gives 12 and 26 December. Festive specials are TBC.

What to expect: the Advent weekend is the big one, with over 100 stalls (some listings say 200+ across the two days) stretching from Castle Street up Cricklade Street and along the Market Place, with the town centre closed to traffic. The lights switch-on is shown on big screens, with Santa on his sleigh and low-noise fireworks.

By car: the town-centre car parks fill early on Advent Saturday. Arrive before 10am or expect a walk.

Without a car: the nearest station is Kemble, about 4 miles away, then a bus or taxi. Note that 28–29 November is the Paddington closure weekend (see the warnings below). Go Cotswolds runs Christmas tours that include Cirencester on several dates.

Broadway late-night Christmas shopping

Dates: Fridays 27 November and 4 December 2026, 4.30–8.30pm, confirmed by Broadway Parish Council. A cottage-letting business reports the lights switch-on as Saturday 14 November 2026. We couldn't confirm that with the organisers, so treat it as TBC.

What to expect: this isn't a chalet market. The whole High Street stays open late under the lights, with mulled wine, festive food, music, street entertainers, pony sleigh rides and Father Christmas. Shops often hand out mince pies. For us it's the most atmospheric evening of the Cotswolds Christmas season.

By car: parking in Broadway is heavily restricted on these evenings, so arrive early or use the train below.

Without a car: for the first time, the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Steam Railway is running a Broadway Christmas Shopping Train on both evenings. You park free at Toddington, take the train to Broadway station, and a shuttle bus runs to the village. When we checked in mid-October, GWSR listed tickets as "on sale soon". Ordinary buses aren't much help in the evening. Pulhams' 606 (Cheltenham–Winchcombe–Broadway) runs Monday–Saturday only, with its last Broadway departures in the early evening.

Chipping Campden Christmas Market

Date: Saturday 5 December 2026, according to the town's community website. The indoor Town Hall market continues on Sunday 6 December.

What to expect: the organisers have described it as a small market of 34 outdoor stalls and 6 food wagons, plus the regular indoor market on both floors of the Town Hall; this year's line-up may differ. The High Street closes to traffic, Father Christmas appears, and the town lights are switched on at dusk. It's compact, and on a crisp afternoon it's one of the prettiest markets in the Cotswolds.

By car: park at Chipping Campden School on Cider Mill Lane, about a 5-minute walk from the centre.

Without a car: the nearest stations are Moreton-in-Marsh and Honeybourne, both a taxi ride away. Go Cotswolds' 5 December Christmas tour stops here.

Cheltenham Christmas Market and festive events

Dates: Thursday 10–Wednesday 23 December 2026 on the Promenade, confirmed by Visit Cheltenham. There are 40 wooden stalls and entry is free. Published daily hours differ (10am–4pm in one listing, 10am–5pm in another), so check before a late-afternoon visit.

Also in Cheltenham: the Suffolks Christmas Market (Sunday 29 November), a Christmas light projection (3–16 December), and smaller markets at Dunkertons (6 December), Elkstone Studios (6 December), Clavell & Hind (13 December) and Ellenborough Park (18 December). Pittville Pump Room's Christmas market and lights are TBC for 2026. Cheltenham Racecourse's December meeting (11–12 December) will make that weekend especially busy in town.

By car: use the town-centre multi-storeys. Racing weekends get congested.

Without a car: Cheltenham Spa station is about a 20-minute walk or a short bus ride from the Promenade. Cheltenham is also the hub for buses into the Cotswolds (801 and 606).

Moreton-in-Marsh Christmas Market & lights

Date: expected on Saturday 28 November 2026. Earlier listings tied the date to the Town Council, while one tourism website lists Friday 27 November, and we found no official 2026 listing when we checked. Go with the 28th, but double-check nearer the time.

What to expect: around 80 stalls along the wide High Street from the morning until late afternoon (sources give a 9am or 10am start), with Father Christmas, carols late in the afternoon and the lights switch-on at about 5pm.

Without a car: this is the easiest market on the list to reach by train, because Moreton has direct trains on the Cotswold Line, and the station is a 5-minute walk from the High Street. Remember, though, that 28 November falls on the Paddington closure weekend. The Pulhams 801 links Moreton with Stow, Bourton and Cheltenham.

Winchcombe Christmas Festival

Dates: Thursday 3 December 2026 (Christmas Market, midday–8pm) and Friday 4 December (new Christmas Shopping Trail, 10am–4pm), confirmed by winchcombe.co.uk.

What to expect: on Thursday there are over 50 stalls, 70 real Christmas trees lining the streets, Morris dancers, choirs and late-night shopping. On Friday about 20 festive pop-ups set up inside independent shops. It combines well with Sudeley Castle's light trail.

Getting there: Stagecoach W and Pulhams 606 run from Cheltenham Monday to Saturday. For the Thursday evening, a car or taxi is more practical.

Bourton-on-the-Water: the tree in the river

Is there a Christmas market in Bourton-on-the-Water? Not a big one. Bourton is famous for its Christmas tree standing in the River Windrush. The lights switch-on is expected on Friday 27 November 2026, following the usual late-November Friday (the 2025 switch-on was at 5.30pm), with a small event on the village green and some shops expected to open late; confirm with the Parish Council. In previous years a waterside pub has held a small market on switch-on day, but that's TBC for 2026. Come for the lights, not the shopping.

Without a car: take the Pulhams 801 from Cheltenham or Moreton station. In 2026 Pulhams added later Monday–Saturday journeys, with the last bus leaving Moreton-in-Marsh station at 21:40, and it runs a Sunday service all year. Even so, check the timetable for last return times on a Sunday.

Tetbury, Stroud, Nailsworth, Malmesbury and the south Cotswolds

• Tetbury Christmas Market & lights: Friday 4 December 2026, 5–8.30pm (Tetbury Town Council). Craft stalls, Santa's grotto and the lights switch-on at the Market House. Kemble is the nearest station; get a taxi from there.
• Stroud Goodwill Evening: Friday 4 December (secondary), with a lantern procession and late shopping. Cornhill Christmas Market runs 16–18 December. Stroud Farmers' Market festive dates are TBC.
• Nailsworth Goodwill Evening: Friday 27 November (secondary), with artisan markets on 28 November and 12 December.
• Malmesbury late-night shopping: Friday 4 December, 6–9pm (secondary).
• Painswick: 2026 Christmas events TBC.

Oxfordshire Cotswolds: Woodstock, Witney, Burford, Chipping Norton

• Woodstock Festive Fayre: 27–28 November 2026 (secondary), with 55+ stalls across St Mary Magdalene Church and the town's two museums. You can pair it with Blenheim.
• Witney Christmas Market, Marriotts Walk: 26–29 November, 10am–6pm (secondary, citing the operator Cotswold Markets). Cogges Christmas Market is 28–29 November.
• Burford: the lights switch-on and the Burford Garden Company's Christmas shop events are TBC for 2026.
• Chipping Norton: Christmas market TBC.

Stow-on-the-Wold, Northleach and the rest (TBC)

We couldn't find official 2026 dates for a Stow-on-the-Wold Christmas market or late-night shopping evening, so treat any date you see elsewhere with caution. Stow is lovely in December regardless, with its lit market square and independent shops. The same applies to Northleach, Thyme at Southrop, Cotswold Farm Park (whose festive events are not yet announced) and the Cotswolds Designer Outlet. All are TBC.

Daylesford Heritage House Christmas Market

Reported for 27–29 November 2026, 9am–5pm. Unusually, this one has an entry fee (reported at £25, including a glass of fizz). It's a curated maker market with demonstrations, aimed squarely at foodies and design lovers. Kingham station is about 2 miles away, so take a taxi.

Nearby city Christmas markets

• Bath Christmas Market: Thursday 26 November–Sunday 13 December 2026. Free entry, with over 200 chalets spread across Bath's Georgian streets around the Abbey, according to VisitBath. Listed opening hours are Monday–Wednesday 10am–7pm, Thursday–Saturday 10am–8pm and Sunday 10am–6pm; check them on VisitBath before you go. Bath Spa station is 5 minutes' walk away. Bath's three Park & Ride sites run later into the evening during the market, and GWR runs extra trains on market Saturdays. Weekend afternoons get very crowded with coach parties. From London, a Stonehenge and Bath day trip (rated 4.8 from more than 3,200 reviews on GetYourGuide) includes time in Bath; check the itinerary for how long.
• Oxford: there are two separate Broad Street events. The Oxford Victorian Christmas Market runs 12–15 November, and Christmas in Oxford runs 21 November–31 December (closed Christmas Day). Free entry. Use Oxford's Park & Ride instead of driving into the centre, and pair the market with a two-hour Oxford university walking tour (rated 4.7 from more than 4,600 reviews).
• Stratford-upon-Avon Christmas Markets: 28–29 November and 5–6 December 2026. The organiser promises over 200 independent traders across Bridge Street, Waterside and Henley Street. Saturday start times are listed as 10am in one place and 12pm in another; Sundays run 10am–5pm. The council encourages drivers to use the Bishopton Park & Ride.
• Worcester Victorian Christmas Fayre: 3–6 December 2026, according to the operator Cotswold Markets. More than 200 stalls, a Victorian carousel and themed evenings on the Friday and Saturday.
• Gloucester Quays Christmas Markets: every weekend from 7–8 November to 19–20 December. Over 120 traders, plus an ice rink. Free.
• Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market: 5 November–24 December, on Victoria Square and New Street. It's the giant of the region, but a different experience from the Cotswolds.

Sample Christmas market weekend (Friday 4–Sunday 6 December 2026)

Friday: arrive in the afternoon and base yourself in Broadway or Chipping Campden. Spend the evening at Broadway's late-night shopping (4.30–8.30pm), or take the GWSR shopping train from Toddington.

Saturday: walk off breakfast with a short loop above the town, then head to Chipping Campden's Christmas Market from midday and stay for the tree lighting at dusk. Have dinner by a log fire in one of the town's old inns.

Sunday: drive 45 minutes south to Cirencester's Christmas Market (expected that weekend, 10am–4pm on Sunday in past listings), or go on to Bath (open until 6pm) if you'd like a city market before heading home.

If you have more days, add a spa night or a second village base; our best time to visit the Cotswolds guide covers what the rest of the year looks like.

Practical tips

• Go on weekdays or early. Blenheim in November, Bath on a Monday morning and Cheltenham midweek are much calmer than Saturday afternoons.
• Cards are widely taken, but carry some cash for small village stalls, charity tombolas and parking machines.
• Park early. Village markets close their main streets, so arrive before 11am or use the signed overflow parking (Campden's school car park, Toddington station for Broadway).
• Dress for the cold. It's often damp and gets dark by about 4pm.
• Dogs: they're fine at most outdoor street markets on a short lead, but not allowed inside Blenheim Palace or on its trail except on designated dog-friendly nights.
• Accessibility: street markets mean cobbles, kerbs and crowds. Bath publishes accessible routes and quiet shopping periods. Blenheim has Blue Badge parking at Hensington.

Getting there without a car: Christmas 2026 train and bus warnings

Read our full guide to the Cotswolds without a car in winter, then note these 2026 specifics:

1. No GWR trains at London Paddington on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November 2026 because of the Dolphin Junction works near Slough. That's the same weekend as Cirencester's Advent Market, Moreton's market and Stratford's first weekend. Check Cotswold Line (Moreton, Kingham, Charlbury) and Cheltenham arrangements before you book.
2. No GWR trains to or from Paddington from Sunday 27 December 2026 until Sunday 3 January 2027 (and no GWR trains at all on 25–26 December). That doesn't affect the markets, but it does affect Christmas-week stays.
3. Sunday and evening buses are thin. The 606 to Winchcombe and Broadway doesn't run on Sundays. Many rural routes stop running in the early evening, which matters for markets that are at their best after dark.
4. Book trains early for the best Advance fares, but on market Saturdays consider a flexible ticket.

Christmas market tours

If you don't want to deal with parking or bus timetables, a tour takes care of both:

• Go Cotswolds: Christmas in the Cotswolds. Runs 22 and 28 November and 5, 13 and 20 December 2026. Adults £80, children (3–15) £70. A small-group minibus visits Bibury, Bourton and other villages including a Christmas market town: Cirencester on most dates, Chipping Campden on 5 December. It departs Stratford-upon-Avon at 08.50 and Moreton-in-Marsh station at 09.30, and is booked on Go Cotswolds' own site. On other December days, the same operator's Cotswolds in a Day (rated 4.9 from more than 470 reviews on GetYourGuide) runs from the same pick-up points.
• Bath Christmas market combos run from Stratford and Moreton on selected dates.
• From London: Go Tours UK's Full-Day Cotswolds Small-Group Tour (from $105) visits Burford, Bibury, Bourton and Stow with their Christmas lights up; compare it with the others in our Cotswolds day trip from London in winter guide.

We couldn't find a dedicated Cotswolds Christmas market tour on GetYourGuide for 2026.

This page is updated every year. Dates were checked in October 2026, but small markets can change, so always confirm with the organiser before travelling. This page contains affiliate links; if you book through them we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.