Stratford-upon-Avon Christmas Market 2026: 28 Nov and 5 Dec

Stratford-upon-Avon’s Christmas Markets run over two weekends this year: Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November, then Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December. A third weekend, 12 and 13 December, is being held in reserve in case one of the two is cancelled for bad weather.

Those dates come straight from Stratford-on-Avon District Council’s markets page, last updated on 6 July 2026, which publishes them under the heading “hot off the press”.

The reserve weekend is unusual and worth knowing about. It means a washout does not simply cancel the market, it moves it.

The dates

Entry is free. The market fills Bridge Street, Waterside and Henley Street, and it is run for the council by LSD Promotions, on 01384 877336. The 2026 footprint for the market itself has not been published street by street, unlike the operator’s footprint for the lights switch-on a fortnight earlier.

Opening times: two sources, and they disagree

The Sundays are agreed. The Saturdays are not.

Stratford-upon-Avon Town Council’s events list publishes each of the four days for 2026:

The operator’s own trader page for Christmas 2026 gives trading times as “Saturday: 12pm - 8pm” and “Sunday: 10am - 5pm”. So on Saturdays the town council says the market is open from 10am and the operator tells its own traders it starts at noon.

Which is right matters if you are making a special trip on a Saturday morning. The 2025 hours, set out in the council’s accessibility statement for last year’s market, were 10am to 8pm on the Saturday and 10am to 5pm on the Sunday, which supports the town council’s version. Until the council or the operator publishes a public-facing 2026 timetable, treat a Saturday morning as uncertain and the afternoon as safe.

The market’s own consumer website, stratforduponavonchristmasmarkets.co.uk, is no help: it still carries last year’s sign-off, “Thank you for attending! We will be back in 2026 - Check back for updates!”, and its copyright line reads 2025. The 2026 detail is only on the trade side of the operator’s business.

Trader applications for the Stratford market are already marked “APPLICATIONS CLOSED” on that page. The council says over 250,000 people came over the two weekends in 2025, with some businesses reporting record sales.

Road closures, and when they actually start

This is the part the council has already published for 2026, and it is earlier than most people expect. Closures come into effect from 6pm on the Friday evening before each weekend, so from 6pm on Friday 27 November and 6pm on Friday 4 December, to allow hostile vehicle mitigation barriers to be installed.

What closes:

• Waterside, fully closed
• Bridge Street, fully closed in both directions
• High Street, one way system in operation
• Sheep Street, open, but no access onto Waterside

Security staff are stationed at each closure point to advise on routes. The council’s own warning is that there will be delays around the town centre and drivers should allow more time.

The Bridge Street taxi rank was suspended for the market last year. All other ranks stayed open.

Parking, buses and coaches

Car parks. None of the town centre car parks appear in the published closure, which covers Waterside, Bridge Street, High Street and Sheep Street only. The council has not said in terms that they all stay open, so treat that as an inference from the closure list rather than a promise. Tariffs are on our Stratford parking page.

Park and Ride. The council encourages visitors to use the Park and Ride at Bishopton and says normal charges apply, £3 before 8.59am and £1 from 9am, free for blue badge holders. Its published market-weekend service:

• Saturdays: buses until 20:30, waiting room and toilets open until 8pm
• Sundays: buses until 18:40, with one last bus at 19:30

Read that alongside the county council’s standing rule, which is that the dedicated Park and Ride bus does not run on Sundays between November and Easter except for selected special events advertised separately. The market Sundays are one of those exceptions, which is exactly why the council spells the Sunday times out. Do not assume the same on any other Sunday in December.

With Bridge Street shut, the Park and Ride bus and the number 19 town service leave from Windsor Street Coach Park. Every other bus goes from the stops in Guild Street behind Marks and Spencer.

Coaches park at the Riverside Coach and Lorry Park, CV37 6YY, on Bridgeway, first come first served with 70 spaces, and overspill at the Park and Ride once passengers have got off. Drop-off and pick-up are at Riverside only.

Trains. Stratford-upon-Avon station is about ten minutes’ walk from the market, on a route the council describes as having dropped kerbs and tactile paving at all the major junctions.

For anything else on the roads those weekends, see our roadworks and travel page.

Accessibility

From the council’s 2025 accessibility statement, prepared by Accessible Stratford:

• Blue badge parking is free and without a time limit in the council car parks at Arden Street, Bridgeway multi-storey, Church Street (after 4pm, plus all day Saturday and Sunday), Guild Street behind the library, the Leisure Centre, the Recreation Ground and Windsor Street. Other car parks charge.
• On-street blue badge bays outside the closure: Chapel Lane, Church Street, Sheep Street including the service yard, Southern Lane by The Other Place, Henley Street and Union Street.
• Changing Places toilets at Bell Court, Rother Street, CV37 6JP and at Stratford Leisure Centre, Bridgeway, CV37 6YY.
• Shopmobility on level 2 of the Bridgeway multi-storey, 01789 414534.
• Portable dropped kerbs are put out around the town centre, and the market itself is on level ground.

One local thing to note

The Waterside Upmarket, which normally takes Waterside every Sunday, is not on the council’s closure list for Sunday 29 November or Sunday 6 December. It runs on the other Sundays either side. The Christmas Market has those two weekends to itself.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Stratford-upon-Avon Christmas Market 2026?

Two weekends: Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November, then Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December 2026. A third weekend, 12 and 13 December, is held in reserve and is used only if one of the first two has to be cancelled for weather. Those dates are Stratford-on-Avon District Council’s own, published on its markets page.

Is the Stratford Christmas Market free?

Yes. Entry is free and there is no ticket. It is an open street market across Bridge Street, Waterside and Henley Street.

What time does it open?

The Sundays are agreed at 10am to 5pm. The Saturdays are not: Stratford-upon-Avon Town Council’s events list says 10am to 8pm, while the operator tells its own traders noon to 8pm. The 2025 hours were 10am to 8pm on the Saturday, which supports the town council. Treat a Saturday morning as uncertain until a public 2026 timetable appears.

Where is the Stratford Christmas Market held?

Bridge Street, Waterside and Henley Street in the town centre. Bridge Street and Waterside are fully closed to traffic, High Street runs one way, and Sheep Street stays open but with no access onto Waterside.

When do the roads close?

From 6pm on the Friday before each market weekend, so vehicle mitigation barriers can go in. That is earlier than most people expect, and it catches Friday evening journeys.

How do I get there without driving into town?

The park and ride at Bishopton, at normal charges. With Bridge Street shut, the park and ride bus and Town Service 19 run from Windsor Street Coach Park rather than their usual stop, and every other bus goes from Guild Street behind M&S. Park and ride buses run until 20:30 on the Saturdays, and until 18:40 on the Sundays with a final bus at 19:30.

Where do coaches park?

Riverside Coach and Lorry Park, CV37 6YY, on Bridgeway, first come first served, 70 spaces.

How busy does it get?

The council reports more than 250,000 people over the two weekends in 2025, with some businesses recording their best sales of the year.

Is the Christmas Market the same as the lights switch-on?

No. The Christmas lights switch-on is a separate event a fortnight earlier, on Saturday 14 November 2026.

Still to come

Opening hours, the stall list and the entertainment programme for 2026 are all unpublished. Last year the operator’s site had the trader lists up by late November. Re-checked on 16 September 2026: the district council’s markets page still carries its 6 July update and nothing more, and the market’s own consumer website is still the holding page, with no 2026 dates on it at all even though the council published them more than two months ago. This page will be updated when the 2026 detail appears.

The town’s Christmas lights switch-on is a separate event a fortnight earlier, on Saturday 14 November.