December is the UK's most festive month and a very good one for a city trip, as long as you plan around two things: daylight that ends before 4 pm, and a Christmas Day on which almost all public transport, most shops and nearly every attraction close. Come in the first three weeks for Christmas markets, lights and pantomime at sensible prices, or in the last week for Hogmanay in Edinburgh or fireworks in London, and book that week early.
It is a poor month for the countryside and the Highlands. For the months either side, see the UK in November and the UK in January; for the whole year, see when to go.
Weather by region
December is cold and damp rather than frigid. Snow in London is rare and rarely lasts; the Scottish Highlands usually have snow on the mountains and sometimes on the roads. Wind is the bigger factor, and winter storms can cancel outdoor events, including Edinburgh's street party.
| Place | Average high | Average low | Rainy days (approx.) | Sunset around Dec 21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London | 48°F (9°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 11–12 | 3:55 pm |
| Bath and Cardiff | 48°F (9°C) | 37°F (3°C) | 14–16 | 4:05 pm |
| Manchester | 46°F (8°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 14–15 | 3:50 pm |
| York | 45°F (7°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 12–13 | 3:45 pm |
| Belfast | 46°F (8°C) | 36°F (2°C) | 15–16 | 4:00 pm |
| Edinburgh | 45°F (7°C) | 35°F (2°C) | 12–13 | 3:40 pm |
| Inverness | 45°F (7°C) | 34°F (1°C) | 12–14 | 3:35 pm |
Figures are rounded long-term averages. Sunrise around the solstice is about 8:05 am in London and 8:40 am in Edinburgh, and in Shetland the day lasts under six hours.
Different from home
A British winter is milder than the Northeast's, but the damp makes 40°F feel colder, and old churches and pubs can be chilly inside. Layers beat one heavy parka.
Christmas markets: 2026 dates
German-style chalets selling mulled wine, sausages, crafts and decorations fill city squares from November. All are free to enter. Weekends, especially Saturdays, are crushed; go on a weekday morning or early evening.
Edinburgh's Christmas
Stalls, rides and a big wheel in East Princes Street Gardens, below the castle. Entry is free and rides are ticketed. It runs straight into Hogmanay, which makes Edinburgh the best city for a late-December trip. See Edinburgh.
Manchester Christmas Markets
Several markets spread across city-center squares, one of the largest collections of stalls in Britain. Albert Square and Cathedral Gardens stay open to January 3, 2027. See Manchester.
Bath Christmas Market
Chalets around Bath Abbey and the Roman Baths, with a focus on local crafts. It closes earlier than most, so a mid-December trip misses it. Book weekend rooms well ahead. See Bath.
Birmingham Frankfurt Christmas Market
Along New Street and Victoria Square, with a big wheel and ice rink in Centenary Square that run to January 3, 2027. An easy stop on the train between London and Manchester.
York Christmas Market
On Parliament Street and St Sampson's Square, a short walk from the Shambles and the Minster. See York.
Winchester and Belfast
Winchester's stalls fill the Cathedral Close; Belfast's continental market sits around City Hall. See the South East and Northern Ireland.
In London, Hyde Park Winter Wonderland runs November 19, 2026 to January 3, 2027, closed only on Christmas Day. It is a giant fair with rides, an ice rink, a circus and food stalls; entry is by timed ticket, and spending £25 (about $33) in one online booking on rides or food makes entry free. Confirm every market's dates on its own site before you book travel; see festivals.
Hogmanay and New Year's Eve
Edinburgh's Hogmanay, December 29–January 1
Scotland's New Year is a bigger celebration than Christmas for many Scots, and Edinburgh's runs over four days. The 2026–27 program:
- Tuesday December 29: the Torchlight Procession from 6:30 pm, with thousands of torch-bearers through the center. Ticketed to carry a torch.
- Wednesday December 30: the Night Afore party beneath the castle, with The Fratellis.
- Thursday December 31: the Street Party from 8 pm across the city center, or Hogmanay in the Gardens with Underworld, both ending with fireworks from the castle at midnight. Both are ticketed.
- Friday January 1: First Footin', a free, unticketed live-music trail around city venues.
Buy only from the official site, edwinterfest.com; we could not confirm 2026 prices, and early-bird tickets went on sale in January. Without a ticket you cannot get into the street party zone on the night. High winds have cancelled the street party before, most recently on December 31, 2024, so buy travel insurance and choose refundable rooms. Edinburgh hotels often set minimum stays over New Year, and the 5% visitor levy applies to the first five nights.
Insider tip
For "Auld Lang Syne," the Scottish custom is to cross your arms and join hands with your neighbors only for the last verse. Outside Edinburgh, Stonehaven near Aberdeen swings flaming fireballs through its streets at midnight.
London's New Year's Eve fireworks
The midnight display over the Thames by the London Eye is ticketed. For December 31, 2026, tickets went on sale October 23 through Ticketmaster, the only authorized seller, linked from london.gov.uk: standard areas £40 (about $53) for non-Londoners, premium £55 (about $73), with lower prices for London residents. They sell fast. Without a ticket, Primrose Hill and Parliament Hill give distant, crowded views, and stations near the river close or turn exit-only.
Christmas Day and Boxing Day
Friday, December 25 is the one day Britain stops. There are no national rail services anywhere in Great Britain and no London Underground, and most buses do not run. Most shops, museums and attractions close, including Edinburgh Castle (closed December 25 and 26), Winter Wonderland and Edinburgh's Christmas. Hotels stay open, and many pubs open for a few hours around lunch.
- Book Christmas lunch months ahead. Hotels and restaurants sell set menus, often at high prices, and the good ones fill by autumn.
- Plan to walk, or book a taxi in advance. Black cabs and ride-hailing apps work, at holiday prices.
- Flying on the 25th? Heathrow and Gatwick operate, but no trains run to them, so book a car.
- Buy food on the 24th. Large shops in England and Wales cannot open on Christmas Day, and Scotland's large stores close too.
Saturday, December 26 is Boxing Day. The big post-Christmas sales start that morning, and the Premier League usually plays a full program around Boxing Day; check fixtures if you want a match (see sports). Transport is limited: almost no national rail services, and a reduced service on TfL. The bank holiday is observed on Monday, December 28, when banks close but shops and most attractions open.
Watch out
Rail engineering works always take over the Christmas break. Press reports in late October 2026 described big Network Rail works from about December 25 to January 3 that would close or cut services at London Paddington (including the Heathrow Express), on lines out of Liverpool Street and at Euston. National Rail had not posted the details at the end of October, so treat these as expected, not final. Check National Rail before you book anything for December 24 to January 4, and use the Piccadilly line for Heathrow if the Heathrow Express is not running.
Pantomime, theater and light trails
Pantomime is a riotous British Christmas tradition: a fairy tale played for families, with a man in drag as the "dame," slapstick, songs and the audience shouting "He's behind you." This season the London Palladium's Cinderella (December 5, 2026 to January 10, 2027) stars Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, and A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong plays Wyndham's Theatre from December 18 to January 23. Almost every regional theater stages its own panto, usually for less. Christmas also brings several Nutcracker productions. See London theater.
After dark, the big draw is Christmas at Kew, a lit trail through Kew Gardens that opens November 13; book a timed slot in advance and check the closing date on kew.org. Country houses run their own Christmas seasons with separate tickets: Chatsworth to January 3, Castle Howard to January 3, Hever Castle to January 2, Blenheim Palace from November 13, and Hill Top in the Lake District to December 13. London's street lights on Regent Street, Carnaby and Covent Garden are free. See heritage sites and London sights.
The winter solstice gathering at Stonehenge, when English Heritage opens the stones for free access at sunrise, is expected at sunrise on December 22, 2026, the first sunrise after the solstice; check English Heritage for the confirmed date and book parking ahead. Buckingham Palace's East Wing tours, £100 (about $133), run through January 31.
Crowds and prices
- Early December (1–17): the sweet spot. Markets and lights are up, hotels midweek are still near low-season rates, and transatlantic fares are moderate.
- December 18 to January 2: peak. Most UK schools break on December 21, flights from the US cost the most, and Edinburgh hotels for Hogmanay can triple. Book months ahead.
- Christmas week itself (December 24–27): London hotels can be good value because business travel stops, but you trade that for closed sights and almost no trains.
- What sells out: Hogmanay tickets and rooms, London's New Year fireworks, weekend rooms in Bath and York during their markets, Christmas lunch, and the Harry Potter studio tour around school holidays.
Save money
Fly in by December 10 and out by December 17 and you avoid both the holiday airfare spike and the market-weekend hotel premium. Kew Gardens charges £10 (about $13) for daytime adult entry on Tuesdays through December 29.
Scotland in December
Edinburgh is superb in December. The Highlands are another matter: Inverness gets about 6 hours 35 minutes of daylight on the solstice, Fort William a little more, and Shetland under six. Snow can close or slow the A9 and A82, and rural hotels and restaurants keep short hours or shut entirely. If you go, base yourself in one well-run hotel, drive only in daylight, and treat clear nights as a chance for the Northern Lights. CalMac ferries run a reduced winter timetable, and storms cancel sailings. See the Highlands and the Scottish islands.
Coming up: the Highland visitor levy
Highland Council is due to decide on December 10, 2026 whether to bring in a visitor levy, proposed at £5 (about $7) per room per night for hotels, B&Bs and short-term lets and £2 (about $3) for hostels and campsites. Any scheme would take at least 18 months to start, so it will not affect 2027 trips. Edinburgh's 5% levy already applies, and Glasgow's starts on January 25, 2027.
Scottish schools are off until January 5 in Edinburgh, and January 4, 2027 is a Scottish bank holiday.
Where to go this month, and where to skip
- Go: Edinburgh (markets, then Hogmanay), London (lights, theater, Winter Wonderland), York and Bath in the first half of the month, Manchester and Birmingham for big markets, and Oxford or a Cotswold village pub with a fire. See Oxford and the Cotswolds.
- Think twice: the Highlands beyond Inverness and Aviemore, the islands, and long rural drives. Short days and closures make them hard work.
- Skip: any plan that needs trains on December 25 or 26, or a tight rail connection to a flight between Christmas and New Year.
What to pack
- A warm waterproof coat with a hood, plus a hat, scarf and gloves for evening markets.
- Thermal or merino base layers if you are going to Hogmanay; midnight is often around freezing.
- Waterproof boots with grip for cobbles and icy sidewalks.
- A smart outfit for theater or Christmas lunch. See packing.
A sample week: December 7–13, 2026
- Day 1
Monday, December 7 · London
Arrive, rest, then walk Regent Street, Carnaby and Covent Garden after dark for the lights.
- Day 2
Tuesday, December 8 · Museums and Kew
British Museum in the morning, then Kew Gardens at the £10 Tuesday rate, staying for a Christmas at Kew slot after dark.
- Day 3
Wednesday, December 9 · Westminster and panto
Westminster Abbey, then the Palladium's Cinderella or another show in the evening.
- Day 4
Thursday, December 10 · Bath
Train from Paddington, about 1 hour 20 minutes. The Roman Baths, then the Christmas market around the Abbey before it closes on December 13.
- Day 5
Friday, December 11 · York
Train to York via Bristol or London. The Christmas market on Parliament Street and Evensong at York Minster.
- Day 6
Saturday, December 12 · Edinburgh
Train north, about 2 hours 30 minutes. Edinburgh's Christmas in Princes Street Gardens in the evening.
- Day 7
Sunday, December 13 · Edinburgh
The castle at opening, the Royal Mile, and a whisky bar near the Grassmarket before dark at 3:40 pm.
For Hogmanay instead, arrive in Edinburgh by December 29 for the Torchlight Procession and stay to January 1; skip Bath, whose market will have closed.
Getting around this month
- Book trains early. Advance fares sell out for the Friday and weekend before Christmas and for December 23 and 24. Seat reservations are worth having. See getting around.
- London: TfL runs extra services on New Year's Eve, but riverside stations close or go exit-only around the fireworks. Check the TfL status page for holiday timetables.
- Driving: check Traffic Scotland for snow on Highland roads, and plan to arrive by 3:30 pm. See driving.
- Time difference: London is 5 hours ahead of New York all month.
- Entry: every traveler, including babies, needs a £20 (about $27) ETA. See entry rules.
Bottom line
Go in December if you want Christmas markets, lights, pantomime and cozy pubs, or a once-in-a-lifetime New Year in Edinburgh. The first two weeks give you the festive atmosphere at the best prices; the last week gives you Hogmanay at the highest ones.
Pick another month if you want long days, the Highlands or the countryside, or if your trip falls on December 24–28 and depends on trains. For low prices without the holiday crowds, try January or November. See also festivals and events and money for budgeting.
Add it to a route in the trip builder, or ask us to plan the hotels, trains and guides for you.