Do trains run on Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day?

Lauren Ryan

Published: Dec 16, 2025

Updated: Sep 14, 2026

Do trains run on Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day?

Planning on travelling by train during this festive period? Whether you’re taking the rail cross-country to spend time with family on Christmas, getting to and from the airport for a seasonal retreat, or planning a late return to celebrate the turn of the clocks to 2027 on New Year’s, keeping up to date with train availability can help keep your holidays as jolly as possible.

Below, we’ve broken down what you can expect regarding trains across this period, including Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, the intermittent period (27–31 December), and New Year’s Day, meaning you can get where you need to be.

Do trains run on Christmas Day?

No trains run on Christmas Day in the UK. However, if you require transport on the day, a select few National Express coaches will be available.

Do trains run on Boxing Day?

The majority of trains do not run on Boxing Day, except for a few airport services, including the Stansted Express. We recommend checking for your required route using the Trip.com journey planner, although it is safe to assume that there will not be an available service. A limited number of National Express coaches will be running on the day.

Do trains run on New Year’s Day?

Yes, most train services will be running on New Year’s Day, though likely on an amended schedule. Often, first trains will depart slightly later in the day than expected, so please factor this into your schedule if you are planning to travel on the first day of 2026. We recommend checking your desired route using the Trip.com route planner.

Are trains running on Christmas Eve?

Yes, trains typically run on Christmas Eve. As it is not a bank holiday, most services aim to run as usual, especially since it’s one of the year's busiest days! However, you can expect the following differences if you’re planning on travelling on Christmas Eve:

Reduced services and early finishes on Christmas Eve

Train services usually operate on a reduced schedule, especially later in the day. Many trains stop running earlier than usual, often between 6 PM and 8 PM. Consider getting your travel done in the morning or afternoon to avoid disappointment!

These are the proposed times for each UK train company. Be sure to double-check who your provider is before purchasing tickets:

Avanti West Coast: Services will finish earlier than normal.
c2c: Services will finish earlier than usual.
Caledonian Sleeper: Engineering work on Christmas Eve morning will mean that Tuesday night’s 21:15 London Euston to Fort William service will not operate between Glasgow Queen Street and Fort William on Christmas Eve morning. There will be no service running on the night of Christmas Eve.
Chiltern Railways: Services will finish earlier than normal. Southbound trains from Aylesbury Vale Parkway and stations to Chorleywood inclusive will depart up to 3 minutes earlier.
CrossCountry: Buses will replace trains between Birmingham New Street and Coleshill Parkway, with an intermediate stop at Water Orton on journeys between Birmingham and Nottingham, Leicester, Cambridge and Stansted Airport. Services will also finish earlier than normal.
East Midlands Railway: Trains will finish earlier than normal. Some London St Pancras International–Sheffield/Nottingham routes will terminate at Derby. Most trains will reach their termination station by 21:00–22:00, with some lines finishing much earlier. Please refer to your individual route.
Elizabeth Line: Normal service in the morning, and a Saturday-level of service will run in the afternoon. Services will finish earlier than normal.
Gatwick Express: Amended and reduced service, with trains finishing earlier than normal. Fewer trains will run after 17:00, with all last trains reaching their final destination by about 21:00.
Grand Central: Early finish, with a select few lines cancelled (please check the status of your train). West Riding services will divert between Bradford Interchange and Wakefield Kirkgate. Rail replacement services will operate between Brighouse and Wakefield.
Great Northern: An amended and reduced service will run on all Great Northern (and Thameslink) routes until the early evening, when routes will begin finishing earlier. No services past 9 pm.
Great Western Railway: The 05:31 Bedwyn to London Paddington will not run and the 06:12 Frome to London Paddington will start from Westbury at 06:22. All routes will finish earlier than normal, winding down from 9 pm.
Greater Anglia: Before 05:15, trains due to travel via Seven Sisters will be diverted to run via Tottenham Hale due to engineering work. Trains will see a reduction in service from 19:00 and finish by 22:00, with the exception of trains between Stansted and London Liverpool Street – the last train to the airport will be at 23:21 and the last from the airport will be 22:43.
Heathrow Express: Normal service.
Hull Trains: Reduced service. The last southbound Hull Trains service will be 12:33 from Hull and the last northbound Hull Trains service will be 16:10 from London Kings Cross.
Island Line: No changes have been announced.
LNER: Services will finish earlier than normal.
London Northwestern Railway: Early morning services at Bushey to be amended: The 00:09 London Euston to Milton Keynes Central will call at Bushey to drop off only. The 00:39 London Euston to Milton Keynes Central will not call at Bushey. Reduced service across all services from 7 pm, with an early shutdown planned.
London Overground: Trains will finish earlier than normal.
Lumo: Reduced services with an early close-down. Please refer to your individual route.
Merseyrail: Services will finish earlier than normal, with an early close-down around 20:00 and last trains arriving at their destination by 21:00.
Northern: From 18:00 onwards, trains on all Northern routes may be cancelled or terminated short, with most services withdrawn by 20:00.
ScotRail: Details of any engineering work and/or service changes will be published here when announced.
South Western Railway: Trains will finish earlier than normal, with last services departing London Waterloo before 22:00.
Southeastern: Reduced frequency of services from 9 pm and no services past 10:00 pm. The 00:26 London Cannon Street to Dartford via Greenwich train will additionally be diverted to run via Bexleyheath due to engineering work. An accessible bus will run between London Bridge and Dartford via Greenwich.
Southern: Amended and reduced service from 5 pm. No services past 9 pm. Some early-morning services will be subject to changes due to engineering work, please refer to your individual route.
Stansted Express: Trains will finish earlier than normal, with the last train to Stansted airport leaving at 23:21 from London Liverpool Street, and the last train leaving the airport at 22:43.
Thameslink: An amended and reduced service will run on all Thameslink (and Great Northern) routes until early evening, when services will start to shut down. No services past 9 pm approximately.
Transpennine Express: Services will finish earlier than usual, with no trains running on any routes from late evening onwards. Afternoon/evening trains may terminate early, as engineering work will take place in the late evening between York, Northallerton and Darlington. Travelling earlier in the day is advised.
Transport for Wales: Trains will finish earlier than normal, with all service finishing by 23:00. Some service may terminate earlier than normal, and other trains have been cancelled. Please refer to your individual route.
West Midlands Railway: Service will finish earlier than usual, with an amended timetable at a reduced frequency in operation after 19:00, and an earlier shutdown.

For Londoners, expect reduced services from 8 pm and total closures at around 10 pm for London Underground, Docklands Light Railway, Elizabeth line, London Overground and London trams.

National Rail has provided this very useful table for last trains from London to popular destinations across the UK:

Destination	Last Train	From London Terminal	Train Operator
Aberdeen	14:03	Kings Cross	LNER
Birmingham New St	20:10 18:56	Euston Euston	Avanti West Coast London N'western
Birmingham Moor St	20:02	Marylebone	Chiltern Railways
Brighton	20:05 19:29	London Bridge Victoria	Thameslink Gatwick Express
Bristol TM	21:02	Paddington	Great Western Rwy
Cambridge	20:24 19:48	Liverpool Street Kings Cross	Greater Anglia Great Northern
Cardiff Central	20:48	Paddington	Great Western Rwy
Cheltenham Spa	19:36	Paddington	Great Western Rwy
Crewe	19:08	Euston	Avanti West Coast
Dover Priory	21:04	Charing Cross	Southeastern
Edinburgh	16:30	Kings Cross	LNER
Exeter St Davids	20:03	Paddington	Great Western Rwy
Gatwick Airport	20:45 20:16	London Bridge Victoria	Thameslink Southern
Glasgow Central	16:30	Euston	Avanti West Coast
Gloucester	20:34	Paddington	Great Western Rwy
Heathrow Airport	23:25 22:25 * * (23:57 from	Paddington Paddington Plat B Liverpool Street)	Heathrow Express Elizabeth line Elizabeth line
Hull	16:10	Kings Cross	Hull Trains
Ipswich	22:00	Liverpool Street	Greater Anglia
Leeds	18:39	Kings Cross	LNER
Leicester	19:35	St Pancras Int	East Midlands Railway
Liverpool Lime St	18:11	Euston	Avanti West Coast
Luton	19:15 20:21	St Pancras Int St Pancras Int	East Midlands Railway Thameslink
Manchester Picc	19:31	Euston	Avanti West Coast
Newcastle	17:03	Kings Cross	LNER
Northampton	20:23	Euston	London N'western
Norwich	21:30	Liverpool Street	Greater Anglia
Oxford	21:53 20:06	Paddington Marylebone	Great Western Rwy Chiltern Railways
Peterborough	19:46 20:00	St Pancras Int Kings Cross	Thameslink LNER
Portsmouth Hbr	20:30	Waterloo	South Western Rwy
Preston	18:08	Euston	Avanti West Coast
Reading	22:48 * * (22:34 from 22:08	Paddington Plat B Liverpool Street) Paddington	Elizabeth line Elizabeth line Great Western Rwy
Sevenoaks	21:45	Charing Cross	Southeastern
Sheffield	18:32	St Pancras Int	East Midlands Railway
Southampton Ctl	21:05	Waterloo	South Western Rwy
Southend Victoria Southend Central	21:50 22:04	Liverpool Street Fenchurch Street	Greater Anglia c2c
Stansted Airport	23:21	Liverpool Street	Stansted Express
Sunderland	17:00	Kings Cross	Grand Central
Swansea	19:48	Paddington	Great Western Rwy
Windsor	21:03	Waterloo	South Western Rwy
Worcester	20:52	Paddington	Great Western Rwy
York	18:00	Kings Cross	LNER

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Engineering work across Christmas and New Year’s

As with most festive periods, you can expect a series of extensive engineering and improvement projects to be taken in the downtime between Christmas and New Year. Below is a list of the major works being completed in 2026:

To and from London Liverpool Street (except Elizabeth line): Saturday 27 December to Thursday 1 January
To and from London Waterloo or Vauxhall: Saturday 27 December and Friday 2 January
Between Milton Keynes and Rugby: Saturday 27 December to Sunday 4 January
Between Preston and Carlisle: Wednesday 31 December to Thursday 15 January
Between Carlisle and Lockerbie: Thursday 1 January to Wednesday 7 January
Between Leeds and York: Saturday 27 December to Friday 2 January
Between Cambridge area and Stansted Airport: Saturday 27 December to Sunday 4 January
In the Bowling, West Dunbartonshire area: Saturday 27 December to Wednesday 31 December

For these specific lines, expect regular cancellations or amended schedules during this time period.

Be aware of busy trains

It’s no surprise that Christmas Eve is a popular time to travel, whether to see family or attend events. Because of this, you can expect most services to be busier than usual, which could of course lead to delays or cancellations. Although it’s not guaranteed for every route, consider booking tickets in advance and factoring additional travel time into your journey, such as arriving early, to be safe!