Christmas Markets in the South East 2026

In 2026 the first to open is Ascot Christmas Fair, from Thursday 12 to Sunday 15 November. Folkestone Festive Marketplace opens on Friday 13 November and stays open through Thursday 24 December, Reading's market begins on Saturday 14 November and goes on to Sunday 3 January 2027, and Farnham Maltings Christmas Fair takes Wednesday 18 and Thursday 19 November. Winchester Cathedral Christmas Market opens on Friday 20 November and stays open until Tuesday 22 December, and Guildford Cathedral Christmas Fair is on Friday 20 and Saturday 21 November. Chiddingstone Castle Christmas Fair is on Saturday 21 November, and the Christmas Market at Weald & Downland Living Museum, the South of England Winter Fair and the Grand Winter Makers Fair on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November. The Hawk Conservancy Trust Christmas Market runs from Thursday 26 to Sunday 29 November, Rochester Christmas Market on three weekends from Friday 27 November to Sunday 13 December, the Godalming Christmas Festival Market on Saturday 28 November and Windsor Christmas Fair on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November. Maidstone Museum Christmas Craft Market takes Saturday 5 December, Milestones Christmas Market takes Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December, with Petersfield's market on Sunday 13 December. The cards show each market's own dates.

Rochester Christmas Market welcomes dogs on a lead, while Ascot Christmas Fair, Chiddingstone Castle and Weald & Downland do not allow pet dogs. Rochester says the market can get busy, so it may not suit every pet. The South of England Winter Fair allows dogs but does not recommend bringing them, because many of its areas are indoors where dogs are not permitted, and Winchester Cathedral suggests visiting on a quieter weekday if you bring a dog. Ascot, Chiddingstone and Weald & Downland all admit assistance dogs. The Grand Winter Makers Fair in Hove does not admit pet dogs to The British Engineerium. Farnham Maltings welcomes registered assistance dogs throughout its building and has published no rule for other dogs. Folkestone's Harbour Arm welcomes dogs kept on a lead, though not every indoor business there admits them, and Maidstone Museum names service dogs as welcome and says nothing about other dogs. None of Reading, Windsor, Godalming or Petersfield has said whether dogs are welcome.

Winchester Cathedral Christmas Market and Rochester Christmas Market are both free to enter, and Winchester needs no pre-booking. Reading's Christmas Market, the Godalming Christmas Festival Market, Maidstone Museum Christmas Craft Market and Petersfield Christmas Market are free too. At Ascot Christmas Fair, children under 16 with an adult need no ticket, at the South of England Winter Fair under-16s go in free with a paying adult, and Windsor Christmas Fair sells tickets, with under-18s free. Weald & Downland's market is ticketed, with advance booking essential, and Guildford Cathedral Christmas Fair, the Hawk Conservancy Trust Christmas Market and Milestones Christmas Market also charge for entry. The Grand Winter Makers Fair in Hove is free to enter, Farnham Maltings Christmas Fair charges for entry, with under-18s free, and no entry charge has been published for Folkestone Festive Marketplace.

At many, yes, and free. Ascot Christmas Fair, the South of England Winter Fair and the Hawk Conservancy Trust have free parking, Chiddingstone Castle makes no parking charge on the day of its fair, and Weald & Downland runs a free park-and-ride from Goodwood Racecourse. Winchester Cathedral has no parking within the Close and advises coming by train or Park and Ride, and in Rochester, where parking in the centre is limited, the council encourages public transport. The Grand Winter Makers Fair has no parking on site. Farnham Maltings charges for parking every day, though Blue Badge holders park free. Windsor Christmas Fair offers free parking on site, and the Godalming festival has free parking at Godalming College while spaces last. Folkestone's Harbour Arm car park charges standard tariffs, and Maidstone Museum has Fremlin Walk's pay and display car park opposite.

Yes, several. Winchester Cathedral Christmas Market stays open until 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays, and Rochester Christmas Market until 9pm on Fridays and Saturdays. The Hawk Conservancy Trust Christmas Market opens from 3.30pm to 7.30pm on its Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and Milestones Christmas Market stays open until 7pm on its Saturday. Farnham Maltings Christmas Fair stays open until 9pm on its Wednesday, and Reading's Christmas Market until 8pm from Monday to Saturday.

It varies from market to market. Winchester Cathedral says the grounds and buildings within the inner close have stairless access, except the Dean Garnier Garden. Milestones Museum has lifts and accessible toilets, though its Victorian and Edwardian streets have cobbles and tramlines, and a map of a route that avoids most of the cobbles is available. The South of England Showground has paved roads and ramps into all its buildings, and at Chiddingstone Castle the first floor is reached by stairs only. Farnham Maltings has its main entrance, Box Office and riverside cafe on the ground floor, with its Great Hall and other rooms reached by stairs or lift. The Grand Winter Makers Fair has not published access details. Maidstone Museum's ground floor is fully accessible, with lifts to the top-floor stalls, and ramps and slopes reach most of Folkestone's Harbour Arm. Godalming, Reading, Windsor and Petersfield have not confirmed access details.