No trains on Christmas Day and almost none on Boxing Day. Last year the final Christmas Eve train to Weymouth left Waterloo at 7.35pm. What is known for 2026.
There will be no trains at Winchester on Christmas Day, Friday 25 December 2026, and almost certainly none on Boxing Day either. Those two facts are confirmed. South Western Railway has not yet published its Christmas 2026 timetable, so Christmas Eve last trains and any engineering work between Christmas and New Year are still to come.
The quick answer
- Christmas Day, Friday 25 December: no National Rail services anywhere, as every year.
- Boxing Day, Saturday 26 December: National Rail says most operators will run no service. SWR ran none on Boxing Day 2025.
- Christmas Eve: trains finish early. Last year the final Waterloo to Weymouth train, the main-line service through Winchester, left London at 7.35pm.
What is confirmed for 2026
National Rail’s Christmas travel page already covers Christmas 2026 and New Year 2027. It says:
- Thursday 24 December: services on many routes finish earlier than normal. Check the whole journey is possible, not just the first train.
- Friday 25 December: no National Rail services on Christmas Day, as usual.
- Saturday 26 December: most train operators will have no service. A few limited services are still being confirmed, none of them named as SWR.
- Monday 28 December: this is the substitute bank holiday for Boxing Day. Service details are to be confirmed.
- Thursday 31 December: services on some routes finish earlier than normal.
- Friday 1 January 2027: special late-night services on some London area routes after midnight.
The only engineering work National Rail names so far is a major closure at Birmingham New Street from 24 to 28 December. That does not touch the Winchester line, but it matters if you are travelling north via Reading and Birmingham.
What SWR did last Christmas
SWR’s own Christmas and New Year page still shows the 2025/26 arrangements. These are last year’s times, not this year’s. They show what to expect.
| Service | Last departure from Waterloo, 24 December 2025 |
|---|---|
| Weymouth | 19.35 |
| Portsmouth via Eastleigh | 20.09 |
SWR said its services “end before 2200” across the network that night. Other points from its 2025/26 page:
- 25 and 26 December 2025: no services on the SWR network at all.
- 27 December 2025 to 4 January 2026: major engineering work between Waterloo and Clapham Junction. On 27 and 28 December no SWR trains used Waterloo, and every service started and finished at Clapham Junction.
- New Year’s Eve 2025: extra trains ran from Waterloo after midnight, but only as far as Basingstoke, Guildford and Twickenham. None ran through to Winchester.
- Sunday 4 January 2026: separate work between Basingstoke and Winchester. Rail replacement buses ran between Woking and Winchester via Basingstoke.
Network Rail has used the Christmas shutdown for big Wessex route jobs before. Its Christmas and New Year engineering works page did not list any Wessex work for Christmas 2026 when we checked on 25 September.
Before Christmas: the November closures
SWR’s November 2026 engineering page already lists three pieces of work that reach Winchester:
- Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 November: the Basingstoke area is closed all weekend. On the Sunday, trains from Waterloo towards Poole and Portsmouth start from Winchester, and SWR tells London passengers to go via Guildford for replacement buses to Winchester.
- Monday 23 to Thursday 26 November: maintenance in the Winchester area means some late evening trains are cancelled or replaced by buses.
- Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November: the Eastleigh area is closed all weekend. Winchester to Southampton stopping trains do not run, buses run south of Winchester, and SWR adds extra trains between Waterloo and Winchester.
The rest of the autumn, weekend by weekend, is on our Winchester train times to London page.
Buses and park and ride
- Park and ride: the council says its park and ride buses run Monday to Saturday only, with no buses on Sundays or bank holidays (Winchester City Council). So there will be none on 25 and 28 December or 1 January. A day ticket is £3.50 for a car and up to six passengers.
- Extra Christmas market buses: in 2025 extra park and ride services ran from Wednesday 19 November to Tuesday 23 December, according to Visit Winchester. The 2026 festive timetable has not been published.
- Stagecoach: its 2025 festive timetable pages have been taken down and the 2026 ones are not up yet. Expect them in December.
For car parks and charges, see our parking in Winchester page. Current road closures are on our Winchester roadworks and travel page.
Still to be confirmed
- SWR’s Christmas 2026 timetable and any engineering work between 27 December and 3 January: usually published in November. This page will be updated.
- Christmas Eve 2026 last trains from Waterloo and from Winchester.
- Whether anything runs on Monday 28 December, the substitute Boxing Day.
- The 2026 festive park and ride timetable for the Christmas market.
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