No trains at Charing Cross or Cannon Street on 27 and 28 December or 1 to 3 January. The Bexleyheath line goes over to buses on 27 and 28 December.

Dartford passengers will have no trains to Charing Cross, Waterloo East or Cannon Street on five days over Christmas and New Year. Engineering work between Charing Cross and New Cross shuts all three stations on Sunday 27 and Monday 28 December, and again on Friday 1, Saturday 2 and Sunday 3 January.

Southeastern’s plan for 2026/27 is now on National Rail’s Southeastern bank holiday page. Southeastern’s own Christmas page still showed last year’s arrangements when we checked this morning.

The quick answer

  • Christmas Day, Friday 25 December: no trains.
  • Sunday 27 and Monday 28 December: no trains at Charing Cross, Waterloo East or Cannon Street. Buses replace every train on the Bexleyheath line. No trains from Cannon Street to Dartford via Woolwich.
  • Friday 1 to Sunday 3 January: the three London stations are shut again, but Victoria to Gravesend via Bexleyheath runs normally.
  • Every one of the five days: the Sidcup line runs only between Sidcup and Dartford.
  • Christmas Eve and Boxing Day: not yet published.

Sunday 27 and Monday 28 December

These are the hardest two days for Dartford. National Rail says no services will run from Charing Cross, Waterloo East or Cannon Street. A limited service runs to and from London Bridge, and some trains are diverted to Victoria. Lewisham station is closed.

On the lines into Dartford:

  • Bexleyheath line: buses replace all trains. Replacement buses run between Greenwich and Dartford via Bexleyheath
  • Woolwich line: trains between Cannon Street and Dartford via Woolwich do not run. The Cannon Street to Slade Green trains via Greenwich start from London Bridge instead and are extended to Gravesend, which takes them on through Dartford
  • Sidcup line: trains run only between Sidcup and Dartford, with replacement buses between Greenwich and Sidcup

The Underground can be used at no extra cost between Victoria, Charing Cross, Embankment, Waterloo, Southwark, London Bridge, Cannon Street, Blackfriars and Elephant and Castle. The DLR is free between Lewisham and Greenwich.

Monday 28 December is a bank holiday, the substitute day for Boxing Day (GOV.UK).

Friday 1 to Sunday 3 January

Charing Cross, Waterloo East and Cannon Street close again for all three days. Most services are diverted to Victoria, with a limited service at London Bridge. This time the Bexleyheath line stays open, though not to the usual terminals:

  • Bexleyheath line: no trains between Cannon Street and Slade Green via Bexleyheath, or between Charing Cross and Dartford. Victoria to Gravesend via Bexleyheath runs normally, calling at Dartford
  • Woolwich line: the Cannon Street to Slade Green trains via Greenwich run from London Bridge and are extended to Dartford
  • Sidcup line: trains run only between Sidcup and Dartford, with replacement buses between Greenwich and Sidcup

For most Dartford passengers heading into London in the New Year, that makes Victoria the station to aim for.

The other days

  • Tuesday 29 and Wednesday 30 December: until 05:35, trains from Charing Cross start from London Bridge because of overnight work
  • Thursday 31 December: the 05:13 London Bridge to Dartford via Greenwich runs via Lewisham instead
  • Monday 4 January: the 23:50 St Pancras to Faversham is replaced by buses from Ebbsfleet International

Thameslink, which runs from Dartford to London Bridge, Blackfriars and St Pancras, has published its own plan on National Rail’s Thameslink bank holiday page:

  • no Thameslink trains on Christmas Day or Saturday 26 December
  • an “amended and reduced service” on all routes from Monday 28 December to New Year’s Day
  • Saturday 2 January: the 04:06 Gillingham to Dartford starts from Gravesend, with a bus from Gillingham to connect
  • Sunday 3 January, early hours: the 01:24 Dartford to Gillingham runs only from Strood, with a bus from Dartford to Strood to connect

Christmas Eve and Boxing Day

National Rail still lists Southeastern’s Christmas Eve and Saturday 26 December as “Information will be published when available.” Last year Southeastern ran a Saturday timetable on Christmas Eve and no trains after about 22:00, and ran nothing on Boxing Day. Last year’s last trains to Dartford are on our Christmas trains page.

What it means for you

  • Travelling on 27 or 28 December? Allow for a bus on the Bexleyheath line, and for London Bridge or Victoria rather than Charing Cross or Cannon Street.
  • Going back to work on Friday 1 or Monday 4 January? On 1 to 3 January the Victoria trains via Bexleyheath are the simplest route. Normal service returns to the London stations on 4 January, apart from the late-night change above.
  • Booking a Christmas show or a New Year’s Day outing in town? Check the journey on the day. Plans can still change before December.

Our Christmas trains page will carry Christmas Eve last trains when they are published. Everyday times are on our Dartford train times to London page, and this week’s road and rail closures are on our roadworks and travel page.