No trains run on Christmas Day and most run none on Boxing Day. Last year's last train to Dartford left Cannon Street at 21.45. The 2026 plan is due soon.
Southeastern has not yet published its Christmas and New Year 2026/27 timetable for the Dartford lines. What is already confirmed is the shape of the holiday: no trains at all on Christmas Day, almost none on Boxing Day, and an early finish on Christmas Eve. Last year’s plan, still on Southeastern’s site, shows what to expect, including the New Year engineering work that put buses on the Dartford lines for three days.
The quick answer
- No trains run on Christmas Day, Friday 25 December 2026, and on Boxing Day, Saturday 26 December, “most train operators will have no service” (National Rail).
- Last Christmas Eve, the last direct train to Dartford left London Cannon Street at 21.45, Victoria at 21.33 and Charing Cross at 21.20, and Southeastern said no trains would run after about 22:00 (Southeastern last trains, Christmas Eve 2025).
- The 2026/27 plans are due from October. National Rail says operators’ details “will start being added to the pages from the beginning of October onwards”.
What is confirmed for this Christmas
National Rail’s page for Christmas and New Year 2026/27 carries two firm facts: there will be no National Rail services on Christmas Day “as usual”, and on Saturday 26 December most operators will run no service, with limited services from a small number still to be confirmed. Southeastern, which runs the Dartford lines, is on its list of companies whose festive pages will follow, as is Thameslink.
The bank holidays are Friday 25 December, Monday 28 December (the substitute for Boxing Day) and Friday 1 January 2027 (GOV.UK).
Last year’s Southeastern plan, as a guide
These are not this year’s arrangements. They are the 2025/26 plan, which is still on Southeastern’s Christmas and New Year services page, and they show the pattern Southeastern follows. Network Rail’s big London works move from year to year, so the station closures will not repeat exactly.
| Date (2025/26) | What ran |
|---|---|
| Mon 22 and Tue 23 December | Saturday timetable, with extra trains on some routes |
| Wed 24 December, Christmas Eve | Saturday timetable, no trains after about 22:00 |
| Thu 25 and Fri 26 December | No Southeastern trains |
| Sat 27 to Wed 31 December | No Southeastern trains at London Victoria, services diverted to Cannon Street; other routes open |
| Wed 31 December | Extra trains after midnight from Charing Cross, Cannon Street and London Bridge; Waterloo East closed from 23:45 |
| Thu 1 January | Charing Cross, Cannon Street and Waterloo East closed; Sunday service, with buses replacing trains on "Greenwich & Dartford via New Cross and Sidcup" |
| Fri 2 and Sat 3 January | Charing Cross and Waterloo East closed; buses replacing trains on "Greenwich and Dartford via New Cross and Sidcup" |
| Sun 4 January | Buses replacing trains between Dartford and Gillingham, and between Ebbsfleet and Strood |
Southeastern also made Off-Peak fares valid all day on 29, 30 and 31 December, except Travelcards and journeys wholly within the London Travelcard area.
What it means for you: if you are travelling to or from Dartford in the first days of January, expect rail replacement buses on at least one of the Dartford lines. Check the 2026/27 plan before you book anything that depends on a train.
Last trains on Christmas Eve 2025, by station
Southeastern published a table of last direct trains from its London terminals on Christmas Eve. These are the Dartford borough stations and the stations nearest to it.
| To | From Charing Cross | From Cannon Street | From Victoria | From St Pancras |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dartford | 21.20 | 21.45 | 21.33 | None |
| Crayford | 21.20 | None | None | None |
| Slade Green | None | 21.32 | None | None |
| Stone Crossing | 20.50 | None | None | None |
| Greenhithe (for Bluewater) | 20.50 | None | 20.33 | None |
| Swanscombe | 20.50 | None | None | None |
| Ebbsfleet International | None | None | None | 21.20 |
| Longfield | None | None | 21.10 | None |
| Farningham Road | None | None | 20.42 | None |
Charing Cross trains call at Waterloo East three minutes later and London Bridge nine minutes later; Cannon Street trains call at London Bridge about four minutes later. “None” means no direct train was listed; Southeastern notes that other journeys may be possible by changing trains or using another operator. Everyday journey times are on our Dartford train times to London page.
Parking in Dartford over Christmas
Dartford Borough Council has not announced any Christmas parking offer for 2026. Two things are already known:
- Council car parks do not charge on Sundays, because every charging window runs Monday to Saturday or Monday to Friday. Full prices and free spots are on our parking in Dartford page.
- The council has made festive market days free before. In December 2022 it made the Acacia and Mansion House car parks free on the Thursday and Saturday Christmas market days (Dartford Borough Council, 19 December 2022). That is a precedent, not a promise for this year.
What is still to be confirmed
- Southeastern’s 2026/27 Christmas timetable and engineering work, including any bus replacement on the Dartford lines. National Rail says details start appearing from October.
- Christmas Eve 2026 last trains, which Southeastern publishes as a separate table.
- Any council Christmas parking offer.
We will update this page as each is published. For the rest of the fortnight: Christmas bin collections, school term dates and roadworks and travel.
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