No trains on Christmas Day and almost none on Boxing Day. Last year's Thameslink pattern, Metrobus holiday service, and the Gatwick closure on 10 January.

Mid Sussex Christmas trains stop altogether on Christmas Day: nothing runs from Haywards Heath, Burgess Hill, Hassocks or East Grinstead, and on Boxing Day only a very limited service from a few operators. National Rail’s holiday period runs from Thursday 24 December 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027. Southern and Thameslink have not yet published their 2026 festive timetables or Christmas engineering works.

The quick answer

  • Christmas Day, Friday 25 December: no trains anywhere on National Rail.
  • Christmas Eve: expect early last trains. Last year Thameslink ran fewer trains after about 5pm, with last trains reaching their destinations by around 9pm.
  • Sunday 10 January 2027: no trains between Gatwick Airport and Purley or East Croydon, cutting the main line north from Haywards Heath, Burgess Hill and Hassocks.

What National Rail has confirmed for 2026/27

National Rail’s Christmas guide already covers this year. It says the holiday period runs from Thursday 24 December 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027 inclusive, that on Friday 25 December “there will be no National Rail services on Christmas Day as usual”, and that on Saturday 26 December “most train operators will have no service - however, there will be a very limited train service operated by a small number of train operators (details to be confirmed)”. It adds that full details of major works “will be published here when available.” (National Rail, Christmas and New Year 2026/27)

Thameslink runs the Bedford and Cambridge to Brighton trains through Haywards Heath, Burgess Hill and Hassocks, and the Three Bridges trains. Its 2025 festive page, last updated on 8 December 2025, is the best guide to the shape of this year. These are 2025 arrangements, not 2026 ones.

Day (2025) What Thameslink ran
Mon 22 and Tue 23 December A Saturday service with some extra peak trains
Wed 24 December, Christmas Eve A Saturday service until about 5pm, then fewer trains, with last trains at their destinations by around 9pm
Thu 25 December No trains
Fri 26 December No Thameslink trains. A very limited Southern service ran on some routes between London, Gatwick Airport and Brighton
Mon 29 to Wed 31 December A Saturday service with some extra peak trains
Wed 31 December London Blackfriars exit only from 8.30pm, no trains calling after 11.30pm, resuming from 2am
Thu 1 and Fri 2 January An amended service
Mon 5 January Normal service

Source: Thameslink, Festive period 2025. Last December Thameslink also had no trains to or from London Bridge on the Sunday before Christmas, with Brighton trains diverted between Blackfriars and East Croydon. Engineering on that scale is typical of the Christmas fortnight, so check again once the 2026 page appears.

Brighton Main Line closures already announced

Southern’s page of major Brighton Main Line closures lists these dates after the Christmas period:

  • Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 October 2026: no trains between Brighton, Hove or Lewes and Three Bridges via Haywards Heath. Replacement buses run between Three Bridges and Lewes calling at Haywards Heath, and a diverted Brighton to Victoria service runs via Horsham.
  • Sunday 10 January 2027: no trains between Gatwick Airport and Purley or East Croydon. Southern says more detail will follow closer to the time. East Grinstead’s trains run via Oxted, not Gatwick, and Southern has not said whether they are affected.
  • Saturday 13 to Sunday 21 February 2027: a nine-day closure between Three Bridges and Lewes, Brighton and Hove via Haywards Heath, timed for the February half term.

(Southern, Brighton Main Line engineering work)

Southern’s day-by-day planned works calendar currently runs to 13 December 2026, so the Christmas fortnight will be added in the coming weeks. Journey planners are generally updated about 12 weeks ahead, Southern says, which puts Christmas into them from early October. Our train times to London page has the normal service.

Buses: last year’s Metrobus holiday service

Metrobus runs most of the district’s buses. Its Christmas and New Year 2025 page shows what to expect. These are 2025 arrangements.

  • Christmas Eve: a Monday to Friday school holiday service.
  • Christmas Day: special services on routes 10, 100 (Crawley to Redhill), 200 and 400 only. None of the Mid Sussex town routes ran.
  • Boxing Day: special services on routes 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 20, 100 and 200 only.
  • 29 to 31 December: a Saturday service, with routes 271 and 272 on their school holiday timetable.
  • New Year’s Day: a Sunday service.
  • 2 January: a normal Monday to Friday school holiday service.

(Metrobus, Christmas and New Year holiday bus services)

Parking

Mid Sussex District Council has not announced any Christmas parking offers for 2026. Its pay and display car parks charge from 8am to 6pm Monday to Saturday and 9am to 5pm on Sundays and bank holidays. Charges, car parks and permits are on our parking in Mid Sussex page, and any road closures for the Christmas events will be on our roadworks and travel page. (Mid Sussex District Council, Parking)

What is still to be confirmed

  • Southern and Thameslink festive timetables and Christmas engineering works. Thameslink’s 2025 page was updated on 8 December; we expect the 2026 versions in November or early December.
  • Which trains run on Boxing Day. National Rail says details are to be confirmed.
  • Metrobus Christmas 2026 timetables.
  • Any Christmas parking offers from the district or town councils.

Other winter pages: Christmas bin collections, tip opening times and school term dates.

Sources