No trains run through Lewes on Christmas Day, and Boxing Day is a Saturday with the bank holiday on Monday 28 December. The 28 bus ran to Lewes on 25 Dec 2025.
No trains will run to or from Lewes, Seaford or Newhaven on Christmas Day, Friday 25 December 2026, and most train companies run nothing on Saturday 26 December either. That part is fixed. What Southern will run over the rest of the holiday, and whether any Sussex lines close for engineering work, has not been published yet: National Rail says train company details start going up from the beginning of October.
The quick answer
- Christmas Day (Fri 25 Dec): no trains anywhere. Boxing Day (Sat 26 Dec): most operators run no service.
- The Boxing Day bank holiday is Monday 28 December this year. Southern’s service for that day is not yet published.
- Last year the Regency 28 bus ran between Brighton and Lewes on Christmas Day, the first time it had. The 2026 bus plans are expected in late November.
What National Rail has confirmed
National Rail’s Christmas and New Year 2026/27 travel summary, checked on 25 September 2026, covers Thursday 24 December 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027:
| Day | What National Rail says |
|---|---|
| Thursday 24 December | Services on many routes finish earlier than normal. A guide to last trains from London is due late November or early December. |
| Friday 25 December | No National Rail services. |
| Saturday 26 December | Most operators run no service; a very limited service from a small number of operators, details to be confirmed. |
| Monday 28 December | The Boxing Day bank holiday, on a substitute day. Services to be confirmed. |
| Thursday 31 December | Services on some routes finish earlier than normal. |
| Friday 1 January 2027 | Some London area routes run special services after midnight. Guide due early December. |
It warns of “lots of planned essential engineering works” over the period and says some companies will trim their timetables to match lower demand. The only major closure it names so far is at Birmingham New Street.
Southern’s own Christmas page on National Rail lists every day from 24 December to 4 January. Christmas Day reads “No trains will operate”. Every other day still reads “Information will be published when available”.
What happened on the Lewes lines last year
Network Rail’s reminder for Christmas 2025/26 said that, as usual, no trains ran on Christmas Day and “only a limited service” ran on Boxing Day on some Southern routes. The works it listed were in south London and on the East Grinstead and Uckfield lines: South Bermondsey station shut from 27 December to 4 January, buses replaced Southern trains between London Bridge and Tulse Hill from 1 to 4 January, and on Sunday 4 January buses replaced trains between Oxted and Uckfield and between Purley and East Grinstead.
Nothing on the Lewes, Seaford or Brighton lines was on that list. Lewes’s direct London trains run to Victoria, so the London Bridge closures only touched people changing trains. The normal timetable, fares and the Seaford branch are on our Lewes train times to London page.
Buses over Christmas
Brighton & Hove Buses runs the Regency 28 (Brighton to Lewes, Ringmer and Eastbourne), the 29 (Brighton to Lewes, Uckfield and Tunbridge Wells), the Coaster 12 along the coast through Peacehaven, Newhaven and Seaford, and the 14 to Peacehaven and Newhaven. Its Christmas 2025 arrangements were published on Monday 24 November 2025, and are the best guide to this year:
- Christmas Eve ran a Saturday service finishing from about 10pm. The last 28 from Churchill Square to Malling (Church Lane) left at 9.15pm, and the last through to Eastbourne at 8.15pm. The last 29 from Churchill Square to Uckfield left at 8.45pm.
- On the coast, the last 12 from Brighton Station left at 8.55pm to Eastbourne, 9.15pm to Chyngton Gardens in Seaford and 9.40pm to Denton Corner in Newhaven. The last 14 from Brighton Station to Newhaven Station left at 9.35pm.
- Christmas Day had special services on routes 1, 5B, 7, 12, 28 and 49. The 28 ran between Brighton and Lewes, the company said for the first time.
- Boxing Day had a special timetable on more than 20 routes, including the 12, 14 and the 28/29B.
- New Year’s Eve was a Saturday service with extra night journeys, including the N12 along the coast.
- New Year’s Day was a Sunday service.
Parking over Christmas
- On-street parking (East Sussex County Council): the county’s Lewes on-street parking page says charges do not apply on bank holidays. That makes Christmas Day, Monday 28 December and New Year’s Day free on-street. Zone A is also free on Saturdays, including Boxing Day.
- District council car parks: the council’s 2026 charges sheet says they operate Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm, so Sunday 27 December and Sunday 3 January are free. It says nothing about bank holidays, so do not assume Christmas Day or 28 December is free in the car parks. No Christmas parking offer has been announced for 2026.
Car park prices and zones are on our parking in Lewes page.
Still to be confirmed
- Southern’s Christmas timetable and any Sussex engineering works: National Rail says operator details go up from early October.
- Last trains from London on Christmas Eve: late November or early December.
- Brighton & Hove Buses’ 2026 Christmas times, including whether the 28 runs to Lewes on Christmas Day again: expected late November.
For the rest of the holiday, see Lewes bin collections, including Christmas 2026, Lewes term dates and roadworks and travel.
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