No trains run from Kingston on Christmas Day. SWR has not published its 2026 plan; last year Christmas Eve trains ended before 10pm and Waterloo shut two days.
There will be no trains from any Kingston borough station on Christmas Day, Friday 25 December 2026. That is the one fixed point so far: National Rail’s Christmas and New Year 2026/27 page says there will be no National Rail services at all that day. South Western Railway, which runs every train in the borough, has not yet published its 2026 Christmas timetable or engineering works.
The quick answer
- Christmas Day, Friday 25 December: no trains anywhere on the network.
- Boxing Day, Saturday 26 December: National Rail says most operators will run no service. Last year SWR ran none.
- Engineering works for 2026 are not announced yet. Last Christmas, Waterloo to Clapham Junction closed completely on 27 and 28 December.
What is confirmed for 2026
National Rail’s festive page covers Thursday 24 December 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027. So far it confirms:
- no National Rail services on Friday 25 December
- no service from most train companies on Saturday 26 December, with a small number of operators running limited trains, details to follow
- the Boxing Day bank holiday falls on Monday 28 December, and the services that will run that day are still to be confirmed
- train company details will be added “from the beginning of October onwards”
- a guide to last trains from London will follow in late November or early December, and a New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day guide in early December
Nothing is listed yet for South Western Railway or Waterloo.
Last Christmas, as a guide
SWR’s Christmas and New Year page still shows the 2025/26 arrangements. These are not this year’s plans, but they show how the Kingston lines were treated. The big item was major engineering work between London Waterloo and Clapham Junction from Saturday 27 December 2025 to Sunday 4 January 2026, which SWR also set out in a 15 December 2025 news release.
Christmas Eve 2025: last trains from Waterloo
Services “end before 2200”. These were SWR’s published last departures from Waterloo on the lines serving the borough:
| Route | Last departure |
|---|---|
| Waterloo via Richmond (the Kingston loop) | 21:00 |
| Shepperton | 21:12 |
| Chessington South | 21:17 |
| Hampton Court | 21:36 |
| Woking (stopping) | 21:20 |
| Guildford via Cobham | 21:03 |
27 December 2025 to 2 January 2026: how each line ran
| Date | Chessington South | Hampton Court | Shepperton | Via Richmond (Kingston) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 27 Dec | Hourly, from Wimbledon | 2 an hour, from Surbiton | Hourly | 3 an hour, Clapham Junction to Kingston via Richmond only |
| Sun 28 Dec | 2 an hour, from Wimbledon | 2 an hour, from Surbiton | Hourly, to Clapham Junction | 3 an hour, Clapham Junction to Kingston via Richmond only |
| Mon 29 and Tue 30 Dec | Hourly, from Wimbledon | 2 an hour, from Surbiton | 2 an hour, to Waterloo and Wimbledon | 2 an hour, Clapham Junction to Kingston via Richmond only |
| Wed 31 Dec | 2 an hour, to Waterloo | 2 an hour, to Waterloo | 2 an hour, to Waterloo | 2 an hour, to Clapham Junction |
| Thu 1 Jan | 2 an hour, from Wimbledon | 2 an hour, from Surbiton | Hourly, to Waterloo | 2 an hour, Clapham Junction to Kingston via Richmond only |
| Fri 2 Jan | 2 an hour, to Waterloo | 2 an hour, to Waterloo | 2 an hour, to Waterloo | 2 an hour, Clapham Junction to Kingston via Richmond only |
In plain terms: on 27 and 28 December nothing ran into Waterloo, the Hampton Court shuttle only ran as far as Surbiton, and Chessington trains turned back at Wimbledon on most days. From 29 December to 2 January the Wimbledon lines were back into Waterloo on a revised timetable, but trains round the Kingston loop via Richmond still started and ended at Clapham Junction.
New Year’s Eve 2025
SWR added trains after midnight from Waterloo. Two of them ran via Kingston: the 03:55 and 04:25 to Twickenham via Kingston. Others ran to Twickenham via Wimbledon at 01:20, 02:25 and 02:55.
Which station is on which line
Surbiton is on the main line. Kingston and Norbiton are on the Kingston loop. Tolworth and the two Chessington stations are on the Chessington branch. Our Kingston train times to London page explains each line, with journey times and fares.
Still to be confirmed, and when
- SWR’s 2026 Christmas plan and any engineering closures. National Rail says operator details are added from the start of October; last year SWR’s news release on the works came out on 15 December. We will check again on 12 October.
- Last trains on Christmas Eve 2026, expected in National Rail’s guide in late November or early December.
- Boxing Day and Monday 28 December services.
- Buses and council Christmas parking offers. Neither TfL nor the council has published anything for Christmas 2026 that we could find; we will add both when they do.
Related: Kingston roadworks and travel, parking in Kingston, Kingston Christmas bin collections and Kingston Christmas market.
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