Clapham Christmas Trains 2026: Waterloo Stays Open 27 Dec

Christmas 2026 falls on a Friday, and that moves more than the date. There are no trains and no Tube on Christmas Day, Friday 25 December. Boxing Day is a Saturday, so the bank holiday moves to Monday 28 December, and National Rail says most operators will run no trains at all on Saturday 26 December. The detail for Clapham’s own lines is starting to arrive. This page sets out what is confirmed, what happened last year, and when the rest arrives.

Updated 23 October: South Western Railway’s 2026/27 Christmas timetable is now on National Rail. There are no SWR trains on 25 or 26 December, and the last train from Waterloo on Christmas Eve leaves around 10pm. Unlike last Christmas, the line between Waterloo and Clapham Junction is not shut from 27 December, although Queenstown Road station closes on 27 and 28 December. Full detail is in the Clapham Junction section below.

The quick answer

• Christmas Day, Friday 25 December: no National Rail trains, and last year no Tube or Overground either. Buses stopped too. Santander Cycles and taxis kept running.
• Saturday 26 December: “most train operators will have no service”, National Rail says, with a very limited service from a few. Last year the Tube ran a Sunday service on Boxing Day.
• Christmas Eve, Thursday 24 December: trains finish early. South Western Railway’s last train from Waterloo leaves around 10pm.
• Sunday 27 and Monday 28 December: SWR runs from Waterloo, with engineering changes. Queenstown Road is closed both days, and Earlsfield on 28 December.

What National Rail has confirmed for 2026/27

National Rail’s Christmas travel page treats Thursday 24 December 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027 as the festive period. So far it says:

The guide to last trains out of London is due “late November / early December”, and the New Year’s Day guide in early December. South Western Railway’s own Christmas engineering work is set out below.

The Tube and Overground: last year’s pattern

Clapham North, Clapham Common and Clapham South are on the Northern line, and Clapham High Street and Wandsworth Road are on the London Overground. TfL has not published its 2026 Christmas plans. Last year it did so on 2 December 2025, and the pattern was:

• Christmas Eve: services ran but “will finish early”.
• Christmas Day: “no service on the majority of public transport”, including the Tube and buses. Santander Cycles, rental e-scooters, taxis and Dial-a-Ride kept running.
• Boxing Day: “A Sunday service will operate on the London Underground, London Buses and on London Trams.” Some parts of the network, including the Elizabeth line, did not run.
• New Year’s Eve: services ran all night, with central stations liable to close at short notice to prevent overcrowding.

If TfL keeps that pattern, the Northern line would be running on Saturday 26 December 2026 when most National Rail trains are not. That is not confirmed until TfL publishes.

Clapham Junction: South Western Railway’s 2026/27 plan

Clapham Junction is the station most of SW4 uses for trains towards Surrey and the south west. SWR’s Christmas and New Year detail is now on National Rail’s SWR holiday page:

The engineering changes on 27 and 28 December that matter most from Clapham:

• Waterloo to Kingston loop trains via Richmond and Wimbledon still run from Waterloo.
• Trains to Richmond via Hounslow stop running after 12:00 on both days.
• Dorking trains do not run. SWR tickets are valid on Southern between Clapham Junction or Epsom and Dorking.
• Chessington South and Guildford via Epsom trains start at Wimbledon, so change there.
• Main-line trains to Portsmouth, Poole and Salisbury via Eastleigh start at Basingstoke.

What happened last year, for comparison. SWR closed all lines between Waterloo and Clapham Junction on 27 and 28 December 2025, so every train started and finished at Clapham Junction. The Windsor lines still terminated there until 4 January. This year’s list for 27 and 28 December has trains running from Waterloo on several routes, so that closure is not repeated.

Southern and Overground services through Clapham Junction are not covered by the SWR page; check National Rail’s journey planner before you travel.

Driving and parking

Lambeth treats Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day as it does any bank holiday. Pay-for-parking bays and resident and business permit bays are free, but yellow lines, disabled bays and bus lanes are still enforced, and the council runs a removal service on bank holidays (Lambeth). With the bank holiday on Monday 28 December this year, check which days the signs count. There is more on the three council car parks and the free bays in our parking in Clapham page.

Last year TfL suspended the Congestion Charge from 25 December to 1 January, and the ULEZ applied every day except Christmas Day. Our roadworks and travel page has the current charges and what is closed on the roads now.

Still to be confirmed

• Southern: its 2026/27 Christmas detail for Clapham Junction and Wandsworth Common lines.
• Early December: TfL’s Christmas and New Year plans for the Northern line, Overground and buses; National Rail’s last trains and New Year’s Day guides.

This page will be updated as each lands.

More for Christmas in Clapham

• Clapham bin collection days, with the Christmas changes
• Lambeth school term dates: schools break up on 18 December
• Clapham Christmas lights switch-on
• Clapham tube and train times