No trains from Harlow on Christmas Day or Boxing Day, early finishes on Christmas Eve, and last year's Liverpool Street closure. The 2026 plan is due in October.
There will be no trains from Harlow Town or Harlow Mill on Christmas Day, and very few anywhere on Saturday 26 December. What happens between Christmas and New Year is the bigger question, and the answer for 2026 is not out yet.
Last year it was drastic. London Liverpool Street shut for eight days, and every Greater Anglia train on the West Anglia line ran to and from Stratford instead.
The quick answer
- No trains on Friday 25 December, and most operators run nothing on Saturday 26 December.
- Trains finish early on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. Last-train times are published in late November or early December.
- Greater Anglia’s Christmas 2026 plan is not published yet. National Rail says operators’ details go up from the beginning of October.
What National Rail has confirmed for 2026/27
National Rail’s Christmas and New Year 2026/27 page covers Thursday 24 December 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027. It says:
| Date | What National Rail says |
|---|---|
| Thursday 24 December | Trains finish earlier than normal on many routes |
| Friday 25 December | No National Rail services |
| Saturday 26 December | Most operators run nothing; a very limited service from a few, details to be confirmed |
| Monday 28 December | The Boxing Day bank holiday falls here this year; services to be confirmed |
| Thursday 31 December | Earlier finishes on some routes |
| Friday 1 January | Special late services on some London routes after midnight |
It also says there will be “lots of planned essential engineering works” over the period, with full details of the major works to follow. The only one it names so far is at Birmingham New Street, which does not affect Harlow.
What happened last Christmas
Network Rail announced its 2025 Anglia Christmas works on 20 October 2025. For Harlow the key points were:
- Liverpool Street closed from Christmas Day to Thursday 1 January, eight days, for work on the station roof and drainage. It reopened to trains on Friday 2 January 2026.
- From Saturday 27 December, West Anglia trains ran to and from Stratford, as did Stansted Express.
- Stansted Express ran a revised service to and from Tottenham Hale on Boxing Day. No rail replacement buses ran anywhere on 25 or 26 December.
- North of Harlow, there were no trains between Stansted Mountfitchet and Cambridge from 27 December to 4 January, for re-signalling, with replacement buses.
The roof renewal at Liverpool Street is a multi-year programme, so a Christmas closure there again would not be a surprise. It has not been announced.
Buses
Arriva’s bank holiday page lists Herts and Essex bank holidays as Sunday services, but it had not yet added the Christmas dates on 25 September. We found no published Christmas or New Year bus times for Harlow yet.
Driving and parking
Council car parks in Harlow give the first hour free at 13 of 14 sites; tariffs are on our parking in Harlow page. Last year’s council Christmas information page said nothing about Christmas parking concessions, and none has been announced for 2026. Live road closures are on our Harlow roadworks page.
What is still to be confirmed
- Greater Anglia’s Christmas and New Year timetable, including West Anglia engineering works (National Rail says from early October).
- Whether Liverpool Street closes again (last year’s was announced on 20 October).
- Christmas Eve last trains from Liverpool Street to Harlow (late November or early December).
- Arriva’s Christmas and New Year bus times.
Normal journey times and fares are on our Harlow train times to London page.
Have your say