Christmas markets in Wiltshire: Salisbury, Avebury and more
A practical guide to christmas markets in wiltshire for 2026: Salisbury, Avebury, Marlborough and village fairs, with dates, hours and routes.
Claudia Romero AlarcónJournalist
· 4 min read
Wiltshire is not a county of giant Christmas markets. If you come expecting a German-style village of 100 chalets, you will be disappointed. The christmas markets in wiltshire are a Salisbury city-centre market, a National Trust event at Avebury and a scattering of fairs in towns and on farms. Take them as that and they make a pleasant weekend, particularly if you pair them with a walk.
Salisbury is the main base and sits about an hour and a half by train from London Waterloo. For everything else, plan to drive.
Christmas on the Square, Salisbury
This is the headline event. According to a local travel guide it runs from 20 November to 31 December 2026 in Guildhall Square. A Swindon24 article gives 24 November to 18 December, but it is undated, so I would trust the longer run and check the council page before you book.
The city council lists hours of 11:00 to 22:00 daily. On Sundays there are also Festive Markets in the Market Place from 10:00 to 16:00. The late closing is what sets this apart from the other events in the county. You can spend the afternoon in the city and still have a market open when it gets dark.
The sources do not describe individual stalls, so I cannot say what you will find. Go for the atmosphere and the long hours rather than for a specific trader.
Grammar Christmas Fair, Salisbury
A free fair on Saturday 21 November from 10:00 to 14:00. It is short and local, so use it as a first stop in the morning before moving on to Guildhall Square for lunch. Do not plan a whole day around it.
Christmas Market, Avebury
The National Trust market at Avebury runs from 28 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, from 11:00 to 16:00. No booking is needed.
Avebury is a village inside a prehistoric stone circle, so a winter walk is built in. This is my favourite choice in the county for a quiet day, because the long run gives you freedom to pick a weekday. The only limit is daylight. The stalls close at 16:00, so arrive around midday if you want to walk before the light goes.
Marlborough Christmas Lights Switch-on and Market, Marlborough
The Christmas in Wiltshire 2026 guide lists this for Friday 27 November, on the High Street. One other listing says 8 November, so confirm before you go. It is a community evening, so arrive early if you want a place to stand.
Christmas Makers Market, Hartley Farm
Hartley Farm is in the Bradford on Avon area. The market is on Saturday 28 November from 10:00 to 15:00, with local makers, food and carols. It is a small, rural market and I would treat it as a pleasant Saturday outing, not a destination. Check whether Bradford on Avon suits your route, because there is no public transport detail in the sources.
Wiltshire and Bath Air Ambulance Christmas Market, Semington
A charity event on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November, 11:00 to 17:00. The proceeds support the air ambulance, so worth a stop if you are driving past. Semington is a village in the west of the county.
How to put a weekend together
Look at the calendar first. The weekend of 21 and 22 November is the busiest of the lot: the Grammar Christmas Fair in Salisbury, the air ambulance market at Semington and the start of Christmas on the Square. The weekend of 28 November adds Avebury and the Hartley Farm makers market. Marlborough’s switch-on is on the Friday evening before.
A neat plan for 27 and 28 November: Marlborough on the Friday evening, then Hartley Farm in the morning and Avebury in the afternoon on the Saturday. You will want a car for that. For a car-free trip, base yourself in Salisbury and visit Christmas on the Square instead.
If you have time left, Bath’s big market runs from 26 November to 13 December and is close to the western side of the county. It is not part of Wiltshire, but it is the obvious add-on.
Salisbury has the longest opening hours, and Avebury runs into January. Everything else is a single day or a single weekend.
What is missing
Several towns that readers often ask about, including Devizes, Corsham, Lacock, Chippenham and Swindon, had no 2026 dates that I could find, and Stourhead had nothing either. I have left them out rather than guess. If they publish dates later, they will be worth a look, but do not build a trip around them yet.
Food and drink
The sources I opened do not detail food or drink for these events, and I would rather say so than guess. For the Hartley Farm market the sources mention food and carols. For anything more specific, look at each organiser’s own page.
Christmas markets in Wiltshire: frequently asked questions
When does the main Salisbury market run in 2026?
It runs from 20 November to 31 December in Guildhall Square, open from 11:00 to 22:00 daily, according to the city council. Another article gives shorter dates, so check before you travel.
Do I need to book for Avebury?
No. The National Trust says no booking is needed.
How do I reach Salisbury without a car?
By train from London Waterloo, which takes about an hour and a half.
Which one should I pick if I only have one day?
Salisbury, because it is open every day until late and is easy to reach by rail. If you want fewer people, go to Avebury on a weekday.
Written by
Claudia Romero Alarcón
Journalist. Claudia Romero Alarcón is a travel journalist specialising in travel, culture and sustainable tourism. With more than a decade spent travelling the world and documenting stories on all…
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