No trains from Hemel Hempstead on Christmas Day, few or none on 26 December, and early finishes on Christmas Eve. What we know about 2026 so far.

There will be no trains at all on Christmas Day, and National Rail says most operators will run no service on Saturday 26 December either. On Christmas Eve trains on many routes finish earlier than normal. That is the national picture published so far for 2026 (National Rail). London Northwestern Railway (LNR), which runs every stopping train through Hemel Hempstead, Apsley, Kings Langley, Berkhamsted and Tring, now has its own 2026 Christmas page on National Rail, but so far it confirms only that no LNR trains run on Christmas Day; every other day from 24 December to 4 January says “information will be published when available” (National Rail, London Northwestern Railway).

The quick answer

  • Christmas Day, Friday 25 December: no trains anywhere in Britain.
  • Saturday 26 December: most operators run nothing. Last year LNR ran no trains on Boxing Day.
  • Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve: earlier last trains than usual. Times are not out yet.

Updated 6 October: LNR’s Christmas 2026 page is live and confirms no trains on Christmas Day; it has no times yet for any other day.

What National Rail has confirmed for 2026

National Rail’s festive guide covers Thursday 24 December 2026 to Monday 4 January 2027 and says (National Rail):

Date What National Rail says
Thu 24 Dec Services on many routes finish earlier than normal. London last-trains guide due late November or early December
Fri 25 Dec No National Rail services
Sat 26 Dec Most operators have no service; a very limited service by a small number of operators, details to be confirmed
Mon 28 Dec Boxing Day bank holiday is taken on this substitute day; which trains run is to be confirmed
Thu 31 Dec Services on some routes finish earlier than normal
Fri 1 Jan Some London routes run extra trains after midnight; guide due early December

Operators start adding their own Christmas details from the beginning of October. National Rail also warns of major engineering work at Birmingham New Street from Thursday 24 to Monday 28 December, which matters if you are going north on an LNR train that runs beyond Milton Keynes.

What happened last Christmas

LNR’s festive page for 2025 said (London Northwestern Railway):

  • No LNR services on Christmas Day or Boxing Day.
  • From 27 December to 2 January most trains ran, on an amended timetable.
  • New Year’s Eve ran to a reduced timetable with an earlier shutdown in the evening.
  • London Euston stayed reachable throughout.

The big job last year was north of here. Network Rail shut the line between Milton Keynes and Northampton or Rugby for eleven days, from the evening of 24 December to the morning of 5 January, for a £26m upgrade at Hanslope Junction (London Northwestern Railway, 6 November 2025). That notice came out on 6 November, so expect this year’s major works list around the same time.

Engineering work already booked before Christmas

National Rail’s planned works list already has these on the line through Dacorum (National Rail engineering works):

  • Saturday 7 November: no direct trains between Euston and Tring from 9.30am to the end of service, because of work in the Euston area. Use other trains on the route (National Rail). That is the night of the Berkhamsted and Tring fireworks.
  • Sunday 22 November: before 7.45am, buses replace trains between Euston and Milton Keynes or Northampton (National Rail). The same Sunday is Berkhamsted’s Festival of Light.
  • Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November: Paddington closes and Great Western trains use Euston, so most LNR trains between Euston and Tring or Milton Keynes leave Euston slightly earlier and arrive slightly later (National Rail). That weekend is the Tring Christmas Festival.

Nothing is listed yet for the days between Christmas and New Year.

Parking and buses

Dacorum has not announced any Christmas parking offer for 2026. Its town car parks charge from 8am to 6pm on every day of the week, Sundays included, so check the tariff before a shopping trip: parking in Hemel Hempstead has every council car park and price. Bus operators have not published festive timetables yet; this page will add them when they do.

Still to be confirmed, and when

  • Early October: LNR’s own Christmas and New Year page.
  • Early November: Network Rail’s list of major Christmas engineering works.
  • Late November or early December: Christmas Eve last trains from Euston.
  • Early December: the New Year’s Eve late-night services.

This page will be updated as each one lands.

Elsewhere on Hemel Hempstead Live

Sources