Kendal Christmas Trains and Buses: What Stops, and When

Nothing has yet been published for rail or bus services around Kendal over Christmas 2026. National Rail’s list of planned engineering works has no entries for Oxenholme, Kendal, Windermere, Lancaster or Carlisle between 20 December and early January. Christmas works tend to be announced in October, and last winter’s were large: the West Coast Main Line north of Oxenholme was shut for over two weeks. This page sets out what happened last year, which is the best guide until the 2026 plans appear, and will be updated when they do.

The quick answer

• No Northern trains on Christmas Day or Boxing Day. That was Northern’s rule for Christmas 2025, and it covers the Lakes Line through Kendal to Windermere. Christmas Eve services finished early.
• Last winter no trains ran between Oxenholme and Carlisle from 31 December to 15 January, and from 1 to 5 January main line trains did not call anywhere between Preston and Carlisle, including Oxenholme.
• 2026 plans are not out yet. Network Rail announced last year’s on 7 October 2025; we will update this page when this year’s arrive.

Trains: what happened at Christmas 2025

Northern (the Lakes Line, Oxenholme to Windermere via Kendal). Northern’s festive travel calendar for 2025 covered 22 December to 4 January. It said “services will end earlier than usual on Christmas Eve” and “there are no trains running on Christmas Day or Boxing Day” (Northern, 18 December 2025). Northern published that calendar only a week before Christmas, so expect the 2026 version in mid-December.

Avanti West Coast (the West Coast Main Line through Oxenholme). Network Rail’s announcement of 7 October 2025 set out a 22-day programme of work on the line between 24 December and 15 January (Network Rail media centre). Two parts hit Kendal directly:

• Preston signalling, 1 to 5 January 2026. “West Coast Main Line trains will divert at Wigan to Carlisle and will not call at stations between Preston and Carlisle.” Oxenholme is one of those stations. Rail replacement buses ran between Preston, Lancaster and Wigan.
• The Clifton bridge renewal at Penrith, 31 December to 15 January. “No trains will run between Oxenholme and Carlisle with bus replacement on this section of the route.” Avanti ran a shuttle diverted over the Settle to Carlisle line.

So for most of the first fortnight of January 2026 there was no through train from Oxenholme to Scotland, and for five days no main line train called at Oxenholme at all.

Trains: Christmas 2026

We checked National Rail’s planned engineering works on 25 September 2026. Its published list covers Avanti works in the Birmingham area and Preston to Manchester and Liverpool in November and December, and nothing on the line through Oxenholme, Kendal or Windermere over Christmas. Network Rail’s own Christmas and New Year engineering works page had not added 2026 plans for the North West.

For the London trains and the usual weekday pattern, see Kendal train times to London.

Buses

Stagecoach runs the Kendal buses, including the 555 to Lancaster and Keswick and the 599 between Kendal, Bowness, Ambleside and Grasmere. We could not find its Kendal festive timetable for Christmas 2025 online. The 2024/25 one, the most recent we can read, set the pattern (Stagecoach Kendal Christmas and New Year timetable 2024/25, PDF):

On Christmas Eve 2024 the last 555 from Kendal to Lancaster left at 16:15, the last from Kendal to Keswick at 15:31 and the last from Kendal to Windermere at 17:40. Times for 2026 will differ; use them only as a sign of how early the last buses go.

Christmas parking in Kendal

For Christmas 2025 Westmorland and Furness Council made its pay and display car parks free after 2pm every Thursday in December. In Kendal that covered Kendal Parish Church, Peppercorn Lane, Highgate Bowman, Dowker Lane, Library Road, South Lakeland House, Blackhall Road and Sandes Avenue, along with the council car parks in Windermere, Bowness, Ambleside, Grasmere, Kirkby Lonsdale and Grange (council news, 19 November 2025). The council announced it on 19 November, so any 2026 offer is likely to appear in mid to late November. Everyday charges are on our parking in Kendal page, and road closures are on Kendal roadworks and travel.

Still to be confirmed

• Network Rail’s Christmas 2026 engineering plans for the West Coast Main Line: expected in October.
• Northern’s festive calendar and Christmas Eve last trains: expected in December.
• Stagecoach’s Kendal festive timetable: expected in late November or December.
• The council’s 2026 Christmas parking offer: expected in November.

Bin collections also move over Christmas; see Kendal bin collection days.