Lichfield's Christmas lights go on in Market Square on Sunday 22 November, 5pm to 8pm. Burntwood has three switch-on nights after it, from 23 November.

Lichfield’s Christmas lights go on in Market Square on Sunday 22 November 2026, and Lichfield City Council’s own event listing puts the event from 5pm to 8pm. The district council’s 2026 events calendar carries the same date.

Looking for the Lichfield Christmas market in 2026? The main market day is the Lichfield Christmas Fayre on Sunday 15 November, 10am to 4pm, a week before the lights. Every market date, and the state of the Victorian market, is on our Lichfield Christmas markets page.

Burntwood then has three separate nights of its own in the following week, all published by Burntwood Town Council. Nothing in the district happens on the same evening as anything else, so you can reasonably do the lot.

The switch-on dates, in order

Date Where Time
Sat 7 Nov Artisan Market, Lichfield Cathedral 10am to 3pm
Sun 15 Nov Lichfield Christmas Fayre, city centre 10am to 4pm
Sun 22 Nov Lichfield city centre, Market Square 5pm to 8pm
Mon 23 Nov Boney Hay, Bells Lane and Longfellow Road 6pm to 7pm
Thu 26 Nov Chasetown, Edwards Road and High Street 6pm to 8pm
Sat 28 Nov Burntwood Christmas Festival, Sankey’s Corner 4pm to 7pm

Lichfield city centre, Sunday 22 November

The city council’s event record gives the venue as Lichfield city centre, Market Street, WS13 6LH, and the times as 5pm to 8pm. That is the only detail the council has published so far.

What is not published yet: the entertainment line-up, the exact moment of the countdown, who does the honours, and whether any streets close. There was no road closure order for the event on the Public Notice Portal when we checked on 5 September. Orders for city centre events usually appear a few weeks out, and when one does we will add it here and to our Lichfield roadworks and travel page.

Do not use Visit Lichfield’s Christmas page for this. The council’s tourism site still has last year’s version live: it gives the city switch-on as “Sunday 23rd November”, lists Cinderella at the Garrick, and advertises the Victorian Market on 4 to 7 December 2025. The city council’s own calendar is the one to trust.

The Christmas Fayre comes first, on 15 November

A week before the lights, the Lichfield Christmas Fayre takes over the city centre on Sunday 15 November, 10am to 4pm. Lichfield Chamber of Trade and Commerce runs it across the Guildhall and The Hub at St Mary’s indoors, plus two outdoor zones round Market Square and Bore Street. The Cathedral’s Artisan Market is on Saturday 7 November. The four-day Victorian Christmas Market still has no 2026 date. All of it, with hours, parking and the evidence on the Victorian market, is on our Christmas markets page.

Burntwood’s three nights

Burntwood Town Council’s events page sets out all three, and it is worth noting the council only organises two of them:

  • Boney Hay, Monday 23 November, on the corner of Bells Lane and Longfellow Road, 6pm to 7pm. Organised by Burntwood Town Council.
  • Chasetown, Thursday 26 November, on the corner of Edwards Road and High Street, 6pm to 8pm. Not a town council event.
  • Christmas Festival, Saturday 28 November, Sankey’s Corner, 4pm to 7pm. Organised by Burntwood Town Council.

The town council has not published a line-up for any of the three yet. Burntwood Rotary has run a switch-on at Swan Island in past years and has not announced a 2026 date.

Two light shows worth booking now

Follow the Star, Lichfield Cathedral, 15 to 21 December

The Cathedral’s Christmas Light Show returns as Follow the Star, from 17:15 each evening, Tuesday 15 to Monday 21 December, with animation team Illuminos projecting onto the Bishop’s Palace and the West Front and, new for 2026, inside the Cathedral itself. Our Cathedral light show page has the price for every night and time slot.

From the cathedral’s own FAQ document:

  • Family ticket, two adults plus two children aged 2 to 16: £36 to £47
  • Adults 16 and over: £12 to £15. Children 2 to 16: £8.50 to £11
  • Under-twos free, but they still need a free ticket for the capacity count
  • Entry is in 15-minute time slots, in and out via Dam Street only, on a one-way route round the Close. Allow about an hour
  • There are no other concessions, and tickets are non-refundable
  • Tickets may be sold on the night by contactless card only, subject to space

There is no parking and no drop-off on site. The nearest public car park with disabled bays is Bird Street. All areas take wheelchairs, pushchairs and mobility scooters, with limited seating inside the Cathedral, but the show involves loud sound, flashing images and dimly lit sections, and only assistance dogs are allowed in.

Illuminated, National Memorial Arboretum, 4 to 22 December

At Alrewas, the Royal British Legion National Remembrance Gardens (formerly the National Memorial Arboretum, renamed in September 2026) runs Illuminated from 4 to 22 December, with entry every 30 minutes between 4.30pm and 6.30pm, extended to 7pm on peak evenings. Two things to diary: there are no tickets at all on 7 and 14 December, and advance prices now run until 30 October (the Gardens have extended them from 30 September). Full detail is on our National Memorial Arboretum Illuminated page.

Peak evenings are 11 to 13 December and 18 to 22 December, at £22 advance or £27 standard for an adult and £13 or £16 for a child aged 5 to 15. Off-peak evenings, 4 to 6, 8 to 10 and 15 to 17 December, are £20 or £25 for an adult and £12 or £15 for a child. Under-fives and carers go free. Relaxed sessions run at 4.30pm on 9, 13 and 15 December. Standard Arboretum parking charges apply on top.

Frequently asked questions

When are the Lichfield Christmas lights switched on in 2026?

Sunday 22 November, in Market Square, 5pm to 8pm, according to Lichfield City Council’s event listing.

Has the switch-on line-up been announced?

Not yet. On 6 October the city council’s event record had not changed since 31 March and still gave only the date, place and times.

Is there a Lichfield Christmas market in 2026?

Yes: the Christmas Fayre on Sunday 15 November, 10am to 4pm. The full list is on our Christmas markets page.

How much is the Lichfield Cathedral light show?

Follow the Star runs 15 to 21 December 2026. Adults are £12 to £15, children aged 2 to 16 are £8.50 to £11, and a family ticket is £36 to £47.

Parking

No 2026 Christmas parking offer has been published by the district council. Visit Lichfield’s festive parking section still advertises an offer starting “Friday 24 November”, a date that does not fall on a Friday this year, so treat it as out of date until the council reissues it. Our guide to parking in Lichfield has the current tariffs and the free car parks, including the Sunday trap that catches people out in the city centre.

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