Free festive day at Salisbury Market Place with Christmas lights, the Frost Bar, gift retailers, the Night Market and food vendors.
Christmas Begins kicks off the festive season in Salisbury Market Place on Friday 20 November, from 1pm to 8.30pm. It's the day the city turns into one of the loveliest Christmas destinations in the south: trees around Market Place wrap in lights and the cathedral spire watches over the scene.
The day brings back 'Christmas on the Square', with the Frost Bar returning alongside a new addition of gift retailers. The Night Market runs from 1pm to 8pm with sweet and savoury food vendors, so it's as much about the food and drink as the shopping. Entry is free, and it's a family-friendly event with live music and entertainment throughout the day.
From late November, Salisbury Cathedral — an eight-minute walk away — is at its most atmospheric in Advent, with Advent and Christmas services, concerts and ticketed events. The wider Christmas on the Square programme continues in Guildhall Square from Friday 20 November until Thursday 31 December 2026, open 11am to 10pm. Sunday festive markets also run in Market Place on 29 November and 6, 13 and 20 December, from 10am to 4pm.
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So, if you're heading down on the 20th, you've got the Night Market from 1pm to 8pm, the Frost Bar back in action, and the new gift stalls to browse. It's free to get in, and the whole thing runs from 1pm to 8.30pm at Salisbury Market Place, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP1 1JH.
