Sherborne's Christmas market is Sunday 6 December, 10am to 4pm; Bridport Christmas Cheer is Wednesday 9 December. Swanage, Dorchester and Weymouth too.

Sherborne’s Christmas market, the Festive Shopping Day, is on Sunday 6 December 2026, 10am to 4pm, with more than 100 stalls, free entry and free parking. Bridport Christmas Cheer is on Wednesday 9 December. Swanage’s market is Saturday 5 December, Wimborne’s Christmas fair runs 5 and 6 December, and the Dorchester Christmas Cracker is Sunday 13 December. Weymouth has no Christmas market listed; its big festive day is the elf parade and lights switch-on on Saturday 28 November.

Dorset’s Christmas markets are run by chambers of trade, Rotary clubs and volunteer committees rather than by Dorset Council, so there is no single official calendar. Every date here comes from the organiser’s own page, linked in each section.

Last checked 11 October 2026.

Every date for 2026

Town Event Date Times
Weymouth Elf parade and lights switch-on Saturday 28 November 9am to 5pm
Blandford Forum Yuletide Festival Friday 4 December Evening, times to follow
Swanage Christmas Market Saturday 5 December 10am to 4pm
Wimborne Dorset Team Christmas Fair Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December 10am to 4pm
Sherborne Festive Shopping Day Sunday 6 December 10am to 4pm
Bridport Christmas Cheer Wednesday 9 December All day, times to follow
Wimborne Save the Children Parade Saturday 12 December Not yet published
Dorchester Christmas Cracker Sunday 13 December 11am to 4pm

Sherborne Christmas market, Sunday 6 December

Sherborne’s is the largest market in the county by stall count. The Chamber of Trade and Commerce says more than 100 stalls of local makers, producers and traders will be out from 10am to 4pm, on top of the town’s independent shops. Entry is free.

Cheap Street and South Street are closed to traffic for the day, so the whole main shopping area is pedestrianised.

The day includes:

  • church services in Sherborne Abbey
  • street entertainers, the Sherborne Town Band, and other music and choirs
  • Santa’s grotto and a children’s competition
  • Dorset’s Farmers Market
  • a Christmas tree festival
  • a parade and the lighting of the tree at 4pm
A Christmas tree strung with white lights at the foot of Cheap Street in Sherborne at night, beside the Cross Keys pub
A lit Christmas tree at the foot of Cheap Street, Sherborne. Photo: Eugene Birchall (CC BY-SA 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons

Free parking in Sherborne on the day

The chamber lists free parking at Acreman Street, Coldharbour, Culverhayes short stay, Culverhayes long stay, Culverhayes commercial, Newland North, Old Market Yard and the Digby Hall. With both main streets closed, the usual on-street spaces are gone, so head straight for one of these.

The chamber also points visitors to the Christmas display at Castle Gardens, about five minutes’ drive from the town centre.

Bridport Christmas Cheer, Wednesday 9 December

Bridport Christmas Cheer is back for 2026 on Wednesday 9 December. The Bridport Tourist Information Centre listing gives it as an all-day event at various locations around the town, with stalls and activities through the day and into the evening. Stall applications go through the same page.

The organisers have not yet published times or a programme. Last year’s Cheer was on Wednesday 3 December 2025 and the one before on Wednesday 4 December 2024, according to the town mayor’s blogs (2025, 2024), so a midweek date is normal for Bridport. In 2024 the mayor switched on the town’s Christmas lights that night, and the shops stayed open late.

Bridport Town Hall clock tower lit with blue and white Christmas lights at night, with shops along East Street
Bridport Town Hall and its clock tower in Christmas lights. Photo: Eugene Birchall (CC BY-SA 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons

Swanage Christmas Market, Saturday 5 December

The market runs along Station Road and Institute Road from 10am to 4pm. The event listing now says more than 60 stalls, down from the “more than 80” it gave in September. It is organised by Swanage and Purbeck Rotary.

Alongside the stalls there are merry-go-round rides, Father Christmas in his grotto, mulled wine and cider, a small stage with festive entertainment, and food stalls selling hot dogs, doughnuts and local festive bakes.

Roads close for the day: the listing names Station Place, Mermond Place, Station Road and Commercial Road, and points to Dorset Council for the timings, which have not been published yet.

If you are in Swanage that weekend, Artisans by the Beach is also open at the Shore Road beach huts.

Dorchester Christmas Cracker, Sunday 13 December

The Dorchester Chamber for Business has the Cracker on Sunday 13 December 2026, 11am to 4pm. Its pages now say the 2026 Cracker is full: every street pitch and indoor table is taken, and traders can only register interest for 2027.

The chamber runs separate seller lists for the Corn Exchange and High West Street, so both are part of this year’s footprint. The entertainment programme and road closures are still to come; the chamber says to watch its Facebook page. In past years the Cracker has also filled Cornhill, South Street and Trinity Street, and its Santa Hat Parade (pictured at the top of this page) walks through the middle of it.

For traders thinking about 2027: the chamber takes no hot food stalls, traders must be based within 20 miles of Dorchester, and it may cap similar stalls to keep the mix varied.

Weymouth: no Christmas market, but an elf parade on 28 November

Weymouth Town Council’s events calendar has no Christmas market for 2026. The town’s big festive day is Saturday 28 November, run by We Are Weymouth, according to the council’s listing:

  • 9am to 12pm: workshops to make elf hats, ears and collars, face painting and Christmas crafts
  • 11am to 1pm: register at Weymouth Pavilion for a wristband to be counted in the elf world record attempt
  • 1.15pm to 2pm: Dorset’s largest elf parade through the town, led by a marching band and Santa in his sleigh
  • 1pm to 5pm: the main stage in New Bond Street, with the panto cast, choirs, dance groups, bands and street performers
  • 5pm: the Christmas lights are switched on from the main stage

The council’s own lights listing gives the switch-on slot as 4.30pm to 5.30pm. The Mayor’s Carols by the Coast follows on Saturday 5 December, 5pm to 6pm, by the Christmas tree in New Bond Street, with the Salvation Army Band.

The monthly Weymouth Farmers and Makers Market, outside The Range in New Bond Street, moves to the first Sunday of the month in December, the council says, but no December 2026 date is on its calendar yet.

Wimborne Christmas fair, 5 and 6 December, and the parade

Wimborne’s fair runs 10am to 4pm on both days of that weekend, across two rooms of the Allendale Centre. Visit Wimborne says the Dorset Team brings 60 stalls by local makers each day, with jewellery, ceramics, textiles, art, illustration, Christmas cards and decorations.

Entry is free. The venue is accessible, dogs on leads are welcome, and there is a cafe overlooking the river serving hot and cold food all day. It is indoors, which makes it the safest bet in bad weather.

Wimborne Christmas parade: the town’s Save the Children Parade, with floats from charities and groups across the area, is listed for Saturday 12 December 2026 in the forward diary of Wimborne BID’s 2025 Christmas programme. No route or start time has been published, and Wimborne Minster Town Council has not yet listed its 2026 lights switch-on.

Blandford Yuletide Festival, Friday 4 December

The festival’s site now gives Friday 4 December 2026. Blandford’s is an evening event rather than a daytime market: a lantern parade led by Father Christmas and the Mayor from East Street into the Market Place, the lighting of the tree, carols with the Stour Valley Band, and stalls in the streets and the Corn Exchange.

Father Christmas’s grotto moves this year to Woodhouse Gardens, The Plocks, DT11 7AA, next to the post office and opposite the library, which frees room for more stalls in the Corn Exchange. The site also lists a free elves’ workshop for children, with a quieter room for young people with sensory needs.

The running order on the site (parade 6pm, tree 6.15pm, end 9pm, roads reopen 10pm) is the same as 2025’s, and the festival marks it as subject to change, so treat those times as a guide until the programme booklet is out.

Getting there and parking

Sherborne, Swanage and Blandford all close their central streets, so on-street spaces vanish for the day. Sherborne’s free car parks are listed above. Elsewhere, charges apply as normal unless the organiser says otherwise; our parking in Dorset page covers the tariffs and the local traps.

Check our roadworks and travel page before you set off, and the Christmas and New Year travel page for trains and buses later in December. For the rest of the season, see the Christmas lights switch-ons, Dorset pantomimes, Kingston Lacy at Christmas and what’s on in Dorset this month.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Sherborne Christmas market 2026?

Sherborne Festive Shopping Day runs Sunday 6 December 2026, 10am to 4pm, with more than 100 stalls on Cheap Street and South Street. Entry is free and the tree is lit at 4pm.

Is there free parking for Sherborne Festive Shopping Day?

Yes. The chamber lists eight free car parks on the day: Acreman Street, Coldharbour, three at Culverhayes, Newland North, Old Market Yard and the Digby Hall.

When is Bridport Christmas Cheer 2026?

Wednesday 9 December 2026, all day at locations around the town centre, according to the Bridport Tourist Information Centre. Times have not been published yet.

When is the Swanage Christmas market 2026?

Saturday 5 December 2026, 10am to 4pm, on Station Road and Institute Road, with more than 60 stalls. It is run by Swanage and Purbeck Rotary.

When is the Dorchester Christmas Cracker 2026?

Sunday 13 December 2026, 11am to 4pm. All stall spaces are now taken; the chamber has yet to publish the entertainment programme.

Is there a Weymouth Christmas market in 2026?

None is listed. Weymouth’s festive day is Saturday 28 November, with an elf parade at 1.15pm and the Christmas lights switched on at 5pm in New Bond Street.

When is the Wimborne Christmas parade 2026?

The Save the Children Parade is listed for Saturday 12 December 2026 in Wimborne BID’s forward diary. The route and start time have not been published.

Sources