Christmas Market & Dickensian Christmas Festival

“I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.”
— Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

There are plenty of towns famed for extraordinary Christmas events in extraordinary settings. We really are spoilt for choice. But what happens in Rochester each year is rather hard to replicate.

Historic Rochester is unusually well suited to this kind of celebration. For a few weekends each winter, the Christmas lights come on, the Castle Gardens fill with wooden stalls and, for one weekend, Rochester turns back the clock.

Two Events, One Christmas in Rochester

The Christmas Market sits within Rochester Castle Gardens, overlooked by the Norman keep, with Rochester Cathedral and the Historic High Street just moments away. Stalls, food, music and a funfair fill the gardens throughout its run.

Then comes the Dickensian Christmas Festival.

The festival as we know it today dates back to 1979, and for one weekend the High Street essentially becomes the stage. With Charles Dickens' ties to the area and many of the buildings that inspired his work still lining the High Street, this piece of immersive theatre simply makes sense here.

When Dickens Comes to Town

What makes the weekend particularly special is how it feels like the whole of Rochester joins in.

Shopkeepers get into costume while the rest of the community helps bring a decidedly Victorian Christmas back to life. You might pass Miss Havisham linking arms with Fagin and Oliver Twist, see Scrooge giving a ‘Bah! Humbug!’ to the crowd or spot Pip and Estella emerging from a coffee shop with steaming cups in hand.

Waistcoats are buttoned, bonnets tied beneath chins, top hats sit high and skirts are full. Bagpipes play and drums sound as the parade makes its way down the historic High Street. And then comes the promised snow (fake, of course, but guaranteed whatever the weather), falling over the High Street and adding another layer of magic for younger visitors.

Make a Day of It

If shopping is the priority, consider the first or final market weekend. Pick up gifts from the stalls and Rochester's independent shops, stop for something hot to eat and explore Rochester High Street at a leisurely pace. If you prefer to avoid crowds, Fridays from 12–3pm are designated quiet shopping periods.

For the full spectacle - costumes, parades, street entertainment and Christmas carols around Rochester's Historic centre, visit during Dickensian weekend. Expect considerably bigger crowds.

Planning Your Visit

Rochester is an easy Christmas day trip from London. High-speed trains from St Pancras reach Rochester in around 40 minutes, with the High Street, castle and market a short walk from the station.

The Christmas Market runs from late November into December, while the Dickensian Christmas Festival takes place for one weekend only. Check the current year's dates before travelling.

And eventually the snow stops, the shop lights go out and the characters disappear from the High Street… until next year.