Oxford’s Christmas Light Festival 2025

About Oxford’s Christmas Light Festival 2025

Oxford’s Christmas Light Festival 2025 is a 3-day celebration of Arts, Culture and Community.

Oxford’s Christmas Light Festival 2025 will once again transform the city into a glowing winter wonderland, celebrating community, creativity, and light. Taking place across three days in November, this much-loved annual event will illuminate Oxford’s streets, courtyards, and landmarks with stunning installations, lantern parades, and live performances.

The festival brings together artists, schools, and community groups to create a vibrant celebration of the festive season. Visitors can expect a dazzling programme of light art, music, dance, and storytelling — all set against the city’s iconic historic backdrop. From family-friendly workshops and pop-up theatre to illuminated processions and projections, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

As well as the breathtaking visual displays, the festival also shines a light on Oxford’s creative spirit, featuring work from local artists and performers. Independent food stalls, craft markets, and late-night openings add to the festive atmosphere, inviting visitors to explore, eat, and shop while soaking up the seasonal magic.

Oxford’s Christmas Light Festival 2025 is free to attend, with activities and performances taking place throughout the city centre, including Broad Street, Gloucester Green, and Oxford Castle Quarter. Whether you’re joining the lantern parade, discovering hidden artworks, or simply enjoying the glow of the lights, this year’s festival promises an unforgettable start to the festive season.

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Tickets

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What’s on

Join the roster of leading cultural organisations that are making Oxford’s Christmas Light Festival 2025 so special:

• Film Oxford – A creative arts charity that delivers projects in and with local communities, aiming to serve groups who are economically or socially disadvantaged or who are under-represented in the arts. Film Oxford will be working with Rose Hill Junior Youth Club and the Rose Hill and Iffley Low Carbon Group (RHILC) providing a day of activities inspired by ‘Brilliant Bugs’ celebrating British wildlife with a focus on insects. The evening will feature their signature lantern parade around Rose Hill. 
• IF Oxford Science and Ideas Festival – A charity that works with hundreds of organisations and groups to capture interest in ‘science and ideas’ topics through educational projects and its annual festival that takes place every October. IF Oxford will be doing ‘Glow Your Own’, an online series of workshops to learn how to programme a simple robotic lantern and ‘Glow Gallery’, a playful exhibition of images of light made by the visitors, with Wolvercote Young Peoples Club, Storey Consulting, OVADA and Pegasus Theatre.
• Museum of Oxford – Based in the city’s town hall, the Museum (MOX) has been sharing the amazing stories of the people who have lived and worked in Oxford for nearly 50 years. MOX offers talks, tours and workshops throughout the year and for the festival will be presenting a digital resource pack to create your own lantern inspired by an old-fashioned gas streetlamp that is part of the museum collection. 
• The North Wall Arts Centre – An arts venue that supports visual and performance artists through residencies and mentorship, involves children, young people and families in its participation programme and shares inspiring theatre and exhibition shows with its wide-ranging audiences. The North Wall is creating a beautiful light trail, with theatre, music, craft and dance for the festival in Cutteslowe Park. The North Wall are working with Cutteslowe Community Centre, Cutteslowe Primary School, Cutteslowe Connected, Dancin’ Oxford, St Michaels and All Angels Church, North Oxford Association and Sunnymead Minnows.
• Pegasus Theatre – An arts venue that creates and presents theatre for, by and with young people from diverse backgrounds. It regularly hosts productions from its young companies and the very best small-scale touring theatre as well as a range of drama and dance classes in partnership with Bristol School of Acting and their supported artists. Pegasus is joined by Wild Boor Ideas, WhatNot Theatre, T(Art) Productions and IF Oxford for a day of family fun and experiences at the theatre.
• The Covered Market – the world-famous city centre indoor market is home to over 50 independent specialist traders who play host to regular events from music and crafts to quizzes, talks and family workshops. The market is a regular stop for Santa during the Festival weekend, and he’ll be on hand to help little ones write their Christmas wish letters.
• Oxford Bus Company – An award-winning service that operates a comprehensive network of bus routes in the city. Over half of their fleet is now fully electric making it one of the greenest bus companies in the UK. The fantastically decorated Christmas Light Bus will be visiting many locations around the city during the festival weekend, the first of several outings around the county in the weeks before Christmas. 
• Victorian Christmas Market in Broad Street takes place throughout the weekend with live music, traditional artisan market stalls, delicious festive food, tasty refreshments and Victorian street entertainment.

The full programme are published on the Oxford’s Christmas Light Festival website.