Gloucester, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom
Gloucester Quays Christmas Markets
Seven weekends of South West makers and food on the historic docks — weekends only, from early November.
- Dates
- 7 Nov – 20 Dec 2026
- Opening hours
- Weekends only: Saturdays 10am–6pm, Sundays 10am–5pm
- Admission
- Free entry
- Stalls
- 120
- Address
- Gloucester Quays, Gloucester GL1 5SH
Dates last checked 3 October 2026 · source · Always confirm with the organiser before travelling.
Gloucester Quays turns its historic docks into a Christmas market every weekend from early November until the week before Christmas. More than 120 traders set up among the restored Victorian warehouses and moored boats, with an emphasis on crafts, gifts and food from across the South West.
Weekends only
This is the key thing to know. The market runs on Saturdays and Sundays only, across seven weekends from 7–8 November to 19–20 December 2026. Saturdays are 10am to 6pm and Sundays 10am to 5pm. Come on a weekday and the quays are just the quays.
What to expect
Over 120 traders selling craft, gifts, homeware, Christmas decorations, artisan food products and street food, with bars alongside. Because it runs for seven weekends, the trader line-up changes through the season, so it is worth a second visit if you live nearby. Entry is free.
The setting
Gloucester’s docks are the most inland port in Britain, linked to the Severn by canal, and the warehouses that line them were built to store grain and timber in the nineteenth century. The market sits right among them, which gives it more character than a shopping-street market — and there are outlet shops, restaurants and an ice rink on the quays for the rest of the day. Check the Quays’ own site for the rink’s dates.
Getting there
Gloucester station is about fifteen minutes’ walk from the Quays, through the city centre. There is a large car park at the Quays, though it fills on December weekends.
Make a day of it
Gloucester Cathedral, five minutes from the docks, has one of the most beautiful cloisters in England — familiar to many as the corridors of Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films. The National Waterways Museum is on the docks themselves.
When to go
Because the market is only open at weekends, Saturdays in late November and December are the busiest days. Sunday mornings are noticeably calmer, and the early weekends in November are the quietest of all — useful if you want to browse the stalls properly before the Christmas rush.