Crowborough's festive stalls line the High Street on Friday 27 November, 4pm to 6.30pm. Plus the Pantiles chalets from 13 November and four more fairs nearby.

Crowborough’s Christmas market is the Christmas Cracker: festive stalls and food vendors along the High Street on Friday 27 November 2026, from 4pm to 6.30pm. The lights go on at 6pm and it is free. The town has no separate market weekend run by the council, but five other festive markets, fairs and switch-ons are within reach, and the biggest, at The Pantiles in Tunbridge Wells, opens on 13 November.

The quick answer

  • Crowborough’s own: the Christmas Cracker, Friday 27 November, High Street, 4pm to 6.30pm, free
  • The big one nearby: The Pantiles Boutique Christmas Markets, Tunbridge Wells, selected days from 13 November to 24 December, 11am to 8pm, free
  • Also in the town: Crowborough Community Centre has held a Saturday Christmas Market in late November in past years; the 2026 date is not confirmed yet
  • Is the Cracker on this year? Yes. Crowborough Town Council lists it on its 2026 events page and says it is always on the last Friday in November

Crowborough: the Christmas Cracker, Friday 27 November

Crowborough Town Council’s events page says “festive stalls and food and drink vendors will line the High Street” for the Christmas Cracker, from 4pm to 6.30pm on Friday 27 November. There are street performers, live music on the Piazza, and a land train to Santa’s grotto at the Social Club on Croft Road. The Christmas lights are switched on at 6pm.

The council’s stall bookings are open, with a limited number allocated first come, first served. Booking forms go to the council offices at Pine Grove, TN6 1DH.

The switch-on, the grotto and the road closure question are covered on our Christmas lights page.

Crowborough Community Centre: a Saturday market, date to be confirmed

Crowborough Community Centre, on Pine Grove (TN6 1FE), runs its own Christmas Market of local makers and traders on a Saturday in late November. Its listings on Ashdown Radio’s events diary give 19 November 2022, 10.30am to 3pm, with 35 stalls and free entry, and 23 November 2024, 10.30am to 2.30pm, free, with a Santa’s grotto.

For 2026, the centre’s ticketing page on TicketSource appears in search results with a date of Saturday 28 November, but TicketSource blocks automated readers and we could not open the page to check it, and the centre’s own website does not list events. Treat the date as unconfirmed until it is published somewhere readable; we will update this page when it is. Stall enquiries in past years went to the centre manager.

The Pantiles, Tunbridge Wells: 13 November to 24 December

The nearest large Christmas market is the Boutique Christmas Markets at The Pantiles, which The Pantiles describes as wooden chalets of independent retailers selling gifts, artisan products and festive food. Entry is free. It runs on selected days only, all 11am to 8pm except Christmas Eve:

Weekend Days open
13 to 15 November Friday, Saturday, Sunday
20 to 22 November Friday, Saturday, Sunday
27 to 29 November Friday, Saturday, Sunday
4 to 6 December Friday, Saturday, Sunday
11 to 13 December Friday, Saturday, Sunday
18 to 24 December Every day; Christmas Eve closes at 6pm

The Pantiles also promises live music and choirs on the bandstand, a Christmas lights switch-on, a new Nutcracker trail with a £150 voucher prize draw, and the return of the Rudolph’s Runner land train around the town. It says the entertainment programme, the switch-on itinerary and the land train dates are still to be announced.

Hailsham: switch-on market, Friday 27 November

Hailsham Town Council’s switch-on runs from 1pm to 7pm on the same evening as Crowborough’s, on Vicarage Field and the High Street, with 21 named market stallholders in its 5 October release. The full detail, including the High Street closure from about 11am to 9pm, is on our Hailsham Christmas lights page.

Buxted: Saturday 28 November

Buxted Bonfire Society’s events list has its Christmas Light Switch-On on Saturday 28 November, 4pm to 7pm, at Buxted Recreation Ground, TN22 5FD. The society does not say whether there are stalls.

Ashdown Forest: A Winter’s Day, Saturday 12 December

The Ashdown Forest Centre at Wych Cross holds A Winter’s Day on Saturday 12 December, 11am to 3pm, now in its fourth year. The Conservators list hand-crafted gifts, carols from local choirs, spiced apple punch and hot chocolate, woodturning demonstrations, craft workshops and dog-friendly activities. Entry is free and well-behaved dogs on short leads are welcome.

Getting there and parking

No road closure for the Cracker has been announced yet; check our roadworks and travel page nearer the date. The Community Centre and the High Street are both a short walk from the town centre car parks on our parking in Crowborough page.

More festive dates are on our pages for Santa trains near Crowborough, Sheffield Park at Christmas and the Crowborough pantomime.

Sources