For the six final days of 2024, from 26 to 31 December, millions of people are on the move around Britain. But how easily will they be able to travel by train, bus, ferry and air? That depends on the day and the destination.
These are the key questions and answers.
Which trains are running normally on Boxing Day?
Eurostar is running a near-normal service from London St Pancras International to Paris (15 trains each way), Brussels (eight trains each way) and Amsterdam (three trains each way). And they look very popular – the first two departures to Paris sold out, and seats on the third were selling at £375 each just before departure.
But from St Pancras the only possible journeys by train are to Continental Europe.
No trains are running to Kent on Southeastern, to the south coast or Bedford on Thameslink, or to Leicester and Sheffield on East Midlands Railway.
What is the picture elsewhere in the UK?
Scotland’s central belt will have many trains running, centred on Edinburgh and Glasgow. The biggest 26 December operation for decades on ScotRail will see links between the two cities and extending north and northeast to Perth, Dundee and Arbroath, as well as a busy network in Strathclyde.
In England, trains are extremely rare. London Victoria-Gatwick Airport-Brighton: hourly services from 8.30am to 8.30pm. Some other south London suburban trains will run to and from Victoria.
Tottenham Hale-Stansted Airport: half-hourly services from 6.45am to 11.15pm. Tottenham Hale is on the Victoria Line of the London Underground, which will be running.
Merseyrail, the local network around Liverpool, is operating 9am-6pm, though not serving all stations. “Additional services will be available between Liverpool and Aintree to support those attending the Boxing Day races,” the train operator says.
No trains are running in Wales or Northern Ireland.
How does the UK’s near-total rail shutdown compare with other nations?
The UK is an outlier. In Continental Europe 26 December will be a fairly normal Thursday on the railways – fewer commuter services but frequent intercity links because a lot of people want to travel.
That’s certainly clear from the UK’s airports, which are running normally, and the large number of long-distance coaches on Britain’s motorways.
What about the London Underground, the Newcastle Metro and the Glasgow Subway?
The London Underground is running on Boxing Day – but the Elizabeth Line is not. The main east-west link beneath the capital is not classed as part of the Tube network.
The Tyne and Wear Metro, centred on Newcastle, will operate until 8pm on 26 December.
Glasgow’s circular subway route is running until 11.30pm on Boxing Day.
Are buses running today?
Local buses are typically running on a reduced Saturday or Sunday schedule. Long-distance coaches operated by National Express and FlixBus have an enhanced schedule, with extra services laid on – especially to airports.
With no intercity trains outside Scotland, many coaches are sold out (for example the morning National Express links from Manchester to London) but seats are available on later services.
What about the airports?
Flights are running well at all the big UK airports. At London Heathrow, there are some delays of an hour or two on inbound flights from the US. The 7.45am to Edinburgh British Airways departure was almost two hours late and the RwandAir flight from Kigali is 11 hours behind schedule. But overall that represents less disruption than normal.
The main problem facing airline passengers in the UK is terrestrial transport to and from their intended location.
Are ferries sailing normally?
Yes, services across the Channel to northern France resumed from around 10am on Boxing Day.
Caledonian MacBrayne ferries in the Western Isles are faring better than they did immediately before Christmas. Additional sailings are in place between Ardrossan and Brodick on the isle of Arran, and between Mallaig and South Uist.
Do all trains come back to life on Friday 27 December?
While most UK rail lines will reopen, there will be key closures of really important routes for Network Rail engineering work.
The line north from London St Pancras is closed just outside the station for the replacement of a bridge, with no trains to Luton, Leicester, Derby, Nottingham or Sheffield. It will reopen on Monday 30 December.
London Liverpool Street station, the busiest in the UK, will stay closed for the rest of the year, reopening only on Thursday 2 January 2025. Stansted Express trains will start and end at Tottenham Hale.
London Paddington, the hub for South Wales and the West of England, will remain closed until Monday 30 December. Great Western Railway passengers from Cornwall, Devon and Cardiff will have hourly trains to and from London Euston.
Crewe, one of the UK’s most important junctions, will be closed all day on 27 December. Avanti West Coast trains between London and Glasgow will be diverted via Stoke and Manchester. No Avanti trains will run to or from Liverpool or Chester.
From 28 to 30 December Avanti West Coast trains will be running a more normal service, but on 31 December the first walk-out by train managers in a five-month series of strikes will begin. The members of the RMT union will also stop work on 2 January and every Sunday from 12 January to 25 May inclusive.
What will be the impact of the strikes?
A significantly reduced Avanti West Coast timetable will be in place on the first two strike days, 31 December and 2 January – with fewer services running during limited operating hours. The first train of the day will depart Euston around 8am and the last train of the day before 5pm.
On Tuesday 31 December, Avanti West Coast will run one train per hour between Euston and each of Birmingham, Manchester, and Preston with a limited services to Glasgow. One train every other hour between Liverpool and Crewe will also run.
On Thursday 2 January, the intercity operator will run one train per hour between Euston and each of Wolverhampton (via Birmingham), Crewe and Manchester. There will also be a limited service between Glasgow and Preston.
North Wales, Blackpool and Edinburgh will have no Avanti West Coast services on strike days. On 31 December, there will be no Avanti West Coast trains to or from Macclesfield. On 2 January, there will be no Avanti West Coast service to or from Warrington Bank Quay or Wigan North Western.
“With fewer services running during shorter hours of operation, trains are expected to be busy, and customers are strongly advised to travel either side of the strike days,” says Avanti West Coast.
“Customers who do travel should plan ahead, expect disruption, and check the details of their last train home.”
Passengers with existing tickets for 31 December and 2 January can travel any time from Monday 30 December up to and including Saturday 4 January. Alternatively, if customers who booked tickets to travel on either side of the strike days before industrial action was announced (17 December) would rather not travel, they can claim a full, fee-free refund from their point of purchase.
Listen to Simon Calder’s Boxing Day podcast from London St Pancras International