Andover's lights go on at 6.30pm on Friday 20 November; the festival runs 4pm to 8pm. High Street and Bridge Street shut 10am to 10pm. Full stage times inside.

The Andover Christmas Festival, the evening the town centre lights come on, is on Friday 20 November 2026, from 4pm to 8pm, and the lights will be switched on at 6.30pm on the High Street.

The quick answer

Updated 29 September: the council has published the switch-on time, the full stage schedule and the road closures.

  • Switch-on: 6.30pm, Friday 20 November, at the Guildhall stage
  • Festival: 4pm to 8pm, free; stalls, Santa’s Post Office and the funfair open at 4pm, stage acts start at 5pm
  • Roads: High Street and Bridge Street closed to vehicles 10am to 10pm
  • Parking: Town Mills car park shut all day; every other town centre car park open, accessible parking in George Yard and the Chantry Centre
  • Busiest: 5.30pm to 6.30pm, the council says

All of this comes from Test Valley Borough Council’s own Christmas Festival page on its Andover town centre site, which the council runs with Andover BID and Andover Town Council.

Andover town centre: the festive dates that are confirmed From Test Valley Borough Council's Andover town centre events calendar, checked 29 September 2026 FRI 20 NOVEMBER, 4pm to 8pm Andover Christmas Festival and lights switch-on, High Street Lights on at 6.30pm. High Street and Bridge Street closed 10am to 10pm Sat 5 December Chantry Centre indoor market 9.30am to 4pm Sun 6 December Young Traders Market, Chantry Centre 10.30am to 3pm Sun 13 December Second Sundays market, High Street 10am to 3pm NO 2026 DATE YET Andover Town Council's Carols Around the Christmas Tree (2025: Fri 12 December, 4pm to 6pm) Sources: thinkandovertowncentre.co.uk events calendar, andover-tc.gov.uk. Andover News
The confirmed festive dates in Andover town centre, and the one still missing

What is on, and where

The council lists this for the evening:

  • Two stages, the Guildhall stage on the High Street and the Town Mills stage
  • Festive market of local makers along Bridge Street, with DJ Chris Burford
  • Food and drink on Bridge Street and the lower High Street
  • Fairground rides and game stalls in Town Mills car park, plus The Life Bus from Andover Parish
  • Santa’s Post Office in the Chantry Centre’s Indoor Garden, 4pm to 8pm, and face painting in the old O2 shop, 4pm to 7pm. Santa does a walkabout after his appearance on the main stage.

It is sponsored by Costa, Pennies Haberdashery, The Kittens Emporium and David Mellor Jewellers.

Stage times

The council notes the times may change.

Guildhall stage, High Street

  • 5pm: Vigo School Choir
  • 5.20pm: Can Dance Will Dance
  • 5.40pm: Stagecoach Andover Choir
  • 6pm: Transient Cam
  • 6.20pm: Big Star Little Star poetry competition
  • 6.30pm: lights switch-on, then Cove
  • 7pm: Covergirlz
  • 7.30pm: Side Plot
  • 8pm: close

Town Mills stage

  • 5pm: Lani Claton
  • 5.20pm: Sean Bless, magician
  • 6pm: Abbotts Ann Pantomime Players
  • 6.20pm: UV Bubble Show
  • 6.30pm: Snow Party
  • 7pm: Bootscootin’ Country Christmas line dance
  • 7.20pm: Georgie A
  • 7.40pm: Jamie Walsh

The Town Mills stage is the family end of the night, and its 6.30pm Snow Party runs at the same moment as the switch-on. If you have small children who will not cope with the crowd on the High Street, that is the place to be.

Roads, parking and toilets

The council’s closures for 2026 are longer than last year’s:

  • High Street and Bridge Street closed to vehicles from 10am to 10pm (2025 was 10am to 9pm)
  • Town Mills car park closed all day for the fairground
  • All other town centre car parks open as usual, with accessible parking in George Yard and the Chantry Centre

The council recommends walking, cycling or public transport. Our Andover parking page has the tariffs and closing times for each town centre car park, and the Andover roadworks and travel page tracks the county’s own closures on Andover roads this autumn.

Toilets: the Chantry Centre multi-storey car park (until 8pm, including accessible toilets), portable units in Town Mills car park including an accessible one, and The John Russell Fox, The Redbridge and ACE through the community toilet scheme.

Safety, lost children and a calm space

Information points will be on the High Street, Bridge Street, in Town Mills Park and in the Chantry Centre. Staff there hand out free wristbands for children to write a parent’s phone number on. The first aid and lost child point is behind the Guildhall on the High Street.

Koala Community Hub opens as a calm space for anyone who needs to step out of the crowd. The council asks that it is not used as a general rest area.

The rest of the festive calendar

Three more town centre dates are already fixed on the council’s calendar:

  • Saturday 5 December, 9.30am to 4pm. Chantry Centre indoor market, in the central area of the shopping centre near Holland and Barrett and Waterstones.
  • Sunday 6 December, 10.30am to 3pm. The Young Traders Market at the Chantry Centre, one of two a year. Traders are aged 11 to 25 and there is no charge to apply or to trade.
  • Sunday 13 December, 10am to 3pm. Second Sundays, Andover’s monthly market for independent makers, street food and vintage sellers, on the High Street.

Andover Town Council’s Carols Around the Christmas Tree has no 2026 date yet. Last year it ran on Friday 12 December from 4pm to 6pm on the High Street outside the Guildhall, with the Andover Chamber Choir. The town council announced it in early November, so expect the same timing this year.

What is still to come

  • A 2026 carols date from Andover Town Council. Its news page has nothing yet; last year’s was announced in early November.
  • Any late changes to the stage times, which the council says are possible.

Everything here was checked against the councils’ own published material on 29 September 2026.

Sources