The full list of locations who have declared that they are staging an event on Christmas Day and/or New Year’s Day.
Runners across London will have plenty of opportunities to work off their festive feasts this year, with dozens of parkrun events taking place on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Christmas falls on a Thursday this year – and many parkruns will be operating as normal on the Saturday (29th).
While many parkruns traditionally take a break over the holiday period, numerous venues across the capital have confirmed they will be running additioanl runs on Christmas and New Year’s Day.
Parkrun marked its 21st anniversary this year. The 5k runs are now held in more than 2,500 locations, including 25 prisons, in nearly two dozen countries. More than 10 million people have participated in at least one parkrun and the organization has recorded more than 100 million finishes.
Christmas Day
On Christmas morning, Londoners can lace up their trainers at several locations including Avery Hill, Barking, Beckenham Place, Bethlem Royal Hospital, Bexley, and Bromley parkruns. Other festive runners can head to Bushy parkrun, Catford, Charlton, Clapham Common, or Finsbury parkrun.
Additional Christmas Day events include Fulham Palace, Gladstone, Grovelands (Enfield), Gunnersbury, Hackney Marshes, Highbury Fields, and Hilly Fields parkruns. Runners can also choose from Lloyd ( Croydon ), Lordship Recreation Ground, Northala Fields, Oak Hill, Old Deer Park, Oldham, Peckham Rye, Richmond, Roundshaw Downs, South Norwood, Stockley Country, Sunny Hill, Sutcliffe, and Wanstead Flats parkruns.
New Year’s Day
For those wanting to start 2026 with a run, even more venues will be open. In addition to many of the Christmas Day locations, New Year’s Day runners can visit Ally Pally, Burgess, Harrow, Harrow Lodge, Morden, Osterley, Pymmes, Raphael, Thames Path (Woolwich), and Tooting Common parkruns, as well as Wimbledon Common.
Junior parkruns, designed for children aged 4-14, are generally not taking place on either day, with most showing as cancelled.
Runners interested in participating should check their chosen event’s individual news page for specific details and any registration requirements. This page is also being updated as more events confirm.
Parkrun is a global charity that organizes free, weekly 5k community running events in parks and other outdoor spaces around the world. Participants can walk, jog, or run, and there are also 2k “junior parkrun” events for children aged 4 to 14. Events are volunteer-led and focus on community participation rather than competition, and everyone must register online to get a unique barcode for tracking their results. You can register here.
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