Our verdict
Best overall
Golden Tours: London Christmas Lights Night Bus Tour
Golden Tours’ live-guided lights tour runs daily from 6 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, with three boarding points — London Eye, Victoria and Green Park. 4.5★ on Headout.
4.5★ · 70from £25 Headout →
Best value
London: Christmas Lights Bus Tour With Live Guide
The most-booked lights tour in London — 5,400+ reviews — with a live guide, from about £25. Ratings (4.1★) are steady rather than spectacular; expect a crowded top deck at weekends.
4.1★ · 5,442from £25 GetYourGuide →
Best private option
London: Private Christmas Lights Taxi Tour
A warm black cab past Regent Street’s lights and the Harrods and Fortnum & Mason windows, for the whole group. Only a handful of reviews so far, but all five-star.
5.0★ · 3from £300 GetYourGuide →
Skip it if
You don't mind walking
Regent Street, Carnaby, Seven Dials and Covent Garden are all within about a mile of each other and cost nothing to see on foot.
Which London Christmas lights bus tour is best?
The best London Christmas lights bus tour for most people is a live-guided open-top loop of 75–90 minutes through the West End, from about £23–£36. Golden Tours and The Original Tour have both published their 2026 season; the most-booked platform listings show their dates in the booking calendar. Families and couples who’d rather be warm have two good alternatives: a tea bus with the lights, or a private black cab.
2026 season dates published by operators
| Tour | 2026–27 dates | Length | Boards at | Commentary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Tours Christmas Lights by Night | 6 Nov 2026 – 3 Jan 2027, daily | 75–90 min | London Eye, Victoria, Green Park | Live guide |
| Brigit’s Christmas Lights Afternoon Tea | 11 Nov 2026 – 5 Jan 2027 | 90 min | Victoria Coach Station | — (tea and views) |
| Brigit’s The Cat in the Hat tea bus | 14 Nov – 31 Dec 2026 | — | See operator | Themed, ages 4+ |
| The Original Tour Christmas Lights | 14 Nov – 3 Jan, not 25–31 Dec | 75–90 min | Coventry Street, from 16:30 | Live guide |
The Original Tour’s page doesn’t print the year next to its dates; it is the current 2026 site. Big Bus and City Sightseeing hadn’t listed 2026 dates on the pages we checked.
The tours side by side
| Tour | Price from | Rating | Length | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christmas Lights Bus Tour with Live Guide | ~£25 | 4.1★ (5,400+) | 1.5 h | The most-booked |
| Golden Tours lights night bus (Headout) | ~£25 | 4.5★ (70) | 75–90 min | Three boarding points |
| Vintage open-top Routemaster, decorated | ~£23 | 4.0★ (1,100+) | 75 min | Classic bus, festive trim |
| Vintage bus with guide and carols | ~£29 | 3.9★ (780) | 1.5 h | Classical Christmas music |
| Santa-commentary open-top bus | ~£28 | 4.0★ (31) | 1.5 h | Sing-along, kids |
| Christmas Lights & Bites, Routemaster | ~£36 | 4.1★ (186) | 1.5 h | Festive food on board |
| Lights & festive markets by bike | ~£39 | 4.5★ (70) | 3 h | Winter Wonderland, Harrods windows |
| Private black cab with hotel pick-up | ~£300–£318 per cab | 4.5–5.0★ (few) | 3 h | Warm, whole group |
Prices are the “from” prices in our partner feed today; per person except the cabs.
Christmas lights tours you can book now
London: Christmas Lights Bus Tour With Live Guide
from £25
See on GetYourGuide
London Christmas Lights Tour by Vintage Open-Top Bus
from £23
See on GetYourGuide
London: Christmas Lights Tour by Vintage Bus
from £29
See on GetYourGuide
London: Christmas Lights Open-Top Bus Tour
from £28
See on GetYourGuide
London: Christmas Lights & Bites Tour
from £36
See on GetYourGuide
London: Christmas Lights & Festive Markets Bike Tour
from £39
See on GetYourGuide
Golden Tours: London Christmas Lights Night Bus Tour
from £25per person
See on Headout
London: Christmas Lights Sightseeing Open-Top Bus Tour
from £28
See on GetYourGuide
London: Open-Top Bus Tour with Live Guide & Christmas Lights
from £23
See on GetYourGuidePrices and ratings checked 21 Oct 2026; they change daily.
Open-top, vintage, tea bus or cab?
Open-top bus. An unobstructed view up into the overhead displays on Regent Street and Oxford Street is the reason to go open-top. Most tours have a live guide; City Sightseeing’s own lights tour uses recorded commentary “from Santa”, and at least one platform listing adds a sing-along soundtrack — children love it, adults tolerate it.
Vintage Routemaster. Several listings use 1960s Routemasters, some decorated for the season. One adds carols and a guide; Christmas Lights & Bites serves festive snacks on board. Same streets, more charm, slightly lower ratings than the best open-top tours.
Tea bus. Brigit’s Bakery runs its Christmas Lights Afternoon Tea on a closed Routemaster from Victoria Coach Station — 90 minutes, from £45 per adult and £37 per child on its own site, ages 5+. Its Peppa Pig, PAW Patrol and Paddington Christmas versions suit younger children. Compare them on our afternoon tea bus page.
Black cab. Two private cab tours list on GetYourGuide at about £300–£318 per cab for three hours, with hotel pick-up. For four or five people that’s around £60–£80 each — and you’ll be warm. More on cab tours in our black cab guide.
Bike. The three-hour lights and markets ride covers Oxford Street, Covent Garden, the Harrods windows and Hyde Park’s Winter Wonderland. See other routes on our bike tours page.
Which lights tour for which traveller
- First time in London at Christmas: a live-guided open-top loop — Golden Tours or the most-booked GetYourGuide listing — so you get the landmarks as well as the lights.
- Under-fives: Brigit’s Peppa Pig or PAW Patrol Christmas tea buses take children from two; the Original Tour lights tour is non-stop and short enough for small legs.
- Grandparents or anyone who feels the cold: a closed Routemaster tea bus or a private black cab.
- Active couples: the three-hour bike tour, which reaches Hyde Park’s Winter Wonderland and the Harrods windows that buses can only pass.
- Groups of four to six: one black cab works out at about £60–£80 each for four or five people, with hotel pick-up.
Tips for the Christmas lights season
- Avoid December Saturdays if you can. Weekend evenings are the busiest; a weekday departure usually means a better seat.
- Go early with children. Lights are on from dusk, so a 4:30pm departure sees the lights and gets you home for tea.
- Check the guide. “Live guide” in the title means a person on board; otherwise it may be recorded or music only.
- Combine. A lights bus pairs well with a night tour on another evening — one for the West End, the other for the floodlit river and the Tower.
Questions people ask
When do London Christmas lights bus tours start in 2026?
Which is the best Christmas lights bus tour in London?
How long is a Christmas lights tour?
What do you see on a Christmas lights tour?
Do Christmas lights tours run on Christmas Day?
Is the top deck too cold in December?
Sources
- GetYourGuide — Christmas activities in London (partner feed)
- Golden Tours — Christmas Lights London by Night tour (2026–27 dates) (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- The Original Tour — Christmas Lights route (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Brigit's Bakery — Christmas Lights Afternoon Tea bus and other tours (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- City Sightseeing — London tours incl. Christmas Lights Tour (checked 21 Oct 2026)
Written and checked by the Private Tours London desk