Lights go on Saturday 21 November with the Big Reveal, and every town car park is free from 10am. Christmas market 6 December. What is still TBC.

East Grinstead’s Christmas lights are switched on Saturday 21 November 2026, on the High Street and London Road, alongside The Big Reveal, when the town’s shops unveil their Christmas windows.

The date comes from East Grinstead Town Council’s own printed events listing for 2026: “The Big Reveal and East Grinstead Town Council’s Christmas Lights Switch on, Saturday 21st, High Street and London Road.” (East Grinstead Town Council, Town Events 2026)

Updated 3 October: the town council’s end of September newsletter confirms that all car parks in East Grinstead will be free from 10am on Saturday 21 November for the Big Reveal and switch-on. Event times are still to be published.

What is confirmed, and what is not

Confirmed: the date, the two streets, that the switch-on and the traders’ Big Reveal are a single event rather than two, and free parking in every town car park from 10am.

Not yet published: the start time, the switch-on time itself, the entertainment, and the road closure hours. The council’s Christmas lights page simply points readers to its What’s On calendar “for details of the Christmas Lights Switch On this year”, and that calendar has no time against the entry. (East Grinstead Town Council)

For a sense of the shape, the council’s own page for a previous switch-on gives the pattern it has used before: a 4.30pm to 8pm event, the East Grinstead Concert Band from 4.30pm, the mayor switching on the Rotary tree of light and the town council lights together at 5pm, and the High Street and London Road as far as King’s Street closed to traffic from 3pm to 8pm. That was 2023, not 2026, and none of it is confirmed for this year. (East Grinstead Town Council)

We will update this page as soon as the 2026 timings appear.

The lights themselves

The council pays for and installs the display, and replaces the illuminations every fifth year. The current set went up in 2023 on a five-year contract and is, in the council’s words, “twice as energy efficient than the previous LED lighting”. On the same night the Rotary Club lights its tree of light, a separate installation and a separate fundraiser.

The Christmas market, two weeks later

The council’s second festive date is Sunday 6 December, 11am to 3pm, at East Court and Meridian Hall: “Join us for festive fun and Christmas shopping.” East Court is the council-owned Georgian mansion on College Lane, about half a mile from the High Street, with its own parking.

Parking on the day: free from 10am

Mid Sussex District Council has confirmed that all car parks in East Grinstead will be free from 10am on Saturday 21 November for the Big Reveal and Christmas lights switch-on, according to the town council’s end of September newsletter. On a normal Saturday the district’s pay and display charges run to 6pm. (East Grinstead Town Council newsletter, end of September 2026) (Mid Sussex District Council)

The side streets are a different matter. East Grinstead is the district’s only town with on-street controlled parking zones. Zone A operates 9am to 5pm Monday to Saturday excluding bank holidays, and Zone B for two short windows, 10am to 11am and 2pm to 3pm. On a Saturday evening that puts both outside their hours, but the zone map is worth a look before you leave the car. (Mid Sussex District Council)

Our parking page has the charges, and any closures that week will show on our roadworks and travel page.

The rest of the town’s autumn

East Grinstead Town Council’s 2026 listing fixes three other dates worth putting in the diary now:

  • Saturday 17 October: East Grinstead Community Bonfire, with a Remembrance service at the war memorial at 6pm, the torchlit procession from Church Lane at 7pm, and the bonfire and fireworks at East Court at 9pm. Roads across the town centre close from 5.45pm.
  • Sunday 8 November, 10.30am to 12pm: Remembrance Parade and Service, High Street and London Road. King Street, Queensway, Vicarage and Chequer Mead car parks are free from 9am to 1pm that morning.
  • Wednesday 11 November, 11am: Remembrance Day Service at the High Street war memorial, with a two minute silence.

Every confirmed fireworks date across the district is on our Mid Sussex fireworks page, and more of what is on is on our things to do page.

Sources