Christmas 2026 at Disneyland Paris: dates set, program taking shape

The 2026 Christmas season runs from November 7 to January 6. Disney locked in these dates very early, well before the detailed program. Throughout the season, the park opens every single day, including December 24, 25, and 31 as well as January 1. No closures are planned.

The calendar barely moves from year to year: the season kicks off on a Saturday in early November and wraps up on January 6. For reference, the 2024 edition ran from November 9 to January 6, 2025, and the 2025 edition from November 8 to January 6, 2026. The same pattern holds for 2026.

The evening of December 31 is handled differently, with a later closing time and its own setup. I sum up the key points right below.

Here’s the upside: Disney has already shared this edition’s main additions, which means I’m able to give you much more than a pair of dates.

Below is the official 2026 lineup. Anything new this year carries a [New] tag. Showtimes haven’t been released yet, and I’ll add them here the moment Disney posts them.

New or classic, I find that on site the Christmas mood really kicks in toward the end of the day, when the tree lights up and the nighttime parade goes by. That’s the moment the park fully slips into the season.

Beyond the core lineup that returns every year, each edition brings its own additions, and those change from one year to the next. The items below are dated markers from recent seasons. They’re only guaranteed to come back if they appear in the 2026 program listed above.

Here’s what was new in 2025. The show "Disney Princesses Celebrate the Holidays" brought together eight princesses starting November 15. A choir sang live during the tree lighting. The building fronts on Main Street U.S.A. became part of the nighttime show Disney Tales of Magic. Belle greeted guests in her Christmas outfit in Fantasyland. And Mrs. Claus made her first appearance, with a happening and a selfie spot (every 45 minutes). She’s back in 2026 alongside Minnie, at Le Théâtre du Château.

Some earlier editions also had things that haven’t come back since. In 2024, for example, you could catch a Christmas version of the Disney Electrical Sky Parade (a drone show) and a show exclusive to the Disneyland Hotel, both missing from the 2025 lineup. It shows nicely that nothing is a given from one year to the next.

Also worth knowing: since March 2026, the second park has been called Disney Adventure World. For the first time, the Christmas season reaches it too, with World of Frozen (see above). For the exclusives and the hotel box, see my guide to hotel Christmas deals and exclusives.

Disney confirms the Christmas season dates far ahead of time: for 2026, they’re already out. The detailed program (showtimes, the list of new additions, meet and greet locations and time slots), on the other hand, comes out later in the year.

In recent years, that announcement has landed around late summer or early fall. The 2025 program, for example, was revealed in September. The 2026 one came out on September 8.

Exact showtimes usually follow later: I add them here as soon as they’re published.

Crowd levels vary a lot within the season. The quietest stretches are weekdays in late November and early January, once kids are back at school. Generally speaking, weekdays are calmer than weekends.

On the flip side, the French school Christmas break is very busy, and December 31 ranks among the most crowded days of the entire year. If you want to avoid the crowds, I suggest aiming for a weekday outside French school vacation.

If you want a full plan for beating the crowds, with every day broken down, my crowd guide has it all. And my seasons calendar shows where Christmas fits among the rest of the year’s seasons.

This page tracks the program for the current edition. To actually plan your trip (why go, who it suits, which ticket, weather, and practical tips), your starting point is still my main Christmas guide. To pick where to sleep during the season, see the hotels hub. And to compare with seasons gone by, head to the past editions.