Leamington's Lantern Parade is Sunday 6 December, gathering 4.15pm at the Pump Room Gardens bandstand. Free lantern workshops on four November weekends.

The Leamington Lantern Parade is on Sunday 6 December 2026. Families gather at the bandstand in the Royal Pump Room Gardens from 4.15pm and the parade sets off at about 5pm, finishing with carols at the Town Hall. It is free, and so are the lantern-making workshops on four weekends in November. The date and times are on the parade’s own website, run by BID Leamington, and in BID Leamington’s 2026 events diary.

The quick answer

  • When: Sunday 6 December 2026. Meet from 4.15pm, parade sets off about 5pm.
  • Where it starts: the Bandstand, Royal Pump Room Gardens, CV32 4AA.
  • Where it ends: the Christmas tree at the Town Hall on the Parade, with carols.
  • Cost: free to take part and free to watch.
  • Workshops: Saturday 7, Sunday 15, Saturday 21 and Sunday 29 November, 11am to 3pm, Royal Priors. No booking.

The evening

From 4.15pm there is family entertainment at the bandstand with West End singer David Harrop and stilt walkers while the lanterns gather. At about 5pm the parade loops around the gardens and then, per the organisers’ route page, heads up Bedford Street to Warwick Street, turns right towards the Parade and follows the Parade down to the Town Hall. For a shorter walk, families can go straight to the Town Hall by the lower part of the Parade.

It finishes at the Town Hall Christmas tree with carols and Christmas songs led by David Harrop and Royal Spa Brass, and the organisers say you might find Santa there too. Glowing stilt walkers and “magical angels” lead the parade.

If you are watching rather than walking, the organisers suggest starting in the Pump Room Gardens to see the lanterns gather, then moving to the Town Hall once the parade sets off.

The parade goes ahead in the rain. The organisers say lanterns are “amazingly resilient”, and ask for warm clothes and wellies because the route follows the garden paths.

Free lantern-making workshops in November

BID Leamington runs four drop-in workshops, all 11am to 3pm in the former M&S unit on the Upper Mall of the Royal Priors shopping centre, per its workshops page:

Date Time
Saturday 7 November 11am to 3pm
Sunday 15 November 11am to 3pm
Saturday 21 November 11am to 3pm
Sunday 29 November 11am to 3pm

What to know before you go:

  • No booking. Places go first come, first served from 11am, and entry may be limited from 2pm depending on numbers and materials.
  • Allow one to two hours per lantern.
  • They are frame-making only: you build the willow frame there and take the wet-strength tissue paper home to finish it, because there is no gluing at the workshop.
  • The organisers recommend one adult per lantern, as children find the frames tricky alone.
  • They get busier as the parade gets closer, so the early dates are the quieter ones.

Sunday 15 November is also the day of the Leamington Christmas lights switch-on, so expect the town centre to be very busy that afternoon.

Making one at home

Lantern-making packs, with instructions, a bundle of withy, a bamboo carrying pole and wet-strength tissue paper, are available from the BID Leamington office and at the workshops for a suggested donation of £3. You buy your own masking tape, PVA glue and lights. The BID office is typically open Monday to Thursday, 10am to 3pm, cash only, and asks you to ring 01926 470 634 or email info@bidleamington.com first to arrange collection.

Toy collection

The parade is also collecting new toys for local children, to be handed out on Christmas Eve. Bring them to a workshop or to the parade, at the bandstand or the Town Hall. If you wrap a gift, mark it boy or girl and an approximate age from 0 to 18.

Lost children and keeping warm

The organisers’ instructions: if a child is lost, speak to a steward or the police. While the parade is still in the gardens, take the child to the bandstand; once it has left, to the Town Hall entrance or the first aid vehicle near the Town Hall. If you get cold, the organisers point you to the foyer of the Travelodge (Regent Hotel).

Parking

The organisers name St Peter’s multi-storey (CV32 5EL) as the nearby car park. The parade has not published any road closures, and the Leamington Christmas market is on the Parade the same day until 5pm. See our parking in Leamington page for charges and the roadworks and travel page before you set off.

Fifteen years of lanterns

BID Leamington says the parade began in 2010, inspired by the Lights of Leamington illuminations in Jephson Gardens from 1951 to 1961, and now draws around 1,000 families and 3,000 visitors. Its report on the 2025 parade, the 15th, describes hundreds of lanterns, many of them fish and favourite pets, and a finale with Santa and carols at the Town Hall.

The day before, Saturday 5 December, is Small Business Saturday, with free off-street parking in the council car parks and Royal Priors according to BID Leamington. Our Christmas markets page has the rest of the season.

Every date and time above was taken from the Leamington Lantern Parade website and BID Leamington’s events diary on 3 October 2026. Tell us if something changes: hello@theleamingtonpost.co.uk.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Leamington Lantern Parade 2026?

Sunday 6 December 2026. Families meet at the bandstand in the Royal Pump Room Gardens from 4.15pm, and the parade sets off at about 5pm.

Where does the Leamington Lantern Parade go?

From the Royal Pump Room Gardens up Bedford Street to Warwick Street, then right towards the Parade and down the Parade to the Town Hall, where it ends with carols by the Christmas tree.

When are the free lantern workshops in Leamington?

Saturday 7, Sunday 15, Saturday 21 and Sunday 29 November 2026, 11am to 3pm, in the former M&S unit on the Upper Mall of Royal Priors. No booking is needed; places are first come, first served.

Does the Lantern Parade go ahead in the rain?

Yes. The organisers say the event goes ahead if it rains, and ask people to wrap up warm and wear wellies.