Steam Into Christmas

Didcot

Didcot Railway Centre
Available from 6 December 2025 to 23 December 2025

Extra discount with promo code DAYSOUT! 

Spend Christmas at Didcot Railway Centre with Steam Into Christmas 2025

  • There's an emergency at Didcot Railway Centre - Santa's reindeer have run off and are lost!
  • The team at Didcot Railway need you to help find Santa's reindeer before Christmas
  • Explore the unique collection of steam locomotives & small artefacts whilst you locate the reindeer

Steam Into Christmas at Didcot Railway Centre

  • Dates: 6 & 7 December, 13 & 14 December, 20-23 December 2025
  • Gates Open: 9:30am
  • Duration: Allow around 2 to 3 hours
  • Closing Time: 4:00pm
  • Location: Didcot Railway Centre, Station Rd, Didcot OX11 7NJ
  • Tickets include: Access to Didcot Railway Centre, Museum, Unlimited train rides, Access to Reindeer Stations, Small gift, Visit to Santa

What's On this Christmas at Didcot Railway Centre?

Santa's reindeer have gone on the run, but he needs them to help him deliver Christmas presents on Christmas Eve! Grab a passport and stocking at Didcot Railway Centre and search for Santa's missing reindeers - if you find them, you'll receive a small gift! Afterwards, make your way on over to meet the man himself - Father Christmas! - and choose your own gift from a selection.

  • Explore Didcot Railway Centre's 21-acre museum & visit the Reindeer Stations
  • Grab a passport and fill out your findings as you go
  • At each Reindeer Station, you'll receive a small gift
  • Visit Santa in the giant toy workshop & tell him what you'd like for Christmas
  • Choose a Christmas present from the selection on offer
  • Enjoy unlimited train rides on the main demonstration line
  • Feeling peckish? Head to the onsite cafe for festive refreshments!

Stop searching for 'Christmas events near me' and start searching for reindeers at Didcot Railway Centre! Book Steam Into Christmas tickets today and have them delivered instantly via email & SMS. 

Location

Didcot Railway Centre

Station Road,
Didcot,
Oxfordshire,
OX11 7NJ
Show on Google Maps

How To Find Us

On arrival, the entrance to the Railway Centre is through the ticket hall of the Didcot Parkway mainline railway station.

Didcot is 53 miles west of London, 10 miles south of Oxford and almost halfway between London and Bristol on Brunel's original Great Western Railway.

By train:

Great Western Railway trains serve Didcot Parkway with direct services from London Paddington, Reading and Thames Valley, Oxford, the Midlands, Swindon, Bath, Bristol and South Wales.

Visitors arriving by train should follow the signs to the Railway Centre in the subway as you leave the platforms at Didcot Parkway. Turn right at the bottom of the steps from the platforms and you will see the double doors to the entrance.

By bus:

Thames Travel run daily services from Oxford & Abingdon and Wallingford.

Buses stop at the front of Didcot Parkway railway station.

By car:

The Railway Centre is signposted from the M4 (junction 13) and the A34, follow the brown signs to Didcot Railway Centre. It can also be accessed from the M40 and A34. Take the turning for the Milton Interchange.

If you are using a SAT-NAV to find the site, please do not use the address for Didcot Railway Centre as this will take you into the middle of a housing estate. 

There are no car parks operated at Didcot Railway Centre, however, there are three options available for use nearby. The main railway station multi-storey car park (Foxhall Rd) is the only one that takes cash or card payments. This car park is your destination if you follow the brown signs to Didcot Railway Centre.

The car park does not have a postcode. Use the What3Words: caves.wades.slanting to find the car park

From the car park, leave on foot, via the covered walkway from Level 2 which leads to the front of Didcot Parkway station.

Facilities
  • Refreshment rooms
  • Picnic area
  • Shop
  • Toilets
  • Baby-changing facilities
More Info
What are the Didcot Railway Centre locomotives in traffic?

The locomotives currently in traffic at Didcot Railway Centre include: 

  • 1340 - Trojan - GWR (Avonside) 0-4-0 Saddle Tank Locomotive
  • 2999 - Lady of Legend - GWR 4-6-0 Tender Locomotive
  • 4079 - Pendennis Castle - GWR 4-6-0 Tender Locomotive
  • 4144 - GWR 2-6-2 Prairie Tank
  • 2409 - King George - Hunslet 0-6-0 Tank Locomotive
  • 31 270 - Athena - Brush Type 2 Diesel Electric
  • D9516 - Class 14 0-6-0 Teddy Bear Ex BR(WR) Diesel Hydraulic
  • 08604 - Phantom - Class 08 0-6-0 BR Diesel-electric shunter
Are dogs allowed at Didcot Railway Centre?

Well-behaved dogs are welcome to the centre but should be kept on a lead at all times. Please make sure to pick up after your dog. Only assistance dogs are allowed at the refreshment rooms. 

Is Didcot Railway Museum wheelchair accessible?

A new entrance ramp is in the process of being installed at Didcot Railway Centre, with a ceremonial opening set to take place in February 2024. 

There is currently an unavoidable 18-step entrance to the site. 

From the main entrance, there is level access to: 

  • Engine Shed
  • Transfer Shed
  • The Signalling Centre
  • GWT Museum
  • Accessible Toilet
  • Refreshment room
  • Shop
  • Picnic area
How long should I spend at Didcot Railway Centre?

You should allow at least two hours to explore everything that the Didcot Railway Centre has to offer. 

How long is the track at Didcot Railway Centre?

There are two demonstration lines which provide unlimited train rides all day (breaking only for lunch). Each demonstration line is about half a mile long.

More things to do nearby

Things to do

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