Christmas can be such a spenny time of year so ‘tis the season to be frugal wherever possible. If you’re looking for things to do, here is a round-up of the best free Christmas events coming up this December in Brighton.
What Activities can I do for free in Brighton during the 2023 festive period?
Carols In The Park
Oh come all ye faithful… who doesn’t love a festive sing-song? Kicking off December in style, the Friends of Queen’s Park carol service will take place outside the Royal Spa Nursery. This promises to be a real festive treat with The Salvation Army brass band playing and a performance from the Vox Community Choir too. Expect uplifting community singing with mulled wine, mince pies and refreshments on offer.
Don’t forget to wrap up warm and download your carol sheet beforehand from the Friends of Queen’s Park website. This one’s also a great chance to volunteer if that’s your thing. This event relies on volunteers and the organisers need help setting up from 4 pm and clearing down after.
When: Friday the 1st of December – 6.30 pm
Where: Queen’s Park, Brighton, BN2 0QU
Find out more here: https://fqpbrighton.net/5476/all-set-for-carols-in-the-park/
Brilliant Brighton’s Festive Afternoon
You may have seen the Brilliant Brighton Christmas lights lit up in the city centre already. Now, the festive season really begins with Brighton BID’s event designed to spread Christmas cheer and celebrate Small Business Saturday. Festive helpers will be visiting businesses and giving out goodies, a brass band will be playing and “Christmassy performers will be popping up”, say organisers. This is definitely one of the free Christmas events in Brighton that you don’t want to miss!
It’s a great chance to enjoy Brighton’s festive shop windows, which will be competing to be named best dressed. Members of the public can cast votes for their favourite and be in with the chance of winning a £150 Brilliant Brighton gift card. Keep an eye on Brilliant Brighton’s social media for updates.
When: Saturday the 2nd of December – 2 pm to 6 pm
Where: Brighton City Centre
Find out more here: https://brilliantbrighton.com/news/brilliant-brightons-christmas-lights-festive-afternoon/
Sounds Of Arcobaleno Christmas Special
There are always fabulous free Christmas events at this gloriously welcome and inclusive gay bar in Brighton and this is our top pick of the free festive ones – the inaugural Sounds of Arcobaleno – Christmas Edition. “Get ready to jingle all the way,” say organisers. Bringing together some of the best live music usually showcased on Thursday nights at the venue, this Saturday music spectacular will be hosted by Drag Queen Dick Day.
There will be performances from Madz & The Martians, Hoedown Hunnies, Ahno and special guests Classical Hoops. While tickets are free, make sure you book ahead to avoid disappointment.
We also want to make a special mention to Arcobaleno’s pledge that no one spend Christmas Eve or Christmas Day alone this year with an invite for singles, seniors and anyone seeking connection to come sit with them at its communal table.
When: Saturday the 2nd of December – 7 pm
Where: 120 St George’s Rd, Kemptown, BN2 1EA
Find out more here: https://www.designmynight.com/brighton/restaurants/all-brighton/arcobaleno/sounds-of-arcobaleno-christmas-special
Artists Open Houses 2023 Winter Festival
Artists Open Houses festival is back for the winter and best of all it’s free. While you might want to do some Christmas shopping and support local artists and makers, sometimes in their homes, it’s a great chance to view art in a unique way this festive season. Some venues will be offering Christmas delicacies and a glass of something mulled. The Pink Door Open House will also have a family show, which includes spoken word performances.
There are also free festive workshops on offer as part of the Open House at Rose Hill Court. There’s the chance to make decoupage gifts for Christmas on December 2, elegant wire tree decorations on December 3, needle-felted Christmas decorations on December 9 and a holly-making craft session on December 10. Materials will be provided but booking via Eventbrite is essential.
We scoured the places on offer for the most festive picks and we’ve chosen David Streeter and Friends, at 54 Osborne Villas, Hove, BN3 2RB, with items including needle felt Santa decorations and we love the printed robin greeting cards on sale at The GloohBaah House
22a The Drove, BN1 5AF.
There will be live music and refreshments at Wits’ End, 40 Robertson Road, BN1 5NJ and we can’t get enough of Kate Jenkins’s Cake Wreath and Knitmas Dinner which you’ll find at her studio in Unit 5 Arundel Mews, 13-18 Arundel Place, BN2 1GG.
Browse the map and guide online and plan your route for a day of exploring, with venues ranging from West Hove to Rottingdean and beyond.
When: Saturday the 2nd and 9th and Sunday the 3rd and 10th of December. 11 am to 5 pm but some may vary. Some venues are also open on weekdays.
Where: Various venues across town
Find out more here: https://aoh.org.uk/
Santa Dash including a Free Kids Race
It’s free to watch and cheer at the Brighton Santa Dash, which is a super fun event that will see hundreds of joggers, runners and walkers dressed as Santa to take part in this charity fundraiser. Before the adult event starts, there’s a free kid 400m race at 10.20 am.
At 10.30 am the 5km Santa Dash will begin, with participants running 2.5km up the Seafront Esplanade to Hove Lagoon and back again. This is a great photo opportunity. Make sure you cheer loudly!
When: Saturday the 9th of December – 10.20 am
Where: Hove Lawns, Kingsway, Brighton, BN3 2PE
Find out more here: https://santadashbrighton.co.uk/
Brighton and Hove City Brass Band at Yellowave
Brighton and Hove City Brass Band will be playing festive classics at this free event at Yellowave in Kemptown. Alongside the usual offerings from the cafe, there will be hot chocolate, Christmas crepes, mince pies and mulled wine. Yellowave says: “We cannot wait. We LOVE XMAS!”
When: Saturday the 16th of December – 2 pm to 3 pm
Where: Yellowave Beach Sports Venue, 299 Madeira Drive, Brighton, BN2 1EN
Find out more here: https://yellowave.co.uk/
Burning The Clocks
If you find Christmas too commercial, then this one’s for you. Burning The Clocks is the largest Winter Solstice Event in England and is a unique community event held by artist-led charity Same Sky on the shortest day of the year – December 21 – since 1994. Burning The Clocks brings together people to parade through the city with paper and willow lanterns before burning them on a big bonfire on Brighton Beach.
Organisers say it’s a celebration of the turning of the year and “also a time for reflection and thought, who are we? Where have we been? Where are we going? What do we want for our City?” The event is free but Lantern Packs can be bought to support the event via the website or at local retail partners including Infinity Foods and The Jubilee Library.
Burning The Clocks, which is supported by Arts Council England and the Chalk Cliff Trust, is also a fantastic volunteering opportunity if you fancy supporting it in that way. More details via the website.
When: Thursday the 21st of December
Where: Lower Esplanade, Brighton
Find out more here: https://samesky.co.uk/events/burning-the-clocks/
The Free Brighton Choir
“If you want a free singalong, there’s a place and a time for that,” say organisers of the Free Brighton Choir. The time: 7 pm on Thursdays, The place: Brighton Youth Centre is where it’s at. Things are certainly getting festive for the joyful free choir, who have been singing The Darkness’s Christmas Time and Hark The Herald Angels Sing at recent rehearsals. In fact, festive songs kicked off at the start of November with Wonderful Christmastime.
This friendly choir says it tends to steer clear of traditional choir music, opting instead for classic pop and rock that should be familiar. Apparently, the choir is always looking for new recruits and while there are no auditions, age or ability restrictions, they ask members to commit to coming along every week as much as possible.
When: Thursdays, 7 pm to 8 pm
Where: Brighton Youth Centre, 64 Edward Street, Brighton, BN2 0JR
Christmas Markets
There are several Christmas market events running from now until the end of the year throughout Brighton and what we love about these is most are free entry and often there’s music and entertainment on offer. Check out our top picks here.
Brighton Pub Carols
Singers, musicians and anyone else interested in singing carols might like to join the Brighton Pub Carols group as they will be singing in various pubs in December (expect festive decorations!).
The group raises money for charity and plans to sing at :
- The Chimney House – 28 Upper Hamilton Road, BN1 5DF on Tuesday, December 12 at 8 pm
- The Napier – 50 Southover St, BN2 9UE on Saturday, December 16 at 7.30 pm
- The Park Crescent – 39 Park Crescent Terrace, BN2 3HE on Tuesday, December 19 at 8 pm.
Keep an eye on Facebook events for further dates.
We hope you enjoy We Love Brighton’s selection of free festive things to do this December. Is there a free festive activity you think we should know about? Let us know via social media @WeLoveBrighton on Instagram.
