In the chaos of the festive season it’s easy to forget vital parts of Christmas dinner or small gifts for surprise gifts. However, bank holidays and store closures may make it far more difficult to find last-minute groceries during Christmas and the new year.
Shoppers should be aware that the vast majority of supermarkets will be completely closed on December 25, with Aldi, Lidl and M&S also closed on December 26. However, most stores will be running normal hours between the holidays and most will be open, although later than usual, on New Year’s Day but its best to check with their local store before heading out.
Aldi
Aldi will remain open on Christmas Eve until 6pm and will reopen from 8am to 8pm on December 27, 28 and 30. On December 29 stores will be open from 9:30am until 4pm and it will close at 6pm on December 31, returning to normal operating hours on January 2.
Asda
Asda stores will be completely closed on Christmas Day too but open on every other day of the festive season with some reduced hours. December 24 will see stores closing at 7pm and December 26 should see stores open from 9am to 6pm.
Normal opening hours apply from December 27 to December 30. December 31 will have stores closing at 7pm and they will reopen at 9am on New Year’s Day.
Lidl
All Lidl stores will be closed for Christmas Day and New Years Day, with most also being closed on Boxing Day. December 24 and December 31 will see stores closing early at 6pm while the rest of the holidays should have normal opening hours although it’s best to check with your local stores.
Marks and Spencer
All Marks and Spencers stores will close at 7pm on December 24 and only open up again on December 27. It will run normal operating hours and then close at 7pm on December 31 and reopen on January 2.
Morrisons
Morrisons will close on December 24 between 6pm and 7pm at most stores and will only reopen on December 26 from 9am to 6pm. Stores should open between 6am and 7am on December 31 but will close at 7pm.
On New Year’s Day, stores will be open from 9am to 6pm. Morrisons filling stations will close at 6:30pm on December 24 and open back up at around 8.30am on December 26 until 6:30pm.
Sainsbury’s
Sainsbury’s stores across the country will be closed on December 25 but the rest of the holidays will see convenience, superstores and local stores having different opening hours. Convenience stores will close at 9pm on December 24 and January 1.
Local stores will open from 9am to 9pm on December 26 and 6am to 9pm on December 31. However, most other Sainsbury’s stores will close at 7pm on December 24, 6pm on December 26 and will only be open from 10am to 7pm on December 31. Their online services will also be closed on December 25 and 26.
Tesco
Tesco’s opening hours vary from store to store, but most will be completely closed on December 25 including petrol stations. Most Tesco Extras and superstores will be open from 9am to 7pm on Christmas Eve, December 24.
December 26 will also have different opening hours from 9am to 6pm for Tesco Extras and superstores. Express shops should be open until 7pm. Local Tesco’s will stay open until 10pm on December 31, and most superstores and Express shops will open at 8am on the first day of 2025.
Waitrose
Waitrose will likely be the only supermarket open on Christmas Day but only at Welcome Break Service stations and Shell forecourts. Most stores will be closed during December 26 and January 1 although some may be available for Deliveroo or Uber Eats orders, but shoppers are advised to check their local store’s opening hours during the holidays.