Sparkling Christmas fun: Family Festivities returns to Markeaton Park
Mon 24 Nov 2025
The annual Family Festivities Christmas extravaganza at Markeaton Park returns for 2025. The free, weekend-long event takes place on Sat 6 Dec and Sun 7 Dec.
It promises a blend of live music, shopping, and seasonal activities designed for the whole community. The park will be transformed into a bustling Christmas hub featuring a lively outdoor market, a craft fair, and free entertainment. Visitors will be able to enjoy festive food, go on an elf trail and post a letter to Father Christmas.
Children will love exploring the picturesque park while they take part in the Elf Trail. Just grab a free trail map from The Orangery or print of your own map and search for the wonderfully-crafted wooden elf houses hidden throughout the park. Find all the letters along the way and unscramble the festive word to enter our free prize draw to win a voucher for Mundy Play Centre. Enter before Friday 12 December and you could win a family ticket to see Dick Whittington at Derby Arena. You can enter the competition by telling us the word you found, plus your name and email address in the form below or hand it in at our post box at Markeaton Park Craft Village.
Cllr Nadine Peatfield, Leader of Derby City Council and Cabinet Member for City Centre, Regeneration, Strategy and Policy, said:
Family Festivities is a fantastic, free celebration right in the heart of our community. With music, local traders and family fun set against the beautiful backdrop of Markeaton Park, it’s a magical part of Derby’s festive calendar.
Get some Christmas shopping done with a fantastic selection of cards, gifts, decorations and much more in the Markeaton Park Craft Village, while you can peruse the stalls at the indoor and outdoor craft market.
There will be a selection of hand-crafted items, including seasonal plants, homemade pottery, bespoke fabric goods, speciality Christmas decorations and handcrafted greetings cards. Festive food will be available, including pizza from Dough2Go and fresh baked goods from Orchard House Patisserie, along with seasonal treats from The Orangery. The Friends of Markeaton stall will also offer plants, mulled wine, tea, and coffee.
The event will feature a fantastic programme of live festive music across both days. On Saturday 6 December, the schedule includes the Derby Concert Band (11am – 12pm), a joint performance by Derby Serenaders & Local Vocals (12:10pm – 1:10pm), and the Derwent Valley Developer Band (1:50pm – 3pm). On Sunday 7 December, the Derwent Valley Wind Band will perform from 11am – 11:45am and again from 12:15pm – 1pm.
Family Festivities takes place on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 December from 11am until 3pm. For all the programme updates, check the event page on Facebook or the Festive Derby website.
Music Programme
Sat 6 Dec
11am – 12noon – Derby Concert Band
12:10pm – 12:40pm - Derby Serenaders
12:40pm – 1:10pm - Derby Serenaders & Local Vocals together
1:50pm – 2:20pm - Derwent valley developer band
2:30pm - 3pm - Derwent valley developer band
Sun 7 Dec
11am – 11:45am - Derwent Valley Wind Band
12:15pm – 1pm - Derwent Valley Wind Band
Confirmed stalls
- Eves Plants – Seasonal Plants (Mainly Home Grown) Hand crafted wood and decoupaged gifts
- Lilyann Gifts - Handmade Christmas Gifts - Decorations - Jar Luminares and Bottles -Children’s Toys - 3D Toys - Croc charms - Gifts for Christmas - Filled Mugs - Cards made by children - Angel Card reading.
- Oh Sew Peach - Fabric Bespoke bags.
- Everyone Active Moorways – Advertising.
- Foot Prince - Homemade pottery items.
- Allestree Crafts - Christmas gifts and decorations, specialising in gonks.
- Friends of Markeaton – Plants, Mulled Wine, tea and coffee.
- Cards By Sue - handcrafted greetings cards, gift tags, gift bags, handstamped wrapping paper and memory albums.
- Dough2Go – Pizza.
- Orchard House Patisserie - Bake fresh baked goods.
Elf Trail
Join in the fun with the Elf Trail around Markeaton Park. Once you have the name, enter the free prize draw below, to win 4 tickets for Derby LIVE Dick Whittington pantomime at Derby Arena.
T&Cs apply, Closing date for entries is Fri 12 Dec, 23:59pm
