Winter Solstice @ Stonehenge
Stonehenge and the Solstice
For those who built Stonehenge between 3000 BCE and 2000 BCE, the winter solstice marked when the days once again grew longer. More important than the summer solstice, the winter solstice was a time of feasts and celebrations, with the cattle newly slaughtered and the wine freshly fermented.
Today, the pagan and druid communities continue to celebrate the winter solstice at Stonehenge, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Each year, thousands flock to the Neolithic monument to welcome the new sun – as a result, the winter solstice at Stonehenge is celebrated the morning after the shortest day.
Note that designated times near the solstices are among the only times each year when the public is allowed to enter into the stone circle itself – it’s normally roped off and only accessible on a special £45 tour.
See below for my guide to seeing the winter solstice at Stonehenge by public transport!
Logistic Essentials
Trip length: December 21-22
Dates/times: Sunrise on December 22 (morning after the winter solstice). Taking public transport necessitates spending December 21 in the nearby area.
Location: Stonehenge, UK
Public transport: Take the train/bus to Salisbury on December 21, spend the night in Salisbury, and take the morning 6:20am bus to Stonehenge (£10 return). There are no trains early enough from London to avoid spending the night in Salisbury. The morning bus service is specially offered by the local Salisbury bus company. Check back around the winter solstice for the exact bus schedule!
Cost saving tip: See if it’s cheaper to separately book one-way advance fare non-flexible train tickets and/or one-way advance fare non-flexible bus tickets! Instead of buying round trip train/bus tickets, I bought a one-way advance fare train ticket from London to Salisbury and a one-way advance fare bus ticket from Salisbury back to London, saving £10!
Cost from London: £60 + food (£20-30 for return train/bus tickets from London to Salisbury + £10 return bus tickets from Salisbury to Stonehenge + £25 for overnight lodging). Despite the need for an overnight stay, visiting Stonehenge for the winter solstice costs roughly the same as visiting Stonehenge on a day trip during a normal time of year. For the winter solstice sunrise, there is no entrance fee (normally £17.50/£15.80 for adults/students) and the bus fare is cheaper (normally £15 instead of £10 for the solstice).
Visiting during the winter solstice is cheaper/similar in price than visiting during a normal time of the year!