Bath BID reveals five-year festive lights plan and Snowman trail

A new five-year programme of Christmas lighting is set to begin in Bath this year, alongside a festive sculpture trail featuring 12 giant versions of The Snowman.

How the new lights may look | Image © Bath BID

Bath Business Improvement District (BID) has unveiled plans to gradually expand its Christmas lighting across the city centre, working with The Festive Lighting Company on a theme of “Understated Elegance”.

The scheme is intended to complement Bath’s architecture while adding more reasons for people to visit the city during the festive period.

Allison Herbert, chief executive of Bath BID, said: “We have launched a new five year programme of Christmas lighting starting this year.

“Bath is famous for its fabulous world class Christmas market, and this year, we want to add more reasons to visit the city.”

Jonathan Bradford, director of The Festive Lighting Company, said: “We’re incredibly proud to be part of the team behind Bath’s Christmas lighting for the next five years.

“There’s nowhere quite like Bath and helping to add a touch of sparkle to the architecture is exactly the kind of work we love.”

Another addition for Christmas 2026 will be the “Walking with the Snowman” trail, featuring 12 larger-than-life representations of Raymond Briggs’ Snowman across the city centre.

The trail will run from 19th November until 31st January, with families encouraged to find all 12 sculptures.

It will coincide with *The World of The Snowman* exhibition at Victoria Art Gallery, which runs from 20th November 2026 until 28th February 2027.

Bath Philharmonia will also perform alongside a screening of The Snowman at The Forum Bath on 19th December.

Families will have opportunities to meet The Snowman in person on 19th and 21st November, while businesses across Bath are being encouraged to take part through themed window displays, events and other decorations.

Organisations supporting the sculpture trail include Bath Abbey, Victoria Art Gallery, Thermae Bath Spa, Wylde Jewellers, SouthGate Bath, The Apex City of Bath, Visit West and the Fudge Factory.

Nicholas Wylde, owner of Wylde Jewellers, said: “This is the third year running that we’ve been proud to sponsor a Bath BID trail, and it never gets old.

“Bath has given so much to us as a business, and trails like ‘Walking with the Snowman’ are a wonderful way to give something back to the city and the families who visit it.”