• More than 50,000 extra coach seats are being added to services over the festive period

• European services to Brussels, Amsterdam and Paris will be operating for the first time on Christmas Day

• National Express will be the only national public transport network on Christmas Day when the rail network shuts

• Rail passengers face travel disruption over the period due to shutdown, limited services, engineering works and planned strikes

National Express will be keeping the UK more connected than ever this Christmas with extra coach services running throughout the festive season, including Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

As rail travellers face Christmas travel disruption due to engineering works, strikes and the annual shut down, the UK’s largest coach operator is adding more than 50,000 extra seats to services over the Christmas period and serving a record 82 locations across its national network on Christmas Day.

In addition, European services to Brussels, Amsterdam and Paris will be operating for the first time on Christmas Day. This is part of an additional 41 European services being added to the Christmas timetable, allowing people to travel further afield to see family and friends or simply experience Christmas in mainland Europe.

National Express Coach Managing Director Chris Hardy said: “Demand for travel by coach is stronger than ever. Advance bookings and forecasts predict an increase on the half a million passengers who travelled with us during the festive period last year.

“The busiest days for travel are expected to be Thursday 27, Sunday 23 and Wednesday 26 December when we will be carrying tens of thousands of passengers.”   

The addition of extra services offers a lifeline to festive travellers who once again will have to contend with widespread disruption scheduled on large parts of the rail network this Christmas and into the New Year.

With no rail services at all on Christmas Day, engineering works affecting trains out of Paddington, Victoria, Euston and Liverpool Street and reduced timetables across all routes over the festive period; passengers will face severe disruption and a limited choice if planning to travel by rail.

There are also planned RMT strikes on Northern Rail services throughout December and potential strikes across further networks.

Chris Hardy added: “National Express is here for anyone wanting great value, convenient travel over the Christmas period.

“It’s a busy time of year and more and more people need to travel during the festive season, including on Christmas Day. We know that just under half of the passengers travelling with us in December are visiting friends and family so by adding tens of thousands more seats on our services, we can help them be together.

“Passengers also benefit from a generous luggage allowance so there’s more room for presents or shopping, a guaranteed seat, power sockets, and TV, magazines and some classic Christmas films through our complimentary on-board entertainment VUER app, meaning the festivities can start from the moment you get on board.”

For more information or to book visit www.nationalexpress.com

Christmas rail disruption:

• RMT strikes will affect Northern Rail services on Saturday 8, 15, 22, 29 December.

• Major engineering works will be undertaken during Christmas and New Year on:

  • London Victoria to Clapham Junction closed

  • London Paddington – all lines closed on 23, 24 and 30 December

  • London Liverpool Street and Stratford – number of lines are closed from 23 December to 1 January

  • London Euston – reduced service operating on most routes to and from the station from 24 to 30 December

• Gatwick Express will not run from 23 December to 1st January

• Heathrow Express will also be closed from 23 – 26 December

• Chiltern Railways running an amended service from 24 to 26 December with no services at all on 25 December

• Virgin Trains will not be running on 25 and 26 December with some line closures due to engineering works at Euston

• All other network operators will not be running on Christmas Day and will have a reduced service from 23 December to 1 January