We checked 11 Boxing Day walks on the Wirral, from the Hoylake tug o'war to Bidston Hill, for what is open on 26 December and where to park. Updated November 2026.
There are 11 Boxing Day walks on the Wirral for 2026, and this guide puts them in one place with what is open on Saturday 26 December, where to park and what is shut. Most people head for Hoylake promenade for the midday tug o’war, the Wirral Way at Thurstaston, Thurstaston Common and Royden Park, or Birkenhead Park. Every entry was checked against the owner’s own site on 11 November 2026.
Plan around the light. The sun rises at about 8.30am and sets at about 4pm on the Wirral on Boxing Day, so start anything longer than an hour by 1.30pm. That matters most on the beaches and at Hilbre, where the tide decides when you can walk.
Plan around the transport. Last Boxing Day Merseyrail ran a half-hourly service from about 9.30am to 7pm, calling at selected stations only, and it has not yet published its 2026 times. Our Christmas trains and travel page will have them when it does.
What is shut. Tam O’Shanter Urban Farm on Bidston Hill closes on Boxing Day, the Birkenhead Park visitor centre and cafe are shut on 25 and 26 December, and Port Sunlight Museum is shut 24 to 26 December. The parks themselves stay open.
The Dee coast: Hoylake, West Kirby and Thurstaston
1. Hoylake promenade and the Boxing Day tug o’war
The one fixed event of the Wirral’s Boxing Day. Hoylake RNLI and Hoylake Sailing Club have pulled for the Slater Trophy, a small teapot from the Cammell Laird boardroom, every Boxing Day since 1972.
Last year, the RNLI said, it started at 12 midday outside the lifeboat station on North Parade, free to watch, with refreshments in the sailing club afterwards. The Guide Liverpool reported a crowd of about a thousand, and the lifeboat crew won and raised over £2,500.
The 2026 details are usually announced the week before Christmas. Before or after, walk the promenade south-west towards Red Rocks and West Kirby, or the other way along the front towards Meols.
Open promenade open all the time; tug o'war at midday on Boxing Day in previous years
Price free; collection for the RNLI
Address Hoylake RNLI lifeboat station, North Parade, Hoylake
Website rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/hoylake-lifeboat-station
Good for a Boxing Day tradition, a flat sea-front walk, children
2. Hilbre Islands, from West Kirby
The Wirral’s best-known walk, and the one that needs most planning on Boxing Day. The Friends of Hilbre say cross from the Dee Lane slipway three hours after high tide and leave the island at least three hours before the next high tide, walking via Little Eye and never setting out from Hoylake.
The council puts the crossing at 45 minutes to an hour each way over wet sand and rock, with toilets and a small shelter on the island but no cafe. With sunset at about 4pm, the walk only works if the safe window opens in the morning; if it does not, walk the promenade round the Marine Lake instead.
Tide times are on the slipway noticeboard. In an emergency dial 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
Open tide dependent; daylight on 26 December about 8.30am to 4pm
Address Dee Lane slipway, West Kirby, CH48
Parking pay and display on Dee Lane
Toilets on Hilbre Island
Access wet sand and rock; not suitable for wheelchairs or pushchairs
Website hilbreisland.info
Good for seals and wading birds, a proper expedition, dogs on short leads
3. The Wirral Way at Wirral Country Park, Thurstaston
The safest Boxing Day choice on the peninsula, because the cafe and toilets are open. Wirral Council says the visitor centre, cafe and toilets are open seven days a week, closed only on Christmas Day, from 10am to 3.30pm between October and March.
The Wirral Way runs 12 miles along the old railway from West Kirby towards Hooton, level and firm underfoot, so it suits pushchairs and new bikes; walk down to Thurstaston beach for the estuary, though there is no wheelchair access to the beach. Bird hide, Changing Places toilet and paid parking.
Open visitor centre, cafe and toilets 10am to 3.30pm on 26 December (closed Christmas Day only)
Price parking £1.20 an hour, £6 over four hours; card, phone or JustPark
Address Station Road, Thurstaston, CH61 0HN
Toilets yes, with baby changing and a Changing Places toilet
Access level old railway path; no wheelchair access to the beach
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/wirral-country-park
Good for a cafe that is open, pushchairs, new bikes, estuary views
4. Thurstaston Common and Royden Park
Heath, woodland and sandstone outcrops on the highest ground in west Wirral, owned by the National Trust and the council, with Royden Park next door. The Woodland Trust describes many paths criss-crossing the common from the car park off Telegraph Road, with Royden Park reachable on foot.
The council says Royden is open dawn till dusk all year round, with a lake, walled garden, woodland and heathland walks, a cafe and toilets, though it gives no Christmas hours for the cafe. A loop from Thurstaston Hill to Royden lake and back makes a good hour.
Open Royden Park dawn to dusk all year; the common is open land
Address Royden Park, Hillbark Road, Frankby, CH48 1NP; common car park off Telegraph Road
Parking Royden Park paid, £1.20 an hour; Telegraph Road car park
Toilets at Royden Park
Access sandy and rocky paths on the common; firmer paths in Royden Park
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/royden-park
Good for views over the Dee, dogs, a woodland and heath loop
5. Heswall Dales Local Nature Reserve
Lowland heath over sandstone, a Site of Special Scientific Interest since 1979, with views across the Dee to Wales. The council says it is open 24 hours and free, with six access points; the main route crosses the heath from Oldfield Road to Bushway, off Delavor Road.
All the paths are rough or uneven. There are no car parks and no toilets, so park on the roads nearby and plan lunch in Heswall village.
Open 24 hours, all year
Price free
Address Oldfield Road, Heswall, CH60 6SN
Parking on-street only
Access rough and uneven paths, not suited to wheelchairs
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/heswall-dales
Good for a short heathland walk, sunset views over Wales, dogs
Birkenhead, Bidston and Woodchurch
6. Bidston Hill
Heath and woodland with the windmill, lighthouse and old observatory on top, and views to the Liverpool waterfront one way and Wales the other. The council lists self-guided trails and the rhododendron collection in Park Wood.
The usual base is Tam O’Shanter Urban Farm on Boundary Road, but the farm says it is closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day, so there will be no cafe or toilets there. Park on Vyner Road North instead, or walk up from Bidston station if it has a train that day.
Open open land, all year; Tam O'Shanter Farm closed 26 December
Address Boundary Road, Bidston, CH43 7PD
Parking Vyner Road North
Toilets none on Boxing Day
Access very limited wheelchair access onto the hill
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/bidston-hill
Good for the windmill and lighthouse, city and Welsh views, dogs
7. Birkenhead Park
The world’s first publicly funded park, opened in 1847 and the model for Central Park. The council says the park is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, but the visitor centre, with the cafe and the public toilets, is closed on 25 and 26 December and 1 January.
A circuit of both lakes, over the Swiss bridge and past the boathouse, takes under an hour on surfaced paths. Vehicle access is restricted, so come on foot or park on the surrounding streets.
Open park 24 hours; visitor centre, cafe and toilets closed 26 December
Price free
Address Park Drive, Birkenhead, CH41 4HY
Toilets none on Boxing Day
Access surfaced paths round the lakes
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/birkenhead-park
Good for pushchairs, a flat lake circuit, history
8. Arrowe Country Park, Woodchurch
About 250 acres of parkland, ponds and deciduous woodland in the middle of the peninsula, and big enough to lose the crowds. The council says the park is open all year round, with vehicle access and parking from dawn till dusk; the cafe by the golf shop keeps winter hours of 8am to 3pm, though the council gives no Christmas hours, so ring 0151 677 2965 before relying on it.
There is an orienteering course for anyone who wants a route to follow, and toilets.
Open all year; car park dawn to dusk
Price parking £1.20 an hour, £6 over four hours
Call 0151 677 2965
Address Arrowe Park Road, Woodchurch, CH49 5LW
Toilets yes
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/arrowe-country-park
Good for woodland walks, an orienteering course, children's adventure playground
The north coast and the Mersey
9. North Wirral Coastal Park, Meols to New Brighton
Four miles of coast and 200 acres between Dove Point at Meols and Kings Parade at New Brighton, passing Leasowe Lighthouse on the way. The council lists walking, cycling and birdwatching along the sea wall.
It is open coast with no gates, and the easiest long walk on the peninsula to do one way and come back by train, if Merseyrail’s Boxing Day service calls at Meols, Moreton or New Brighton. It is exposed in a westerly, so wrap up.
Open open coast, all year
Price free
Address Pasture Road, Moreton, CH46 4TH
Access sea wall promenade, level
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/north-wirral-coastal-park
Good for a long flat walk, Leasowe Lighthouse, sea views
10. Eastham Country Park
Woodland on the Wirral bank of the Mersey, with some of the finest mature trees on the peninsula and cliffs over the estuary’s mudflats. The council says the park and car parks are open dawn till dusk, and the visitor centre, courtyard and toilets 10am to 4pm, without a Christmas exception published; the Mimosa Tea Garden opens in spring and summer only.
There is a dog-free area and the old bear pit.
Open park and car parks dawn to dusk; visitor centre and toilets 10am to 4pm
Price parking £1.20 an hour, £6 over four hours
Address Ferry Road, Eastham, CH62 0BH
Toilets at the visitor centre
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/eastham-country-park
Good for river views, wading birds, a dog-free area for children
11. Brotherton Park and Dibbinsdale, Bromborough
A 54-hectare river valley with one of the largest areas of ancient woodland on the Wirral, a Site of Special Scientific Interest with a Green Flag. The council says the park and car park are open dawn to dusk all year; the visitor centre, walled garden and toilets open only when a ranger is on duty, so do not count on them on a bank holiday.
Paths in the valley bottom get muddy after rain.
Open park and car park dawn to dusk, all year
Price free
Toilets only when a ranger is on duty
Access woodland paths, muddy after rain
Website wirral.gov.uk/leisure-parks-and-events/parks-and-open-spaces/find-park-or-open-space/brotherton-park-and
Good for ancient woodland, a quieter walk, dogs
12. Port Sunlight village
A walk round the soap village built for Lever Brothers’ workers in 1888, through The Dell and the long rose garden, which the Port Sunlight Village Trust says are open to everyone and good for dog walks. The museum is closed on 24, 25 and 26 December, so there are no tours, trail packs or museum tea room that day; the streets and gardens are free to wander.
The village is flat, and Port Sunlight station is on the Wirral Line.
Open streets and gardens open all the time; museum closed 24 to 26 December
Price free
Access mostly flat
Website portsunlightvillage.com/visit
Good for architecture, a flat stroll, dogs
How we chose
These are the walks people on the Wirral search for at Christmas: the coast, the country parks and the heaths, chosen for what is open on Boxing Day. Opening times, parking charges and closures come from Wirral Council’s park and parking pages, the Friends of Hilbre, the Woodland Trust, the RNLI, Tam O’Shanter Urban Farm and the Port Sunlight Village Trust. We will add the 2026 tug o’war time and Merseyrail’s Boxing Day trains when they are announced. Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@wirralonline.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@wirralonline.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.
For more ideas, see our year-round guide to walks near Wirral, things to do in Wirral, what’s on in Wirral this month and the Wirral playgrounds guide. For somewhere to eat afterwards, try our Wirral pubs guide, and for the day before, pubs open on Christmas Day.
Frequently asked questions
What is on in Hoylake on Boxing Day?
The Slater Trophy Tug o’War between Hoylake RNLI and Hoylake Sailing Club, pulled every Boxing Day since 1972. Last year it started at 12 midday outside the lifeboat station on North Parade, was free to watch and drew about a thousand people. The RNLI usually confirms the details a week or so before Christmas.
Can you walk to Hilbre Island on Boxing Day?
Only if the tide allows it and you can be back before dark. The Friends of Hilbre say cross from West Kirby three hours after high tide and leave at least three hours before the next one. On 26 December the sun sets at about 4pm, so a crossing window that falls in the afternoon is no use. Check the tide times nearer the day.
Do you have to pay to park at Wirral country parks on Boxing Day?
Yes. Wirral Council charges at Arrowe, Eastham, Royden and Wirral country parks from 8am to 6.30pm every day except Christmas Day, so the charges apply on Boxing Day: £1.20 an hour up to £6 for more than four hours, by card, phone or JustPark, no cash. Blue Badge holders park free.
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