Planning Christmas across two homes

Start planning early

Christmas brings strong feelings and busy diaries, with extended family, travel, and school events all competing for the same few days. Agreeing the plan by early November gives everyone time to arrange leave and visits, and lets the children look forward to it.

Ways to share Christmas

• Swap Christmas Eve and Christmas Day each year, so each home has each day every other year
• Alternate the whole of Christmas each year
• Split Christmas Day, with a handover at a set time
• Keep Christmas fixed with one home and Boxing Day or New Year with the other
• Spend part of the day together, where that works for everyone

The holiday schedule in Parenting Apart includes Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, with options to swap the two days yearly, alternate, keep them fixed, or share them, alongside how the rest of the winter break is split.

Plan the rest of the break

1. 1Add the school's last day and first day back to the shared calendar.
2. 2Decide how the remaining days are split, for example first and second halves.
3. 3Agree handover times, allowing for travel on busy days.
4. 4Share any trips away with the destination, dates, and a contact number.

Our guide to planning school holidays across two homes covers the wider holiday calendar.

Presents and costs

Agree whether any large presents are joint, who is buying them, and how the cost is shared, so the children do not receive duplicates or feel one home is competing with the other. Record shared costs with the receipt, so they can be settled in January.

Include extended family

Grandparents and wider family often have their own plans. Share the agreed schedule with them early, so visits fit around the children's time in each home rather than competing with it, and the children can see everyone who matters to them over the break.

Common questions