The Tenbury Wells mistletoe auction runs on Tuesday 24 November and Tuesday 1 December 2026, the last surviving market of its kind in a town that sells Christmas by the pound.
You know mistletoe as a plastic sprig in a supermarket aisle, hung over a door for one awkward moment. Almost nobody asks where the real thing comes from before it gets there.
It comes from apple trees along the Shropshire, Worcestershire and Herefordshire borders, and the trade gathers at Tenbury Wells, on the Shropshire border. Buyers arrive before the bell, bid on bundles that weigh 25 to 30 pounds each, and drive away with a van full of Christmas. It is a working wholesale sale, not a re-enactment, and it has run for more than a hundred years.
Region: Worcestershire, Tenbury Wells (on the Shropshire border)
Best for: Folklore, Christmas traditions, photography
Getting there: Tenbury Wells is on the A456; the sale ground is about 0.75 miles west of the Teme bridge junction, towards Ludlow
Time needed: A morning, with the town centre afterwards
The Tenbury Wells Mistletoe Auction
Visit Worcestershire lists two Holly and Mistletoe Auctions in Tenbury Wells for 2026, on 24 November and 1 December. Both fall on Tuesdays. In recent years the sales have run on the last Tuesday of November and the first Tuesday of December, and the second date this year follows that pattern.
The Tenbury Mistletoe Association says the town has had a mistletoe sales tradition for over a hundred years and that it is the only one of several such markets in the Hereford and Worcester area to survive. The auctions are staged by the local firm Nick Champion. The association’s most recent published sales, in 2025, were at Burford House Garden Centre on the A456.
The trade is for wholesalers, retailers and florists, but the public can walk round and bid. Dress for outdoors.
Where to Stay: The Crow, Teme Street, WR15 8BA. A town-centre pub that lists accommodation, a short walk from the Pump Rooms and the Burgage car park.
Worth Knowing: The association’s directions from the Teme bridge junction on the A456 are 0.75 miles west towards Ludlow, then a left turn for Burford House Garden Centre.
The Bell at 10am
The Simple Things reports that selling begins at 10am when the auctioneer’s bell sounds. It starts indoors with wreaths. Then the crowd moves outside, and the buyers follow the auctioneer past rows of large bunches of mistletoe.
The rules are quick and particular. Large bundles are sold individually. The first buyer from a seller’s batch can take all of the remaining bundles from that seller, or only some. You hear the sale before you see it: the bell, then the auctioneer’s patter moving along the rows.
Where to Stay: The Crow, Teme Street, WR15 8BA. Book as soon as you pick a date.
Worth Knowing: Anyone can bid, according to The Simple Things.
Who Buys It
A Shropshire Star report from an earlier season described buyers coming from across England and Ireland, among them large supermarkets, hotels and florists. It called the sale a large-scale national trade.
Ireland matters because it has no native mistletoe. British Heritage notes that Irish buyers travel to Britain for it. The same article quotes the trade view that the Tenbury auctions supply almost all of the UK’s mistletoe.
That is a startling claim for a small border market town, and it explains why the sale has outlasted the livestock market it once hosted. The product is perishable and seasonal, and there is only one place left to buy it in bulk.
The Shropshire Star quoted auctioneer Nick Champion as saying the first sale of the season can be slow, with next week’s being the main one. If you only have one Tuesday, make it the second, 1 December.
Where to Stay: Travelodge Ludlow Woofferton, A49, Station Road, Woofferton, SY8 4AL. A budget option with free parking and pet-friendly rooms, a short drive from Tenbury.
Worth Knowing: The Shropshire Star report also named Jonathan Briggs, a mistletoe expert, who called mistletoe part of “our oldest yuletide tradition”.
Where It Grows
Mistletoe prefers apple trees. British Heritage says the commercial supply comes from Shropshire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, and Gloucestershire, where apple orchards are common, though apples also grow on poplars and willows.
England in Particular describes the town as well-placed for trade because of the surviving orchards around it, which is why Tenbury has been called the town in the orchard. The Tenbury Mistletoe Association quotes Queen Victoria calling it “my little town in the Orchard”.
A few facts help when you start looking at the bundles. Berries grow only on female plants. Mistle thrushes spread the seeds from tree to tree, so their presence signals good mistletoe prospects. A good October frost helps the berries turn white, while a warm autumn can leave some berries green.
British Heritage adds that imported mistletoe from the Continent is considered too dry, because mistletoe prefers cool, damp conditions.
Where to Stay: The Crow, Teme Street, WR15 8BA.
Worth Knowing: European mistletoe (Viscum album) keeps its toxins mostly in the berries, according to British Heritage.
The Market That Closed
The auctions were once held at the town’s livestock market, where mistletoe and holly were sold by the pound. England in Particular dates the market’s closure to 2004; the Tenbury Mistletoe Association says it closed in 2005. Either way, the sale lost its home.
Local people formed Tenbury English Mistletoe Enterprise, known as T.E.M.E., to keep the trade connected to the town. The group established National Mistletoe Day on 1 December and started the Mistletoe Festival. In 2010, the Tenbury Mistletoe Association took over its work and now runs the annual festival.
The sale itself moved out of the town centre. The venue has changed more than once, so go by the latest dates and directions from the Tenbury Mistletoe Association.
Where to Stay: The Crow, Teme Street, WR15 8BA. The Pump Rooms stand just behind it.
Worth Knowing: The association describes the auctions as staged by Nick Champion, with the venue most recently at Burford House Garden Centre.
The Mistletoe Festival
The Tenbury Mistletoe Festival is held on the first Saturday in December, which in 2026 is 5 December. The Janet Redler tourism listing lists the programme as the crowning of the Mistletoe Queen, Christmas tree decoration-making, and a Santa parade.
British Heritage describes the festival as ending with a Mistletoe Ball, with a Mistletoe Queen in white and green and a Holly Prince in red. The festival also celebrates the myths, legends and history of mistletoe, according to the association.
If you plan it well, you can see the sale on Tuesday 1 December and come back for the festival on Saturday. The two together make a better trip than either alone.
Where to Stay: Travelodge Ludlow Woofferton, A49, Station Road, Woofferton, SY8 4AL. Better value if you want a midweek and a weekend night.
Worth Knowing: 1 December is National Mistletoe Day, which Tenbury residents campaigned for.
The Pump Rooms
Tenbury is Tenbury Wells because of an accident. Historic England records that mineral springs were discovered in 1839 when a well was being sunk. The town prospered and was renamed Tenbury Wells in the mid-19th century.
The Pump Rooms followed in about 1862, designed by James Cranston. Historic England lists the Pump Room, Brine Baths and Reading Room at Grade II*, first listed on 7 March 1972. The building is single-storey, with an octagonal pump room joined to an assembly room and a brine baths range.
Tenbury Town Council says it was built to promote Tenbury Wells as a spa for working-class visitors. Today the council owns it, the Town Clerk’s office is based there, and the main Assembly Room is available for hire. The Pump Rooms are at the end of Teme Street, behind the Crow Hotel.
The town got its first royal charter for a market in 1249, when it was called Temettebury, according to the Tenbury Mistletoe Association. The market is the older story; the mistletoe is the one that survived.
Where to Stay: The Crow, Teme Street, WR15 8BA. The Pump Rooms sit at the end of the same street.
Worth Knowing: Wikipedia describes the Pump Rooms’ style as Chinese-Gothic and notes that the building reopened in 2001 after a major restoration.
The Druid Story
Mistletoe has been hung indoors for as long as anyone can say, and the story people tell is about the druids. Pliny the Elder described druids harvesting mistletoe with a golden sickle. British Heritage points out that modern experts question the account, because mistletoe rarely grows on oaks.
The Tenbury story is earthier. It is about bundles, bids and a bell. You will not find a sickle in the field.
For more winter customs that are older than they look, read our guide to Yorkshire Parkin: The Bonfire Night Cake Older Than the Plot, or the flaming barrels of Ottery Tar Barrels 2026.
Where to Stay: The Crow, Teme Street, WR15 8BA.
Worth Knowing: Sir John Colbatch tried mistletoe as a treatment for epilepsy in 1721, according to British Heritage.
Practical Tips
- Arrive before 10am. The bell starts the sale, and the wreaths go first.
- Wear waterproof boots. The bundles are laid out in a field.
- Use the AllTrails app to find a short walk along the River Teme before or after the sale.
- Large bundles are sold whole, so decide before the bell whether you are buying or watching.
- Book rooms early if you want to stay for the festival weekend.
- If you only have one Tuesday, choose 1 December and add the festival on Saturday 5 December.
Responsible Visiting
Stay behind the buyers while a lot is being sold. Do not pick mistletoe from orchards you pass; it belongs to the landowner. Take litter home.
Reader Q&A
When is the Tenbury Wells mistletoe auction in 2026?
Tuesday 24 November and Tuesday 1 December 2026, according to Visit Worcestershire.
Can the public bid?
Yes. The Simple Things says anyone can bid, though the trade is mainly wholesalers, retailers and florists.
How much is a bundle?
Bundles weigh roughly 25 to 30 pounds each, according to British Heritage.
Is it really the last mistletoe auction in England?
The Tenbury Mistletoe Association says it is the only one of several markets in the Hereford and Worcester area that has survived.
When is the Mistletoe Festival?
The first Saturday in December, which is 5 December 2026.
Why is mistletoe linked to apple trees?
Apple trees are the preferred host. Commercial supply comes from the orchard counties along the Welsh border and Gloucestershire.
Where to Stay
The Crow, Tenbury Wells. Teme Street, WR15 8BA. Town-centre pub with accommodation, next to the Pump Rooms and the Burgage car park.
Travelodge Ludlow Woofferton, Woofferton. A49, Station Road, SY8 4AL. Free parking, pet-friendly rooms and a coffee shop that opens at 6:30am.
By noon the bundles are in the vans, and the field goes back to being a field. The mistletoe is already on its way to doorways across Britain and Ireland.
More winter customs: Yorkshire Parkin | Ottery Tar Barrels 2026
