The final season of Downton Abbey will premiere at the beginning of 2016, PBS announced Saturday.

Mark your calendars for the beginning of the end! We’ve all been wondering when Downton Abbey season 6 will air on PBS, and that answer is January 3, 2016. Like they have in past years, PBS has opted to air the series several months after it premieres in the United Kingdom on ITV.

Why the gap? For one, PBS doesn’t need to change it — Downton Abbey has enjoyed huge ratings in the United States during January and February. If it isn’t broke, why fix it?

In case you missed the news earlier this year: Downton Abbey’s upcoming season will be its last, unfortunately. “The Downton journey has been amazing for everyone aboard,” said creator Julian Fellowes in March when making the end date announcement.

He continued, “People ask if we knew what was going to happen when we started to make the first series and the answer is that, of course we had no idea. Exactly why the series had such an impact and reached so many people around the world, all nationalities, all ages, all types, I cannot begin to explain. But I do know how grateful we are to have been allowed this unique experience. I suspect the show will always be a principal marker in most of our careers as we set out from here, and if so, I consider that a blessing and a compliment.”

ITV has yet to announce Downton Abbey’s series 6 premiere date for U.K. audiences, but history would suggest it’ll be sometime in September.

While we’re sad that the series is coming to an end, the good news is that the show’s creators have the opportunity to send our favorite characters off in style. One could argue that this is a better strategy than having too many seasons of the show, thus watching the show decline in quality. We would hate if our memories of Downton were tarnished by hypothetical future seasons that didn’t live up to the quality of the first few years!

Although we’re getting towards the end, there is some good news….

Related: Downton Abbey series finale will leave plot lines untied for potential movie