Tickets for the Thames fireworks went on sale 17 October last year and sold out. Prices, the six viewing areas, the Londoner discount and the road closures.

The Mayor of London’s New Year’s Eve fireworks have not gone on sale for 31 December 2026, and no release date has been announced. Based on last year, the first batch should appear around the middle of October and will sell out.

Westminster is where most of this happens. Two of the six ticketed viewing areas run along Victoria Embankment on the Westminster bank, the vehicle restrictions cover the SW1 riverside for sixteen hours, and every parking bay inside the event footprint is suspended.

When tickets went on sale last year

City Hall released them in two batches and announced each about a week ahead.

Batch Announced On sale
First Friday 10 October 2025 Midday, Friday 17 October 2025
Final Tuesday 18 November 2025 Noon, Monday 24 November 2025

Both sold out. The 2023 edition went on sale on Friday 3 November, so the window moves. October is the month to be watching.

Tickets are sold only through Ticketmaster. City Hall is unambiguous: “No official tickets will be sold by any other websites and those bought through any other means will not be valid.” There is no on-the-night sale and no entry without a ticket.

Prices, and the discount for Londoners

These were the 2025 prices. City Hall has not published 2026 prices.

Viewing area Standard Londoner price
Category A: Blue, Pink, White £55 £35
Category B: Red, Green, Orange £40 £20

A small booking fee is added on top and goes to the ticketing provider. Prices for non-Londoners went up £5 in 2025, which City Hall said was “to facilitate enhanced security and crowd management within and around the event footprint”.

The Londoner discount is £20 a ticket and it is checked twice. You enter your London postcode at booking, without spaces and in capitals, and it must match the billing address on the card. City Hall warns that if it does not, “your tickets may be at risk of being cancelled without warning”. Proof of address may also be asked for on the night.

You can buy up to four tickets. Bigger groups need a second adult to buy their own four, and everyone has to travel to the event together. The main buyer may be asked for photo ID at the gate that matches the name on the tickets, so a passport or photo driving licence is worth having on you.

The six viewing areas, and which are in Westminster

Every area has its own numbered gate and its own station. You cannot move between areas on the night, so if you are going with friends, book the same area. Entry for all six runs 8pm to 10.30pm.

Area Where Get there via The view
Blue Victoria Embankment, Westminster Bridge to Golden Jubilee Footbridge Victoria for Gate 1, Charing Cross or Embankment for Gate 2 Head-on, directly opposite the London Eye
Red Victoria Embankment, Golden Jubilee Footbridge to Temple Avenue Holborn for Gate 4, Blackfriars for Gate 5 Side view, further downriver
White Westminster Bridge only Waterloo for Gate 8 Side view, close to the Eye
Green Behind the London Eye Waterloo for Gate 7 Up close, directly behind the Eye
Pink Waterloo Bridge only Southwark for Gate 6 Side view
Orange Albert Embankment, riverside of St Thomas’ Hospital Waterloo for Gate 9 Partial side view

Blue and Red are the two Westminster-bank areas and both are reached from the north side of the river. Note that Holborn has no step-free access, and that Westminster Underground station gives no access to the White area despite sitting at the end of Westminster Bridge, which is the single most common mistake people make with these tickets.

Access needs

Orange is the accessible area. It is on Albert Embankment in front of St Thomas’ Hospital, facing the Houses of Parliament, and City Hall is honest that the trade-off is a partial side view. In exchange it has no large crowds, accessible toilets within 300 metres, a Changing Places unit with hoist and changing table, a first aid point, a hearing loop, some seating and permission to bring your own folding seat. The vehicle drop-off point is about 700 metres away over dropped kerbs, but it is best used before 8pm, when the road closures start to bite. The nearest public transport is Waterloo, 2km away.

The other five areas have no seating, no hearing loop and no dedicated accessible platforms. You are allowed to use the closed roads for step-free movement.

Road closures and parking suspensions

For Westminster residents this is the part that matters whether or not you are going.

  • Vehicle access is restricted from 2pm on 31 December until around 6am on 1 January, agreed with the Metropolitan Police.
  • Contingency plans allow closures from 12pm in the yellow and red zones on City Hall’s map.
  • All parking is suspended within the event area. Cars, vans, coaches, buses, trucks and bikes must be parked outside the closed area.
  • Westminster Bridge, the Golden Jubilee Footbridge, Lambeth Bridge, Blackfriars Bridge and Waterloo Bridge are all closed to ticket holders before and after the display. You cannot cross to reach another area, and you cannot cross to get home.
  • Some central London roads stay closed into 1 January for the London Parade.

That last pair of points is the one that ruins evenings. Decide which side of the river you want to be on at half past midnight before you book, not after.

The display itself

It starts at midnight with Big Ben’s chimes and runs about 12 minutes, over the Thames around the London Eye, with thousands of fireworks and hundreds of lights set to a soundtrack. Around 100,000 ticket holders watch from the banks. City Hall puts the additional spend those ticket holders generate for London businesses at more than £14m.

It is broadcast live on BBC One, which remains the only free way to see the whole show.

Not suitable for young children

City Hall says so directly: “As this is a late-night and crowded outdoor event, we strongly recommend you don’t bring young children.” Under-16s who do attend must be with an adult, and everyone needs a ticket whatever their age.

If you miss out

Refunds are not available. Ticket holders who cannot go can resell at face value through Ticketmaster’s Fan-to-Fan Resale, which opened on Monday 8 December last year. That is the only legitimate resale route, and City Hall has previously issued warnings about New Year’s Eve ticket scams.

Before you travel

Trains and tubes run differently on the night and the whole centre is busier than any other date in the year. Check our Westminster tube and train times page, and Westminster roadworks and travel for anything already dug up on the approaches. If you are parking anywhere near the closures, read Westminster parking zones and hours first, remembering that a suspension overrides whatever the bay normally allows.

Sources