Buckingham Palace Entrance Ticket & Changing of the Guard Tour
London, England
- 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Getting a good view of the Changing of the Guard can be difficult, but you can secure your spot with this tour that also includes a visit to Buckingham Palace. Start in St. James's Park and see the ceremony with your guide. enter the opulent State Rooms of Buckingham Palace on a self-guided audio tour that lets you see lavish chambers that are only open to the public for two months of the year. Gain fascinating insight into the history of the British monarchy.
- Ensure your admission to Buckingham Palace by pre-booking
- Learn about royal history as you stroll through St James’s Park
- Explore the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace at your preferred pace
- Watch the Changing of the Guard from the best vantage points
Why Travelers Choose This Tour
Nab hard-to-find tickets to Buckingham Palace—timed to include the Changing of the Guard.
What's Included
- Pre-reserved entry to Buckingham Palace State Rooms
- Official Buckingham Palace audio guide (available in EN, FR, ES, IT, DE, PT, JA, ZH, RU)
- Expert English-speaking guide for the Changing of the Guard walking tour
- Changing of the Guard viewing experience
- Free time to explore Buckingham Palace at your own pace
- Headsets when required for clear commentary during the Changing of the Guard
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Duke of York ColumnSt. James's, London SW1Y 5AJ, UK
By the Duke of York Column, Waterloo Place, 9 Carlton Terrace, London SW1Y 5AJ. This is the tall column with a statue on top.
End point
- Spur RoadSpur Rd, London SW1A 1AA, UK
Inside Buckingham Palace
Itinerary
Meet your guide at a convenient landmark in central London, the Duke of York Column. Begin your walking tour through St. James’ Park towards Buckingham Palace.
Depending on the day, you may witness the Changing of the Guards Ceremony from a unique vantage point with insights from your guide on this British tradition. In case of poor weather, or if the Changing of the Guard is rescheduled, your viewing of the ceremony will be swapped out for a walking tour.
Once you reach Buckingham Palace, which is only open for two months of the year, get ready to explore at your own pace by using an audio guide.Take in the opulence of the State Apartments, which feature priceless art and antiques.
Depending on the day, you may witness the Changing of the Guards Ceremony from a unique vantage point with insights from your guide on this British tradition. In case of poor weather, or if the Changing of the Guard is rescheduled, your viewing of the ceremony will be swapped out for a walking tour.
Once you reach Buckingham Palace, which is only open for two months of the year, get ready to explore at your own pace by using an audio guide.Take in the opulence of the State Apartments, which feature priceless art and antiques.
1
St. James's Park
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Changing of the Guard
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Buckingham Palace
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- No heart problems or other serious medical conditions
- Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
- On occasional Sundays may be rescheduled to early morning, this will then be replaced with an extended walking tour.
- The Changing of the Guards is subject to changes in date, time and cancellation at the discretion of British authorities. Cancellation due to bad weather or other circumstances is not announced before the morning of the ceremony. When this occurs, you will be provided with a walking tour of Westminster city instead
- There is no Changing of the Foot Guards on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday so you'll be provided with a Walking Tour of Westminster City. You may be able to see the Changing of the Horse Guards at Horse Guards parade but that's not guaranteed.
- On Sundays, a slightly different version of the ceremony takes place, known as the "Sunday Parade".
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 30 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.1
based on 1,720 reviews
Marla_C, Oct 2025
Tour guide was friendly and informative. Was a busy tour but still enjoyed it. Doing the tour like this instead of on your own made it much easier. Would recommend to anyone.
Emma_F, Oct 2025
Loved this and worth doing with a guide as they know where to go and when to arrive to get the best view. Learnt many new things about the monarchy and how they operate. The changing of the guard was a highlight. Wouldn't be as good if we didn't join the tour and it was easy to navigate. Be aware the visit inside Buckingham Palace is self guided.
Teresa_W, Oct 2025
Marilyn was fabulous!! She shared so much neat and interesting information. My hubby and I could tell she so enjoyed doing her job! Great time with Marilyn, so appreciated her time and wealth of history.
Ailyn_A, Oct 2025
The changing of the guard the guide took us was not what most want to see, he took us to where the mounted guards start from. Then he just went another way instead of the front of the palace to see the change. It was a very expensive useless tour. You should just stand there on your own and buy tickets to enter since the guide does not enter with you anyway!
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Hello Ailyn_A,
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re very sorry to hear that your experience did not meet expectations and that the tour did not cover the aspects you were hoping to see. Please accept our sincere apologies for any disappointment caused.
Your comments regarding the route and guide have been shared with our team to ensure future tours better meet guest expectations. We truly appreciate your feedback, as it helps us improve the experience for all visitors.
Diane_O, Oct 2025
Our guide (I think his name was Aaron) was very informative and a pleasure to listen to. I really liked that he had earbuds for all of us so we could hear his presentation. So helpful when you're outside and a person who doesn't hear so good.
Carl_R, Oct 2025
It was an ok tour. It’s more of an outdoor experience and then on your own for the Buckingham Palace, which was ok.
Jill_C, Oct 2025
The Buckingham tour was fantastic! If you don't want to walk around in the area, skip the tour and go straight to the palace. There was a lot of speaking before our tour.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Hi Jill,
Thank you for booking the Buckingham Palace Entrance Ticket & Changing of the Guard Tour.
We are happy to hear that you enjoyed the experience overall.
We hope you had a lovely rest of your stay in London!
Jane_R, Sep 2025
I think it’s on everyone’s bucket list to go into Buckingham Palace, it did not disappoint.
We finished the tour with a gin sorbet.
Madeline, Sep 2025
Our guide Louise was the best. She gave a very informed tour mixed with great British humor! We loved our tour and all the good information shared about the Royals. Buckingham palace is not to be missed!
FRANCES_A, Sep 2025
Our guide Cecily was excellent and made the walk up to the palace very informative and about the right amount of time. What I do not appreciate was outside of her control. The organizers published a time for the whole tour but in my case, my tour they failed to tell me that the slated start time of my tour of the palace was only 15 mins before the whole event was slated to finish. Since I had planned onward activity based on misleading information this would have been a huge problem. Fortunately I was able to change groups and get into the palace earlier.
Mindy_P, Sep 2025
We really enjoyed this tour. Joseph was so dynamic and entertaining as he told us about London history. After watching the changing of the horse guard, he walked us over to Buckingham Palace. That part of the tour is self guided but well worth it!!
Stephanie_C, Sep 2025
Louise was a very knowledgeable and funny tour guide. Changing of the Guard was cancelled but the walking tour made up for it.
Melda_C, Sep 2025
Natalie was fantastic. Her knowledge and sense of humor was the best part of the trip. We saw the changing of the horse guards though we were supposed to see the changing of the foot guards. Had to cancel that because London was setting up for a marathon. But Natalie took us during our walking tour to where the horses switch just in case. And they did perform. She also kept a few of us from stepping in -well you know what - as we continued the walk.
As for the Buckingham Palace tour, which she had nothing to do with other than get us in the door, I was disappointed. I didn’t think I’d get to see the Kings bedroom, which was good cuz he doesn’t live in the palace. He lives in a house just down the street. No Royal now lives in the palace as of today. But the thing I did see was 2 million pictures/portraits. For me there were a few items of interest but not much. Not like the tour we took to Windsor Castle -but that’s another review.
Sharon_R, Sep 2025
We did not get to see changing of the guard due to schedule changed at Buckingham Palace. Viator did notify us 48 hours prior to scheduled tour. What we under stood, this would be the last tour to get in the Palace before the winter months. Our choice was get a full refund or do the tour with St. James Park. Of course we wanted to see the palace since we flew a long way to see it as well as the other sites. I thought a guide would go in with us but they were not allowed to go in. Our tour started at 10 am . we walked around St. James Park until our queue time which wasn't until around 11:30 thus , not getting out of the castle until 2ish. You have to pick and chose what you see depending on your time schedule. Thus, we missed Westminister Abby. ( I thought we would do Buckingham Palace first giving us time to see Westminister. But they closed at 3.. Our guide was very knowledgeable. It was worth seeing Buckingham Palace . If you are older, keep in mind, they walk at a fast pace so if you get to far from the guide, the headset will not pick up what the guild is telling you in your ear bud.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Dear Sharon,
Thank you for your detailed feedback. We’re delighted to hear you enjoyed visiting Buckingham Palace and found your guide knowledgeable. We’re very sorry, however, for the disappointment caused by the schedule change at the Palace, the timing challenges, and the fast pace of the tour. Your comments are extremely helpful, and we’ll use them to improve both our communication and the experience for future guests.
We truly appreciate you sharing your experience and hope to welcome you again under better circumstances.
Joseph_D, Sep 2025
Long tour. Lots of walking. Lots of tourists. Use a tour. Do not go on your own. Gathering point somewhat chaotic. Planning on minimum 2 hours.
Candace_Y, Sep 2025
Our human guide was very helpful. But many of the individual exhibit items did not have an audio, We had limited time, so we viewed only the most popular exhibits. It was worthwhile.
Lesley_T, Sep 2025
Walking tour with Aaron. He was a wonderful guide. We thoroughly enjoyed it!
Very informative and entertaining.
Anthony_S, Sep 2025
Great tour, great tour guide, very informative and enjoyable experience. Angela was a wonderful guide with lots of knowledge.
George_L, Sep 2025
There’s a lot of walking. The walk through the gardens will take you about an hour. The tour through the Palace takes about 45 minutes. Then you exit at the back of the Palace and it’s about a 20 minute walk back to the front of the Palace. No pictures inside the Palace!
Kerrie_D, Sep 2025
Most of the tour is before you get inside the Palace. Once inside you’re on your own. Inside is mostly art.
Elizabeth_L, Sep 2025
Amazing , informative. Cecilie. Was a great tour guide. The sandwiches and cake at cafe afterwards were incredible.
Bruce_D, Sep 2025
Bone up on British royalty history, otherwise you are going to be bowled over by trying to follow all the info presented. We had a very knowledgeable and easily understood guide and we were still a bit bowled over by the volume of info. The palace is an incredible expierence, as was the changing of the guard.
Kathleen_B, Sep 2025
Our guide Paul who led us through a variety of outdoor interests and got us to the Palace was great with a lot of good information. But if you have small children I would not recommend the tour. There are so many people packed in line to follow winding through the rooms, difficult to linger, look, listen to the headsets and mind the kids since no strollers are allowed. It was simply to much to deal with and we left early.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Hi,
Thanks for your feedback, we are glad to hear Paul made a great impression. We understand the indoor portion can be challenging with young children, especially without strollers and in crowded spaces. We appreciate you joining us and hope you still enjoyed the highlights of the day.
Tariq_J, Sep 2025
This experience was highly enjoyable and educational. We were given many facts about the Royal Family and their history in the tour prior to entering the palace. Unfortunately due to time constraints with our palace entrance and the start of the ceremony, we were unable to see the Changing of the Horse Guard. That is the only reason I gave a review of 4 stars rather than 5 stars.
Inside if the palace was absolutely gorgeous and full of Royal and British history. I'm very happy that I was able to take this tour and see important ceremonial and state rooms. The entire tour was just over 2 hours. Inside the palace is self guided so you can make it what you want.
Donna_S, Sep 2025
Wonderful tour with Brandon, very knowledgeable and friendly. He kept us updated and moving so we had great viewing spots of the 4 parts of the changing of the guards.
Buckingham palace was self guided tour with audio. Group entry was quick.
Make sure to read check in directions, our meeting spot was at Duke of York column and left at the tour start time. Others were late because they went to the palace or showed up at start time.
Edward_R, Sep 2025
Very very crowded , we expected crowds but not to the degree we had, our naïveté!
Guide Carla was excellent, knew her stuff and kept everyone together.
Brenda_R, Sep 2025
My guide, Katrina, was very knowledgeable and yet showed a sense of humor I greatly appreciated. This tour felt ideal and comfortable, even travelling alone. The group size was perfect as well! Highly recommend!
Jacque_B, Sep 2025
Changing of the guard portion of the tour was a little disappointing. We saw marching and the parade pretty far from Buckingham, but we didn’t get to see the actual changing of the guard. The best part of the tour was once we got into the castle, and we coukd have done that on our own.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Hi Jacque_B,
Thank you for sharing your experience. We're glad to hear you enjoyed your time inside the castle. It’s definitely a highlight! We’re sorry the Changing of the Guard portion didn’t meet expectations. Our guides always strive to find the best possible viewing spots, though crowd levels and logistics can sometimes limit access. We truly appreciate your feedback and will take it into account to keep improving.
Suzanne_S, Sep 2025
Kevin was excellent. He got us to great viewing points for changing of the guard. Enjoyable experience
Carol_S, Sep 2025
Our guide, Carla, was very informative & guided us to the places where we would get the best views. Inside the Palace the artwork was phenomenal & the chandeliers sparkled so that I wondered how they were kept so clean!
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Buckingham Palace Entrance Ticket & Changing of the Guard Tour
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