Covers London, Edinburgh, Dublin and Central Europe, where the ghost walks are old and the summer nights are short.
Updated
This page carries dated prices, start times or seasonal openings checked on the date above, and that window has now passed. Re-check the sources at the foot of the page before you book.
Every night at the Tower of London, a Yeoman Warder walks out with a lantern and a bunch of keys and locks the gates. Historic Royal Palaces, the charity that runs the Tower, says it has happened nearly every night for seven centuries.
You can watch it. Not many people can on any given night, and the tickets go fast.
First, a correction to a lot of older advice online. The Ceremony of the Keys is not free any more. HRP now asks you to choose a price per ticket between $13.40 (€11.90; £10) and $67 (€60; £50), with $40 (€36; £30) suggested. It's still the cheapest way into the Tower after dark by a long way.
Second: HRP says bookings made by tour operators, third parties and groups will be cancelled. So resale sites aren't the route. One tour does include guaranteed entry, and we rank it below, but the honest answer for most people is to book direct.
At a glance
Official booking
hrp.org.uk only; pay what you choose from $13.40 (€11.90; £10) to $67 (€60; £50)
Suggested price
$40 (€36; £30) per ticket
Ticket release
1:00 p.m. on the first working day of each month, for the next month
Only tour that includes it
Walks' Tower After Hours, $213 (€190), Night Score 5.9
Rules
Arrive at the West Gate by 9:25 p.m.; no latecomers, no photos
Cheaper night option
HRP's Yeoman Warder ghost tour, Sundays from November 8
On this page
1 tour that passed our bar
Every tour we scored that includes this sight, in Night Score order. Night Score = 30% rating, 10% review count, 20% price per hour, 40% how much the night is the point. How we score
The only product we found that includes the ceremony, and it's a good one: 4.9 from 79 reviews, with a Yeoman Warder walking up to 20 guests round the empty outer grounds before the keys come out. The price is what holds the Night Score to 5.9. At $213 (€190) it scores the minimum on value, and 79 reviews isn't many. You watch the ceremony with the public ticket holders. No Crown Jewels, no building interiors, no strollers or high heels. Meet at the West Gate, opposite the Starbucks. The page says it's usually unavailable, so grab a date if you see one.
How the score breaks down, and the fine print
Rated by travelersData · 30%4.3
Review countData · 10%3.7
Price per hourData · 20%1.0
After darkEditors · 40%10.0
What it is: A guided after-closing walk of the Tower of London's outer grounds with a Yeoman Warder, finishing at the Ceremony of the Keys, sold by Walks.
Good to know: Guaranteed Ceremony of the Keys access is included, but you watch it alongside the public ticket holders; no Crown Jewels or building interiors. Up to 20 guests; meet at the West Gate. No strollers or high heels. The page marks it 'usually unavailable', so dates are scarce.
After dark: After-hours access to the Tower grounds with a Yeoman Warder, then the nightly locking-up ceremony, which no day ticket includes.
Rating, review count and from-price as shown on GetYourGuide on October 26, 2026. The price changes with the date.
Reserve links go to GetYourGuide or Viator. Booking through them can earn us a commission at no cost to you; it never changes a score or a rank. How we make money
How to book the official tickets
Only one place sells them: the Ceremony of the Keys page on hrp.org.uk. Here's how it works, as HRP sets it out.
Tickets are released at 1:00 p.m. London time on the first working day of each month, for the following month. If that day is a Friday, release moves to 1:00 p.m. the next Monday.
Up to 6 tickets per applicant. The named ticket holder has to attend, or the whole party is turned away.
No waiting list. Cancelled tickets go back into the booking system.
Tickets are non-refundable and can't be changed.
Multiple bookings under the same name, email or address may be cancelled.
Set an alarm. Be on the page before one o'clock. Pick a night, pay, and don't overthink the price slider: HRP describes the lowest price as there for anyone who'd find more hard to afford, and the money goes to a charity that looks after the place.
If you need a carer to come along, HRP asks you to book everyone else first and then reply to your confirmation email requesting a carer ticket. Access is limited, so email the team about any requirements before you go.
What happens on the night
Be at the West Gate, the main entrance, by 9:25 p.m. at the latest. Visitors are escorted in at 9:30 p.m. precisely and latecomers are not admitted. That's not a soft rule.
Then it's dark, quiet and short.
The Chief Yeoman Warder leaves the Byward Tower carrying the keys and a lantern that, HRP says, is still lit with a single candle. An escort of soldiers from the Tower's garrison meets him at the archway of the Bloody Tower, and the party locks the outer gates, then the inner ones. Then a sentry challenges them: "Halt, who comes there?" "The keys." "Whose keys?" "King Charles' keys." "Pass then, all's well."
As the clock strikes ten the Chief raises his Tudor bonnet, says "God preserve King Charles," the guard answers "Amen," and a bugler sounds the Last Post. The keys go to the King's House. You're escorted out by about 10:05 p.m.
No photography at any point. No toilets, no refreshments. Go before.
Why it's worth the late night
By day the Tower is a queue for the Crown Jewels. HRP lists it open 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. this week, last entry 3:00 p.m., at $51 (€45; £38) for an adult.
At 9:30 p.m. it's a small crowd standing in the dark between stone walls, listening to boots on cobbles. The ritual dates back to the 1300s, HRP says, after Edward III walked into the Tower unchallenged in December 1340. The time has been fixed since 1826. During the Blitz a bomb blast knocked the guard off their feet and the ceremony went ahead, slightly late.
It's 35 minutes. You won't see much of the Tower. That's not the point.
In winter it's fully dark long before you arrive; December gets dark by 4:32 p.m. In June the sun only sets at 9:18 p.m., so the ceremony happens in late dusk. Both are fine. Night lows sit around 39°F (4°C) in December, and you'll be standing still, so wear a proper coat.
The Walks tour versus the official ticket
Booking direct gets you the ceremony for $13.40 (€11.90; £10) to $67 (€60; £50). The Walks tour costs $213 (€190). Same ceremony, watched alongside the public ticket holders.
What the extra buys: an after-hours walk of the outer grounds with a Yeoman Warder, stories about the prison years and the ghosts, a group of 20 at most, and guaranteed ceremony entry on a date you choose. It also has free cancellation up to 24 hours before, which the official ticket doesn't.
That flexibility is the real selling point. HRP's tickets are non-refundable and gone weeks ahead. If your trip is next week and the month is sold out, this is the only way in we found.
How Walks guarantees entry when HRP cancels operator bookings isn't explained on either page. Presumably there's a separate arrangement with the Tower, but we couldn't confirm it. Not wheelchair accessible, and the tour asks for the full names of everyone at booking.
If you can't get in: the Tower's ghost tour
HRP runs its own Yeoman Warder ghost tours on Sundays from 8 November, 7:00 to 8:00 p.m., from the West Gate. Adults pay $66 (€59; £49) and children $39 (€35; £29), with child tickets recommended for 12 and up. You walk the darkened grounds past the lit White Tower and hear about Anne Boleyn and Lady Jane Grey. Late arrivals aren't admitted.
It's not the keys. But it's an hour inside the walls at night, led by a Yeoman Warder.
For the rest of the city after dark, including three Jack the Ripper walks a short walk from Tower Hill, see our London night tours and Jack the Ripper tours pages.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Ceremony of the Keys free?
No, not any more. Historic Royal Palaces asks you to pay what you choose, from $13.40 (€11.90; £10) to $67 (€60; £50) per ticket, with $40 (€36; £30) suggested.
When do Ceremony of the Keys tickets come out?
At 1:00 p.m. UK time on the first working day of each month, for the following month. If that day is a Friday, release moves to the following Monday. There's no waiting list.
How long does the Ceremony of the Keys last?
About 35 minutes. Visitors are escorted in at 9:30 p.m. and out at about 10:05 p.m. You need to be at the West Gate by 9:25 p.m.
Can I take photos at the Ceremony of the Keys?
No. HRP says photography is not permitted during any part of the ceremony.
Can a tour company book the Ceremony of the Keys for me?
HRP says bookings by tour operators, third parties and groups will be cancelled. The one exception we found is Walks' Tower of London After Hours tour, $213 (€190), which includes guaranteed entry.
Is the Ceremony of the Keys worth it?
Yes. It's short and you see little of the Tower, but it's a nightly ritual HRP dates to the 1300s, watched in the dark by a small crowd. Book direct when tickets drop.
Further reading
Official sources
Historic Royal Palaces: Experience the Ceremony of the Keys– Pay-what-you-choose range and suggested price, monthly release, 6-ticket limit, 9:25 p.m. arrival, 9:30 to 10:05 p.m., no photography, operator bookings cancelled, checked October 26, 2026
