The theatrical offer in London is amazing, both for adults and children; there is something for everyone, for lovers of dance, opera, musicals, prose, the offer is simply huge! From successful musicals that have been on the scene for several years, if not decades, to avant-garde performances, to the great offer of shows for kids. Outside of Broadway in New York, no other place like London can compete for the sheer amount of cultural offer! People who contact me for my travel design service, often ask me for ticket recommendations on which shows to see, but above how to get cheap tickets for theatres in London. Because if it is true that the cultural offer is great, it is not always affordable for a family.
Here are some tips and websites for the best prices.
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HOW TO SAVE MONEY: SPECIAL OFFERS FOR THEATRES
A way to get cheap tickets for theatres in London is to take advantage of the offers that theatres ran during the year, usually in the less touristy months.
In January and February, there is ‘Get into London theatre event‘ offering discounted tickets to an incredible array of top London shows. The promotion is one of the industry’s longest running audience development initiatives, offering you the chance to get £10, £20, £30 and £40 tickets, with no booking, transaction or postage fees to pay, for some of the biggest shows in London.
Bookings open on Friday 13th of December 2019, participating shows will be announced on Tuesday 3 December 2019.
The 2020 promotion took place from 1 January to 15 February. More info here.
There is also the Kids week.
If you are in London in August, I recommend taking advantage of the Kids Week to get free tickets for a child with a paying adult for many theatre shows. If you are an adult with two children, the first child does not pay and the second child pays 50%. A great savings! Take advantage of the Kids Week, which takes place throughout the month of August. Young people aged 16 and under can access any participating show for free if accompanied by an adult paying the full price and parents can also purchase up to two extra tickets for children at half price.
BEST WEBSITES TO GET CHEAP TICKETS FOR THEATRES IN LONDON
TKTS TICKETS
One of the most popular ways to get cheap tickets for theatres in London is through TKTS TICKETS, a ticket booth located in Leicester Square. You will find many last-minute and discounted tickets for the most important theatre productions. I recommend checking on their website, before going to Leicester Square to see what is available.
LONDON TICKET DIRECT
London Theatre Direct are one of the leading providers of theatre tickets in the UK since 1999.
London Theatre Direct is an official agent of London theatre and a full member of the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers. STAR is a self-regulatory body operating within guidelines supported by, amongst others, the Office of Fair Trading, the British Tourist Authority, the London Tourist Board, the Metropolitan Police, Westminster Council and the Society of London Theatre.
CENTRAL TICKETS
Central Tickets is a recent discovery and is a great way to get discounted theater tickets in London. First of all, a site to which you sign up for free, on the condition that you buy tickets for the shows every three months.
How does it work?
Once you become a member of Central Tickets, you will have access to the list of shows for which discounted prices are available. Once the notifications are activated, you will receive by email what are the shows with the tickets on offer as ‘filling seats’, a sort of last-minute. A nominal fee of 2 to 6 pounds applies to the ticket price, but that is nothing compared to the money saved. Consider that in general, tickets never cost less than £ 40-50.
Once members can book up to six tickets per event, depending of course on the availability of tickets.
Furthermore, if you invite a friend to register for the service, a free ticket is credited to it.
TODAY TIX
Tix is a website, but to take full advantage of the discounts you need to download the app, which is free. Through the app it is possible to receive notifications when rush tickets become available for purchase.
Tickets can be purchased at discounted prices (from the site it is easy to access the section and select the cheapest dates, such as when buying flight tickets.
The app is easy to use and works well if you know what day you want to go to the theater: once you’ve chosen the day and unlocked the notifications, you can buy ‘Rush’ tickets without having to wait in line as you once did.
Tickets must be purchased immediately otherwise they will not be guaranteed.
You can buy up to two tickets at a time.
Tickets are sold with a discount voucher, you can usually buy them for £ 25.
LOVE THEATRE
A website that I often consult to get cheap tickets for theatres in London is Love Theater. Most of the theatre shows in London can be purchased and there is also a last minute section, which I often consult to see if there is anything I might be interested in.
SHOWFILMFEST
On the Showfilmfirst website you need to register to receive the newsletter that contains all the selected events based on the interests given in the contact form. There are all the shows in the London area and many offers that relate to the West End.
The new Troubadour theatre in White City London
LASTMINUTE.COM
Another recent discovery for tickets, not only exclusively for the theatre, but also for the concerts, is lastminute, which allows to search by title and by theatre.
OTHER WAYS TO GET CHEAP TICKETS FOR THEATRES IN LONDON
- Another way to buy discounted tickets for theatRE in London is the matinee, that is, the shows that take place in the morning, usually during the weekend, at very competitive prices. If there are any, find them directly on the official theatre page.
- Or you can choose to buy a theatre package with hotel and show included. Some notable West End shows like The Lion King and Wicked collaborate with London hotels and restaurants to offer packages that include hotel nights and shows.
- If you can see a show isn’t sold out, leave buying tickets to the last minute to get the best deal. Ask for the best seat for your budget and often, if they have any production seats available, they will sell you these. Production seats are the best seats in the house, and I’ve had them in the past for a mere £20!
- For those who do not need to make too many plans, there is also the possibility to go directly to the theatre box office to have the possibility of buying reserve tickets, unsold or lost.
- The Shakespeare’s Globe sells 700 standing tickets for each performance for just £ 5. It may seem strange to see a show without being sit, but this one was built just thinking of standing spectators.
- A lottery is held every day giving away a limited number of tickets for just £ 20 for The Book of Mormon. This comedy, created by the creators of SouthPark, is suitable for audiences aged 18 and over. Also for the award-winning Hamilton, there is a daily ticket lottery at £ 10, which closes every day at 2:00 pm. Here the link to access the app that allows you to participate in the lottery.
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Do you know any other ways to save on tickets?
With love!
Francesca
DISCLAIMER: Please note that this post contains affiliate links and any purchase made through such links will result in a small commission for myself, with no charge for you.
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2 comments
This is my first time visiting your blog and I found this important information! My family is traveling to London next month and we’re planning our trip now. I really want to watch some movies in London’s theatre and I will refer to this post! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much Jade!! Really appreciated your comment!