Buckingham Palace Tours: What You Can Actually Do

Only in summer, and only on the Royal Collection Trust's own tickets. The 2026 State Rooms season ran from July 9 to September 27, open daily through August and Thursday to Monday in September. Adult tickets were £33 booked in advance and £37 on the day. No Viator tour we found includes State Rooms entry.

The rest of the year, the Royal Collection Trust says the palace opens only on selected dates for exclusive guided tours. They're limited and sell out, so if you're set on seeing inside on a fall or winter trip, watch rct.uk for released dates rather than expecting to buy on arrival.

What about the palace's other attractions in November?

• The King's Gallery. Its 2026 exhibition, Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style, closed on October 18, and listings show the gallery closed for the rest of 2026. Check rct.uk for the next show.
• The Royal Mews. The stables close to visitors over winter. A Royal Mews Christmas Shop is listed from November 13, 2026 to January 4, 2027, open Thursday to Monday. It's a shop, not a tour of the carriages.

So for a November visit, plan on the outside: the guard change, the palace front and the royal parks.

The Household Division's November 2026 calendar shows the guard change at Buckingham Palace at 11am on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, plus a 10am Sunday Parade. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays get only a 3pm Captain's Inspection. Wet weather can shorten or cancel the ceremony, with the call sometimes made as late as 10:45am.

The ceremony is spread across St James's Palace, The Mall and the palace forecourt, which is why a guided walk beats waiting at the railings. You see the guards form up, march with the band and arrive, instead of a slice of the forecourt from three rows back. Several of the best tours deliberately skip the front gates for that reason.

• Urban Saunters keeps groups to 20 and moves fast to keep pace with the guards. From $20.
• See The Sights Tours caps groups at 15 and covers about 3 miles; not for strollers or wheelchairs.
• Fun London Tours Ltd has the most reviews here (1,905) and starts at Piccadilly Circus.

Book for a Monday, Wednesday, Friday or Sunday. On Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, secret chamber tours ltd says its tour watches the Household Cavalry change at Horse Guards Parade instead. Our Changing of the Guard guide covers timings and viewing spots in more detail.

If you want more than the ceremony, a three- to five-hour royal walk adds Westminster: Downing Street from the gates, Big Ben, Parliament Square and, on some tours, Westminster Abbey inside.

• Budget overview. Top Sights Tours Group LLC's 3 hours walk covers 20-plus sights from outside, timed for the guard change on its ceremony-day departures, from $30.
• Abbey with a Blue Badge guide. London Strides includes Abbey tickets and a guided visit inside, rated 4.89. UK Tours & Activites is cheaper at $44, but that price is the three-hour option with only service entry at the Abbey; the four-hour option adds the guided visit inside.
• Guard + Abbey ticket. Top Sights Tours Group LLC's tour starts at The Ritz, catches the guard change on its 10am Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday tours, and ends with your Abbey ticket for a self-guided visit.

Remember the Abbey is open to sightseers Monday to Saturday only; on Sundays it's open for worship. Our Westminster tours page has its hours and the Parliament options.

• Pick the day first. Monday, Wednesday or Friday at 11am for the full Guard Change, or Sunday at 10am for the parade. Check the Household Division calendar the day before; some dates have no ceremony.
• Go to the right meeting point. Guard walks meet away from the palace, at places like Piccadilly Circus, Waterloo Place, Trafalgar Square or St James's Park station, and start well before the ceremony. Check your ticket for the exact time.
• Dress for standing outside. In November, layers and a waterproof. The ceremony goes ahead in light rain but may become a shortened "wet change" without music.
• After the guard. Walk down The Mall to Trafalgar Square, or through St James's Park to Westminster. In the afternoon, the London Eye is just across Westminster Bridge.

• Paying extra for "Buckingham Palace" in a title. Outside summer, every tour sees the palace from outside. Price the walk on what else it includes.
• Waiting at the railings on your own. You need to claim a spot well before 11am, and you'll see one part of a ceremony that moves across several sites.
• Guard tours on Tuesdays, Thursdays or Saturdays unless the listing says what you'll see instead. On those days there's only the 3pm Captain's Inspection at the palace.
• Third-party "palace entry" in winter. If a listing claims State Rooms access outside summer, check it's one of the Royal Collection Trust's own guided dates before you pay.