Buckingham Palace East Wing Tours On Sale TODAY!

The East Wing of Buckingham Palace will be open to visitors for the first time this summer, when special guided tours of the Principal Floor become available to tourists visiting in July and August.

The East Wing encompasses the front façade of the historic building and features the famous central balcony where the Monarch and members of the Royal Family, have gathered for public appearances during special occasions or historic moments since 1851.

Access this year has been made possible due to the conclusion of more than five years of improvement works to the East Wing.

The essential works are part of the Buckingham Palace Reservicing Programme to upgrade the historic building’s infrastructure, improve access and preserve it for future generations.

Led by expert guides, small groups of visitors will be able to visit spectacular rooms on the Principal Floor, furnished with highlights from the Royal Collection. Visitors will also discover the history of the Wing, first occupied by Queen Victoria, Prince Albert and their children and still used by the Royal Family today for official meetings and events.

At the request of Queen Victoria, the architect Edward Blore was commissioned to draw up plans for alterations to Buckingham Palace, in order to increase the accommodation for her growing family.

Between 1847 and 1849, the East Wing was added, enclosing what had previously been an open, horseshoe-shaped courtyard, following George IV’s conversion of Buckingham House into a Palace to the designs of John Nash.

Tours will take visitors through rooms and spaces including the Principal Corridor, which runs the length of the Wing, where paintings by artists such as Thomas Gainsborough, Sir Thomas Lawrence and Franz Xaver Winterhalter are on display.

A limited number of East Wing Highlights Tours will run daily in July and August, from Monday, 15 July.

Tours must be booked in addition to the standard admission ticket to the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace.

The Palace will be open for seven days a week during July and August for the first time since 2019, returning to five days a week during September.

East Wing Highlights Tours go on sale to the public today (Wednesday, 10 April).

Each tour must be purchased with a ticket to visit the State Rooms. The combined ticket price is £75 for Adults. Tours start from Monday, 15 July.

Admission to the State Rooms is £32 (in advance) and £35 on the day.

Visitor information and tickets: www.rct.uk, +44 (0)303 123 7300.