Ceremony of the Keys

We attended the ceremony of the keys at the Tower of London on the 15th August and it was absolutely amazing certainly a privileged opportunity. At 21:30 we were guided in by Yeoman Warder Kelly or #beefy409 who was very personable, funny and knowledgeable. #beefy409 told us the ceremony has been ongoing for over 750 years without fail and has only been delayed once due to a ww2 bomb. We watched the ceremony and had the opportunity to ask questions and take photographs after. So fascinating and entertaining even my kids (12 & 7) really enjoyed itA must see when in London..

This is a very special event that has occurred every night for over 700 years. The Tower area is dark and quiet, shutting out the noise of London. You really feel as if you have stepped back in time as you hear the gates clank and lock you inside the walls. Our group was 15 to 20 in number which made for an eerily interesting and fun time. Yeoman Warder Emily (apologies if I have gotten that wrong) did an excellent job of explaining the history and the process for locking the gates at the Tower. When you think back on the history of the Tower, who has lived there, world events, etc., as you stand in the dark listening to the bugle/trumpet playing the last song for the night, it creates a memorable experience.

This official closing ceremony of the Tower of London is an absolute must when visiting the city. However, you MUST obtain tickets online in the month prior to your visit. Be prepared to refresh the page numerous times till you are able to log in. If you are open to more than one or two days that’s all the better as they only allow 30 persons per night. Even if you have to change your entire itinerary to see this, DO IT! This closing ceremony has taken place every night with the excel of one for well over 700 years. Having seen this twice now, first the Queen’s keys and now the King’s keys, it is something you will thoroughly enjoy. The one downside is that no video or still photography is allowed. If you are fortunate to score tickets, you will not be disappointed!

You absolutely MUST do this. It was the highlight of our 10 days in London, and all for a £1 booking fee We visited the Tower a few days before during the day and that was fun. But being there when everyone else has left, in the black of night, with rain and wind coming in of the ancient river Thames, while witnessing and being part of living history is an experience I will forever cherish.

Great experience to see this ceremony at the Tower of London at night with only a few other tourists around. Have to plan ahead of time and wake up early to log onto the website to purchase tickets more than a month ahead of time. In addition to seeing the ceremony, we also had the opportunity to learn more about the guards at the Tower of London.

This is a cool thing to do in London! We booked online before we traveled and the tickets are not expensive but they go fast. We only had two nights that we could attend so felt fortunate that we were able to attend. It's fun to be part of a small group there after everyone else has gone home. The yeoman warder had interesting and colorful stories about the history of the tower and the ceremony of the keys. It was actually quite moving!

We saw this on the website while booking our tower entrance, it sounded intriguing and reviews were 5 stars.
We headed back to the tower gates at 9.15pm thinking we would probably be the only one's there, how wrong were we! There were about 40 other people waiting already.
The 'Ceremony' was quite private, informative, historic and we felt privileged
of being escorted in and out of the tower, all for only £5 we couldn't believe it. Well worth doing.

We went to the Ceremony last night. It was incredible. Barry, the assigned Yeoman Warder was a great mix of information and humour.
To be able to be part of history was amazing.
I will be trying to get tickets to bring the children on another occasion.

Even though we scheduled to visit the Tower of London later in my vacation, I had a free night in my itinerary and so I booked Ceremony of Keys tickets online. Great value at only 5 GBP per person. The gates at 9:30 PM and there was about 50 folks with reservations. I'm a jerk and don't remember the Yeoman Warder's name, but he was thoroughly entertaining. It was a very quick tour, because we were there to witness the Ceremony. Everybody was allowed to ask questions. After the ceremony, we were escorted out. I thought it was the best value entertainment of my entire trip. And it complemented my Tower visit later in theweek.

Having wanted to experience this ceremony for years we managed to secure tickets when visiting London this time. The tickets get released once per month and after watching for days managed to get 2nd choice date. For only £5 this must be one of the best value experiences in London.
Visitors are admitted at 9.30 pm after a name check from the Yeoman Warder.A brief history of the Tower is given before proceeding to Traitors Gate where you watch the ceremony. The Warder explains what will happen during your visit. The view isn't brilliant as visitors have to keep clear of the area where the escort pass,however we were right in front where the guard challenges the party with the keys. During our visit it was the Gurkas who formed the escort party.
The visitors then proceed following the guard to listen to the last post beside the White Tower. The Warder than answers any questions which was interesting. It was very atmospheric being within the tower walls with the white tower flood lit with so few people around.