For one week after the King’s Coronation, the stage set up for the event will remain on view in Westminster Abbey for people who want to get within sniffing distance of the regal location.
The Abbey will reopen on Bank Holiday Monday 8th May, and for the rest of the week, visitors will be able to see the Coronation Theatre on a special self-guided tour around the Abbey.
Entry will include seeing key elements from the coronation service including the Coronation Chair in position on the Cosmati Pavement, where King Charles III will be crowned. On this tour, you will be able to view the Coronation Theatre from the Abbey’s North and South Transepts, which are to the left and right sides of the throne.
The self-led tour will also include the:
- Lady Chapel
- Cloisters
- Pyx Chamber
- Nave
- Abbey Gardens (Mon to Fri only)
- Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries (£5 per adult, children under 18 years free)
You need to book tickets in advance from here.
Entry is £27 per adult (one child is free, and extra children are £12 each).
A tip, if you want to go back, is to join the Abbey Association, which costs £40 per year and gets you unlimited visits to the Abbey. It’s not possible to join the Association in time to get your entry pass for the Coronation Theatre visits, but you can upgrade afterwards by phoning them, and they deduct the entry price from the annual fee.
The Coronation Theatre will be kept in place until the end of Saturday 13th May, after which it will be taken down, until the next time it’s needed.
As this is a special route for the Coronation Theatre, multimedia guides will not be available for this visit.
Note that the Crown Jewels will not be on display – they will be back in the Tower of London.
The Abbey expects to be very busy, so turning up during your chosen allotted time period is important, and they say that as there could be longer wait times, bring water, sunscreen or an umbrella as appropriate.
Yes, photography is allowed in the Abbey
