Tickets Alert: Hidden highlights of Westminster Abbey tours

This summer there’s a chance to explore behind the scenes of Westminster Abbey on a guided tour of some areas not usually open to the public.

The 90-minute tours will take in the lost medieval sacristy, recently revealed during one of their biggest ever archaeological projects, and the library, formerly part of the monk’s dormitory with a magnificent 15th-century oak roof and majestic 17th-century bookcases. The tours will also include the Jerusalem Chamber where Henry IV died in 1413.

Abbey library (c) Westminster Abbey

The tour will also include Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries, opened in 2018 and displaying many of the Abbey’s treasures – which is open to the public for an extra fee on their normal entry charge.

The tours take place through July and August, mainly on Fridays and Saturdays, but with a few mid-week tours as well.

Although photography is now allowed inside the Abbey, it’s not allowed on the hidden highlights tours. Also, children are not allowed on the hidden highlights tours as part of the tour covers an excavated burial site.

The tours are an add-on to the existing Abbey entry price, so you need to book a normal adult entry ticket which is £18, then add the Hidden Highlights tour, which costs £15.

You need to book both entry ticket and tour at the same time, from here.

Alternatively, by joining the Abbey Association, which costs £40 per year, you get unlimited visits in the year, saves you £18 per visit — which is useful as in addition to the hidden highlights tours, the Abbey is also running some after-hours evenings this summer.