Before You Book The View from The Shard: Every Cost, and What's Worth It
By the BeatTheCrowd team · Prices last checked 2 November · 4 min read
The View from The Shard is the highest viewing platform in the UK, and what you pay depends on the day, the time and whether you want a glass of champagne at the top. There's general entry, the champagne upgrade, kids' tickets, sunset slots and the View Guarantee if the weather lets you down. Most of them sound worth paying for. You don't need the most expensive one to have a great visit. In this guide we walk through what each option costs, what you really get, and how to choose the right one, whether that's a quiet weekday morning or a busy Saturday at sunset.
At a glance
General entry (adult)
About £32 Sunday to Friday, £37 Saturday
With champagne (18+)
About £47 Sunday to Friday, £52 Saturday
Kids
From £10. Under 4 free with an adult
View Guarantee
Free return if bad weather hides the view
Floors
68 and 69 indoors, open-air Skydeck on 72
Time at the top
No limit: allow 1-1.5 hours
Best time
Typically opening, or 30 minutes before sunset
🎟️ Book skip-the-line tickets
Check the crowds, find the best time slot, and book through our authorised partner.
The real total: cheapest ticket vs what most visitors pay
General entry costs about £32 from Sunday to Friday and about £37 on Saturdays, as listed by The Better Vacation. Adding a glass of champagne costs about £15 more. Kids' tickets start at £10, and under-4s go free with an adult. Booking online ahead is usually cheaper than buying on the day.
Visitor
What they buy
One adult
Weekday visitor
General entry, Sunday to Friday
About £32
Saturday visitor
General entry, Saturday
About £37
Celebrating
Champagne, Sunday to Friday
About £47
Saturday treat
Champagne, Saturday
About £52
🎟️ Book skip-the-line tickets
Check the crowds, find the best time slot, and book through our authorised partner.
Prices last checked: 2 November. Prices vary with the season, peak and off-peak dates and promotions, and we recheck them every month. Visitor-reported costs are marked as estimates, and US$ figures are rough conversions.
Ticket options: what each one gets you
Ticket
Price
What you get
Verdict
General entry, Sunday to Friday
About £32
Floors 68, 69 and the open-air Skydeck on 72
Best value
General entry, Saturday
About £37
Same
Fine, but a weekday is cheaper
Champagne
About £47 (Saturday £52)
Adds a glass of Moët & Chandon, 18+
For an occasion
Kids
From £10
Entry, with a free hot chocolate or ice cream
Great value
Under 4
Free
With any adult ticket
The crowd tax: why Saturday and sunset cost more
We don't yet have hourly crowd data for the Shard. Saturday tickets cost about £5 more, and sunset is the most popular time of day. Going at opening is typically the quietest, and at off-peak times you can save 30-45 minutes of waiting, according to The Better Vacation.
When
Typical crowds
What to do
Opening, weekday
Quietest
General entry: the cheapest and calmest
30 minutes before sunset
Busiest
Book ahead: day and night views in one visit
Saturday
Busy
About £5 more: go on a weekday if you can
Which ticket is worth it?
Most visitors: general entry on a weekday, about £32.
Families: kids' tickets from £10, and under-4s free.
A special occasion: the champagne ticket.
Sunset: arrive about 30 minutes before, booked ahead.
Short on time? What you'd regret missing
The open-air Skydeck on floor 72.
Tower Bridge and the Tower of London from above.
St Paul's and the City, to the north-west.
Sunset into the evening, as the city lights come on.
Getting there
The entrance is on Joiner Street, a two-minute walk from London Bridge station (Northern and Jubilee lines, and National Rail). A regular Tube fare covers it.
Weather and visibility
London's weather changes quickly. Check the forecast, and if the view is poor, ask staff about the View Guarantee before you leave. The Skydeck on floor 72 is open to the air, so bring a layer.
What can go wrong
You go on a Saturday: about £5 more.
Fog or low cloud: use the View Guarantee, but tell staff before you leave.
You arrive after sunset: you miss the daylight view.
How we research: every guide is written by the BeatTheCrowd team from official sources and recent traveller reports, cross-checked against each other. Crowd figures come from our own crowd data. Prices last checked 2 November. Prices and rules change, so always confirm on the official site before you book.
Free
Adult and champagne prices are from The Better Vacation; kids' prices and the under-4 rule are from the official site. Prices vary by date and time, so check yours when you book.
Is the champagne worth it?
The champagne ticket adds about £15 for one glass of Moët & Chandon Imperial Brut at the bar. Non-alcoholic alternatives are available. Our verdict: a nice touch for a birthday or anniversary, but the view is the same. For most visitors, general entry is enough.
The View Guarantee
If bad weather means you can't see at least three of the landmarks the Shard names, you can come back for free on another date, within three months. Tell a staff member before you leave, and they'll validate your ticket. It takes much of the risk out of London weather.
What visitors say
Visitors love the views over the Thames, Tower Bridge and St Paul's, the open-air Skydeck and that there's no time limit at the top. The most common complaints are the price and grey days, so the advice is to book a weekday, go just before sunset and use the View Guarantee if it's cloudy.
