LONDON’s West End is home to some of the biggest and best theatre shows in the world.
Regular theatregoers will know that tickets don’t come cheap; however, there are ways to nab cheap seats.
The West End’s annual ticket promotion, London Theatre Week is already in full swing, giving theatre fans the chance to nab cheap tickets to some of the capital’s best shows.
There are 75 West End shows participating in the exclusive West End deal, with tickets priced at £15, £25, £35 and £45.
London Theatre Week is an annual celebration of some of the West End’s biggest shows – and it also happens to be the best time of year to book tickets too.
Theatregoers can get tickets to over 75 productions, including award-winning plays like Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Stranger Things: The First Shadow and The Play That Goes Wrong.
Other world-famous shows like The Lion King, Wicked, Les Miserables, the Phantom of the Opera and the Book of Mormon.
Shrek The Musical, Blippi The Wonderful World Tour and Hello Dolly! are also included in the deal.
The promotion is set to run until September 1, but you don’t have to actually go to your show in that time period.
You can book for a future date, giving you plenty of time to plan your perfect theatre trip.
Although there are only a limited number of discounted tickets available for each show, so theatregoers will need to book early to grab the best deals.
Check out all the exclusively priced London Theatre Week shows here and get booking now.
Finding cheap theatre tickets isn’t impossible, with several booking sites regularly offering discounts to some of London’s top shows.
Start your search by heading to sites such as:
Often booking sites, theatre companies and venues, such as the National Theatre in London, will offer student and OAP discounts too.
So if you fall into either of these groups, make the most of the additional savings you can get on tickets.
Ticket lotteries are another great option for those Brits who want to nab cheap tickets.
Many big West End productions will offer lotteries to new or popular shows.
For example, the hit musical Hamilton runs a regular weekly draw for £10 tickets.
If you’re flexible with dates and timings, then last minute offers are also a great way to nab big savings.
Theatre ticket prices can vary, depending on the type of show, theatre and of course the seat.
West End theatre tickets cost around £30-£40; however, you can pick some up from as little as £10.
At the top end of the scale, for shows such as Hamilton, tickets can sell for as much as £150-£200, so it’s worth knowing how to nab cheap tickets.
Regular theatregoers can save money on tickets by purchasing an annual membership with a theatre company.
The RSC, Royal Court Theatre and the Globe Theatre all offer members priority booking and discounts throughout the year.
Sometimes it can be cheaper to buy tickets directly from the box office at some shows.
You’ll be able to save on pricey booking fees, and if you time it right you may be able to get some at rock bottom prices.
Often box offices will sell off returned or unsold seats to shows, sometimes discounting the price in order to fill the venue.
Generally going to the box office an hour before the show starts will give you the best chance of bagging insanely cheap tickets.
There are no guarantees with this tactic and you might not get as big of a discount as you may think.
The Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London sells £5 standing tickets to all shows, and offers the best view of all the action on stage.
TRAVEL reporter Ryan Gray recently spent a weekend in London with his partner, spending less than £125 each, including food, drinks, entertainment, transport and accommodation – here’s how he did it.
Hotel
Two nights at the easyHotel in Kensington was booked for £83.70 for two people for two nights. It was the biggest outlay of the trip, but still pretty affordable for a weekend in the city.
Entertainment
We made the most of the free museums in the city, including the British Museum, the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum.
However, we also took in a night of stand-up the Museum of Comedy for £26.50 for two and a cheap evening of Shakespeare at The Globe for £5pp.
We also visited the Holborn public roof garden, a free viewing deck from where some of the city’s most famous sites can be seen and some of the free market stalls along the Southbank.
Sadly our visit to Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guards for free was rained off, but on clearer days, this is free as well.
Food and drink
London is full of cheap places to eat, without having to go hungry.
We visited the following places during our affordable weekend:
Icco Pizza, Jerusalem Bar and Kitchen, La Brioche cafe, Lanzhou Lamian, Chinatown Bakery, Fischcotheque, Quatre Seasons cafe, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese and The India Club.
Transport
We opted to use the buses rather than the tubes, with a daily price cap of £5.25 preventing the costs from racking up.
Meanwhile, this is a list of London’s best free kids’ attractions.
And this exotic indoor garden is another great free place to visit.
