The Shard Tickets

The Shard tickets on GetYourGuide start at $35.54 for The View from The Shard, which is also the most reviewed option, rated 4.49 from 10,257 reviews. The champagne ticket is $49.41 and the tours that include entry run from $91 to $336. The viewing deck sits at 244.8 m per Wikipedia. I’d book an hour before sunset, so you see London in daylight and then lit.

I compared all six the Shard tickets and experiences that GetYourGuide sells right now: two plain entry tickets and four walking tours that bundle the viewing gallery. Every price, rating and inclusion comes from the listings, checked in October 2026, in US dollars. Links open GetYourGuide in a new tab, and I earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you.

The Shard at a Glance

The Shard is a pyramid-shaped skyscraper by the architect Renzo Piano, standing on the south bank by London Bridge station. Its observation deck, The View from The Shard, is a separate paid attraction inside the tower. Here are the numbers behind the Shard tickets, each with its source.

“The tower's privately operated observation deck, The View from The Shard, was opened to the public on 1 February 2013.”

Wikipedia lists the observatory across floors 68 to 72, with the viewing gallery and the open-air deck on the 72nd floor. The official site describes the open air skydeck and the 360 degree view, so the weather matters more here than in an enclosed tower.

What	Detail
Levels	Floors 68 to 72; open-air deck on the 72nd floor, per Wikipedia
Address	32 London Bridge St, London SE1 9SG, per Google Maps
Entrance	Joiner Street, next to London Bridge Underground station, per the listing
Opening hours	12 to 8 PM on Friday and Sunday, shorter on Wednesday and Thursday, per Google Maps
Google Maps rating	4.6 from 8,280 reviews for The View from The Shard
Ticket validity	24 hours on the standard ticket, per the listing

Hours change with the season and weather, so before you buy the Shard tickets check the official site for the date you plan to go.

The Shard Entry Tickets

Of all the entry tickets I compared, the standard one is where I would start. The View from The Shard costs $35.54, the lowest of the Shard tickets here, is rated 4.49 from 10,257 reviews and is the cheapest option on the page. It includes the ticket to the attraction, a souvenir photograph is sold separately, and you can cancel free up to 24 hours before for a full refund. The listing lets you reserve now and pay later.

My reasoning for these Shard tickets is the volume and the price together. Nothing else among the Shard tickets here gets close to ten thousand reviews, and the plain ticket costs a fraction of the guided versions. One reviewer wrote that you did not feel rushed or pressured, which is what I want from an expensive view.

The View from The Shard

The View from The Shard

• ★ 4.5 (10,257 reviews)
• 24-hour ticket
• Free cancellation

My pick: My default for a first visit: $35.54, 4.49 stars from 10,257 reviews, free cancellation and no guide to wait for.

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“Easily one of the greatest views in the world, worth the entry fee, you didn't feel rushed or pressured.”

The Shard Observation Deck Tickets

If you want the observation deck plus a guided morning, the Westminster walking tour is the version I’d look at. It costs $99.97 and runs about five hours, with a three hour walk past Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, Horse Guards Parade, 10 Downing Street and Westminster Abbey, ending at the viewing gallery. Entry to the gallery, drinks and snacks, a small group and hotel pickup and drop-off are listed as included.

The catch is the evidence. It is rated a perfect 5 but from only 4 reviews, so I treat it as promising rather than proven. These observation deck tickets make sense if you have one day in London and would rather be led around the sights than navigate the Tube yourself. If all you want is the view, the plain ticket does the same thing for roughly a third of the price.

Top Sights Tours LLC.

The Shard Viewing Gallery & Westminster Walking Tour

• ★ 5.0 (4 reviews)
• 5 hours
• Free cancellation

My pick: A five hour Westminster walk ending at the viewing gallery for $99.97; 5 stars but only 4 reviews, so judge it on the itinerary.

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The Shard Observatory Tickets

The most unusual way to get into the observatory is the Harry Potter tour at $91. It is a 4.5 hour experience that starts at Platform 9 3/4 inside King’s Cross station, visits film locations such as Cecil Court and Leicester Square, walks through Borough Market and finishes with a ticket for The Shard. The listing includes two Potter shops, and the Tube journeys of about 6 pounds are not included.

I’d only choose it if the film locations are the point and the view is a bonus. It is rated 3.9 from 4 reviews, the lowest score on my list, though the snippets praise the guide’s humour and the lesser-known locations such as the Gringotts filming spot. Of all the Shard tickets, this one is the least about the building.

TOP SIGHTS TOURS LLC

Magic of Harry Potter Tour with The Shard Viewpoint

• ★ 3.9 (4 reviews)
• 4.5 hours
• Free cancellation

My pick: A 4.5 hour Harry Potter walk ending at the Shard for $91; rated 3.9 from 4 reviews, so book it for the film locations, not the view.

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How to Book The Shard Tickets

Booking the Shard tickets is simple. You choose a date, pay online and bring the ticket to the entrance on Joiner Street, which the listing places next to London Bridge Underground station. The standard ticket is valid for 24 hours and cancellable for free up to a day ahead, so I book as soon as the weather forecast looks decent for my dates and cancel if it turns.

The decision that matters with the Shard tickets is the time of day, not the product. Sunset visits are the ones to book first, and remember that the open-air deck on the 72nd floor is exposed. The tours on this page are fixed-time experiences with a meeting point elsewhere in London, so the booking date is more rigid than for the plain ticket. If you are weighing the Shard tickets against a free view, Sky Garden is the one to compare.

The Shard Review

Are the Shard tickets good value? Google Maps rates The View from The Shard 4.6 from 8,280 reviews, and the standard GetYourGuide ticket is 4.49 from 10,257. Those are strong scores for an attraction of this price, and they come from different audiences, so they back each other up.

The reviews I read say the same things: the view is wide, the visit does not feel rushed, and access is easy. One reviewer spent a couple of hours up there. The negative note in the champagne listing is seating, with one reviewer wishing there were more seats. I’d read that as a warning that the deck gets crowded, not as a reason to skip it.

The Shard Tour Tickets

The longest way to use the Shard tickets is the Top 30 Sights Walking Tour, which includes entry to The Shard. It costs $113.30, runs about seven hours and covers Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, Parliament Square, Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral and Borough Market before it reaches London Bridge and the tower. The listing also includes transport, snacks and drinks.

It is rated 4.46 from 26 reviews, and the snippets praise the guides by name. That is a small sample, but it is the best reviewed of the tours that bundle the viewing gallery. I’d pick it only if you want the whole of central London in one day. If you have already seen the main sights, the standard ticket plus a walk of your own will be cheaper and less tiring.

Top Sights Tours LLC.

Top 30 Sights Walking Tour and The Shard Entry

• ★ 4.5 (26 reviews)
• 7 hours
• Free cancellation

My pick: A seven hour walk of the main sights with entry at the end, $113.30, 4.46 stars from 26 reviews; a leftover in my ranking for the heading, but a solid full-day tour.

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The Shard Tickets Price

the Shard tickets on this page range from $35.54 to $336, and the spread comes from the guide, not from the view. The plain ticket is the base. The champagne version adds $13.87, and the walking tours add between $55 and $78 for a guide, transport and snacks. The private tour sits far above them at $336.

If you are comparing options for a group, this calculator works out the total for the product you pick and links straight to the booking page.

The official site lists kids tickets from 10 pounds and says children under four go free with any adult ticket purchase. I’d check the official site for the current adult prices, because the listings here are resold and may differ.

The Shard Tickets Discount

I found no discount on the Shard tickets, and no code for The View from The Shard in any of these listings, and I would not trust a site that promises one. What I can see are structural savings. The official site sells kids tickets from 10 pounds, the GetYourGuide ticket lets you cancel free up to 24 hours before, and you can pay later, which lets you hold a slot while the weather forecast firms up.

The biggest saving is to skip the paid deck. Sky Garden is a free viewpoint 0.78 km (0.48 miles) away, and Google Maps rates it 4.6 from 78,632 reviews. It is a fair alternative rather than a copy, because it has no open-air deck at the top of a 72 floor tower. Check its booking rules before you plan around it.

The Shard Viewing Platform Height

People who search for the height are usually deciding whether it is worth going up. Wikipedia gives the building as 309.6 m, while Wikidata records 306 m, and the observation deck is listed at 244.8 m on the observation deck list. The two building figures differ by a few metres, so I quote both.

For anyone buying the Shard tickets, what it means in practice is that the deck sits well above the roofs of the City. The Shard opened in 2013, and the 72nd floor is open to the air, which is why I’d bring a layer in any month.

The Shard Tickets Restaurant

The ticket I’d book for a drink with the view is the Shard entry ticket with champagne. It costs $49.41, includes a glass of champagne with other drinks also available, and is rated 4.52 from 234 reviews. Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before for a full refund, and a souvenir photograph is sold separately.

Of the Shard tickets, this is a drinks ticket, not a restaurant booking, and I’d say so clearly. For a celebration it adds $13.87 to the plain ticket, which is a fair price for the glass. One reviewer used it for a birthday on a sunny day, and another praised the coffee and views but said the seating could be better. So go early if you want a place to sit.

The View from The Shard

The Shard Entry Ticket with Champagne

• ★ 4.5 (234 reviews)
• 24-hour ticket
• Free cancellation

My pick: The plain ticket plus a glass of champagne for $49.41, 4.52 stars from 234 reviews; seating is limited at busy times.

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The Shard Tickets Online

Booking the Shard tickets online is the normal way to go, and the version I’d pick for a hosted visit is the private tour with skip-the-line entry. It costs $336, runs three hours and starts at the Tower Hill Memorial, from where a licensed guide takes you past the Tower of London, Tower Bridge, City Hall and HMS Belfast to the tower. The guide speaks several languages, including Spanish, German, Italian and French.

It is rated 4.7 from only 6 reviews, so the sample is small, and the listing is the place to check how many guests the price covers. I’d consider it for a family or a small group that wants a language other than English. For one or two people, the standard online ticket is much better value than the other Shard tickets here.

Rosotravel - United Kingdom Tours & Experiences

Skip-the-line View from The Shard & Private Tour of London

• ★ 4.7 (6 reviews)
• 3 hours
• Free cancellation

My pick: A private three hour tour with skip-the-line entry for $336; 4.7 stars from 6 reviews, worth it mainly for a group that wants a guide in its own language.

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Best Time to Visit The Shard

Cloud cover decides how good the view is, so it matters when you book the Shard tickets. In the 2025 weather data from Open-Meteo, the clearest month is April at 44% average cloud cover, with March and September at 51%. The cloudiest are October at 76% and January at 75%. Sunset runs from 15:51 in December to 21:19 in June.

Month	Sunset (London time)	Cloud cover	Sunshine a day	Rainy days
Jan	16:21	75%	3.5 h	13
Feb	17:16	73%	4.1 h	10
Marclearest	18:05	51%	9.2 h	3
Aprclearest	19:57	44%	11.4 h	4
May	20:46	56%	11.2 h	7
Jun	21:19	54%	12.9 h	7
Jul	21:11	59%	11.6 h	9
Aug	20:22	60%	10.5 h	7
Sepclearest	19:14	51%	9.3 h	11
Oct	18:07	76%	5.3 h	9
Nov	16:11	69%	4.3 h	15
Dec	15:51	71%	3.5 h	10

Pick a date, and the planner below shows the sunset and the entry time I would book.

My rule for the Shard tickets is to arrive 45 to 60 minutes before sunset. That way you see the city in daylight, catch the golden hour and stay for the lights. Winter brings an early sunset, so the view is dark by late afternoon. The sunniest month is June at 12.9 hours a day, but June also means a sunset after 21:00, which is later than the 8 PM close that Google Maps lists on some days, so check the closing time first.

What You Can See From The Shard

On a clear day the horizon is a long way off. The calculator below uses the deck height to show how far you can see.

Distances below are straight-line from the tower, computed from the Google Maps coordinates.

London Bridge is right below at 0.39 km (0.24 miles), and the Tower of London is 0.83 km (0.52 miles) away. St Paul’s Cathedral is 1.32 km (0.82 miles) off, and the London Eye 2.29 km (1.42 miles). Big Ben is 2.67 km (1.66 miles) away, Westminster Abbey 2.88 km (1.79 miles) and Trafalgar Square 2.90 km (1.80 miles). Buckingham Palace is the farthest of these at 3.85 km (2.39 miles), so I’d bring binoculars or use the camera zoom.

The Shard vs Other Observation Decks in London

The Shard is the tallest building in the United Kingdom per Wikipedia, but you cannot see it from itself, so the Shard tickets pair well with a second viewpoint. Ratings and review counts are from Google Maps, and distances are straight-line from the tower.

Deck	Google rating	Reviews	Distance	Cost
The View from The Shard	4.6	8,280	the deck itself	Paid
Sky Garden	4.6	78,632	0.78 km (0.48 mi)	Free
Horizon 22	4.8	6,757	1.14 km (0.71 mi)	Check locally
The Lookout, 8 Bishopsgate	4.8	1,631	1.08 km (0.67 mi)	Check locally
Tate Modern Viewing Level	4.4	658	1.00 km (0.62 mi)	Check locally
London Eye	4.5	205,801	2.29 km (1.42 mi)	Paid

If you want the Shard in the frame, Sky Garden is the one I’d add, because from there the tower is part of the view. The London Eye is 2.29 km (1.42 miles) away across the river and gives a very different, slower ride, so I’d split the two over different days. The Lookout and Horizon 22 rate 4.8 on fewer reviews, so check their entry rules before you go.

How I’d Choose

• Cheapest of the Shard tickets: the standard View from The Shard at $35.54, rated 4.49 from 10,257 reviews.
• First visit and sunset: the same standard ticket, booked for a slot an hour before sunset.
• A celebration: the champagne ticket at $49.41, the one that adds a glass for $13.87 more.
• One-day London sightseeing: the Top 30 Sights tour at $113.30, or the Westminster tour at $99.97 for a shorter walk.
• Families and small groups: the private tour with skip-the-line entry at $336, which is the only one with a choice of guide language.
• Harry Potter fans: the Potter tour at $91, with the Shard as the last stop.