The Mayor of London programmes about a dozen events a year on Trafalgar Square, and almost every one of them is free with no ticket and no booking. Each year's dates appear on City Hall's own events pages, usually a few months ahead, and they cannot appear much earlier than that: the Greater London Authority refuses to take an application for the square more than six months in advance.
That rule is the most useful thing to understand about the square as a venue. It explains why a search in January turns up nothing for the following autumn, why the list for next year is always half empty, and why anyone planning a trip around a particular festival should check the date rather than assume it repeats.
Our guide to Trafalgar Square itself covers the fountains, the lions and the Fourth Plinth. This page is about the square in use: what is programmed, how a date is fixed, what it costs to hire, and what a festival day is really like if you arrive with a pushchair or a wheelchair.
The square as a venue
- Who runs it
- The Greater London Authority. Westminster City Council manages the north terrace
- Cost to attend
- Free for every event in the Mayor's cultural programme. No tickets are issued
- How far ahead dates appear
- Applications are not accepted more than six months in advance, so the calendar fills in stages
- Licensing
- The GLA holds a premises licence from Westminster City Council and may stage only a limited number of licensable events a year
- Nearest step-free Tube
- Westminster, about a 10-minute walk. Charing Cross is closer but is not step-free
- Toilets
- West side, at the base of the central staircase, 10am to 8pm daily, 20p, contactless accepted
The year on the square, event by event
The pattern below repeats annually, but every date moves. Treat the month as reliable and the date as something to check.
| Event | Usual slot | Recent and next dates | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lunar New Year | February, a Sunday | Sunday 22 February 2026; 2027 not announced | Daytime |
| The Passion of Jesus | Good Friday | Friday 3 April 2026 | 12:00 and 15:15 |
| Vaisakhi on the Square | April, a Saturday | Saturday 18 April 2026; Saturday 17 April 2027 | 12:00-18:00 |
| St George's Day | April, a Sunday | Sunday 19 April 2026 | 12:00-18:00 |
| Eid on the Square | Moves with the lunar calendar | Saturday 30 May 2026 | 12:00-18:00 |
| BMW Classics (London Symphony Orchestra) | June, a Saturday afternoon | Saturday 13 June 2026 | 16:00-17:30, gates 14:45 |
| Black on the Square | Early September, a Saturday | Saturday 5 September 2026; Saturday 4 September 2027 | 12:00-18:00 |
| Diwali on the Square | October, a Sunday | Sunday 25 October 2026 | 13:00-19:00 |
| Christmas tree and carol singing | December | Tree lit at a December ceremony; carols through the month | One-hour slots |
| Chanukah menorah | December, eight days | 14 to 22 December 2025 | Menorah stands all week |
Four of these already have pages of their own on this site, because they are worth a whole afternoon: Diwali, Eid and Vaisakhi, Lunar New Year and, in December, the tree and the Christmas lights. The rest are covered below, because nothing else covers them.
A free orchestral concert, and a Good Friday play
The two events most visitors have never heard of are the ones most worth planning around.
BMW Classics is the London Symphony Orchestra's free outdoor concert, on a Saturday afternoon in June. In 2026 it fell on 13 June, 4pm to 5.30pm with gates from 2.45pm, conducted by Sir Antonio Pappano: five movements of Holst's The Planets, excerpts from Elgar's Enigma Variations and the premiere of a commission written for a mixed-ability orchestra. No ticket is required, and the orchestra's Holst project continues into 2027. Our guide to free live music in London lists the year's other free concerts.
The Passion of Jesus takes over the square on Good Friday. A cast of more than a hundred actors and volunteers, with horses, donkeys and doves, performs a full-scale re-enactment twice, at 12 noon and 3.15pm, each lasting about 90 minutes. It is projected onto a big screen and interpreted in British Sign Language, so the whole square can follow it. The organisers advise parental guidance: the crucifixion is played realistically. Good Friday falls on 26 March in 2027.
Black on the Square, and the early September date
Black on the Square is the Mayor's flagship celebration of Black culture and the newest of the big free days here, with workshops, Black-owned businesses, food traders and a main stage curated with a London radio station. The 2026 edition was on Saturday 5 September, noon to 6pm; the 2027 edition is already fixed for Saturday 4 September, one of the few dates you can plan around a year ahead.
How a date is fixed, and why the calendar is always incomplete
Every activity on the square, from a national festival to a single photographer with a tripod, goes through the same application process, and the rules are published. They are worth reading even if you never apply, because they explain the shape of the calendar.
- Six months, no more. The GLA will not accept an application for Trafalgar Square more than six months ahead, and an organiser may have only one application pending in that period.
- First come, first served. Dates are allocated in the order valid applications arrive, and weekend bookings for rallies and demonstrations may take precedence over other activities.
- Fourteen working days minimum. A completed application must arrive at least 14 working days before the event, and at least 28 working days if any part of it is licensable, which includes music, drama, dance, and sports and games.
- A licence cap. The GLA can stage only a limited number of events with licensable content each year under its premises licence, so not every application can be accommodated however good it is.
- Five million pounds of cover. Public liability insurance for a minimum of £5 million, plus a risk assessment and method statement, is required before anything is confirmed.
The practical effect for a visitor is simple: a festival that happened last year is not confirmed for this year until City Hall publishes it, and by the time it is published there may be only a few months to go.
What it costs to hire the square
The published fees are a reminder of how valuable the space is, and they answer a question we are often asked about filming and commercial photography.
| Use | Fee | Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Rally, demonstration or march | No charge | Maximum three hours. Cleaning and contractor costs must be covered |
| Filming or a photographic shoot | £1,000 per hour plus VAT | £15,000 plus VAT may apply for the second and later full days. £200 plus VAT cancellation fee |
| Commercial activity or a photo call | £1,000 per hour plus VAT | £500 plus VAT cancellation fee; the full fee if cancelled inside 48 hours |
The minimum hire is one hour and part hours are rounded up, so two and a half hours is charged as three. Concessions may apply to UK registered charities, press card holders and students. Accredited press photographers working on current affairs are pre-authorised and do not need consent in advance, and there are no restrictions at all on amateur or private photography, which is the answer most visitors want. Our guide to photography and drone rules in London covers the places where that is not true.
Protests, and the three-hour limit
The square has been a place of public assembly for longer than it has been a place of festivals, and City Hall says plainly that the Mayor supports that tradition. Rallies cost nothing to hold, but they are capped at three hours and the organiser still covers cleaning costs, submits a site-specific risk assessment and carries the same insurance as a commercial hirer.
For a visitor this matters as a warning: rallies are frequent, especially at weekends, and one can make the square crowded and very loud with no notice on any published events page.
Singing carols at the foot of the tree
Throughout December, City Hall runs one-hour carol singing sessions at the base of the Christmas tree, and they are free to stand and listen to. Deliberately, there is no stage and no public address system, which is why the singing sounds the way it does.
Choirs apply for a slot, and the 2026 timetable shows how early that has to happen: applications were accepted from Thursday 27 August 2026 and closed on Friday 6 November, or earlier if all the slots filled, with confirmations sent by Friday 13 November. If you are travelling with a choir, that is the calendar to work to. If you simply want to hear singing indoors instead, our guide to carol services in London covers the churches, including St Martin-in-the-Fields on the corner of the square.
An event day: bag searches, toilets and the lift
Festival days on the square are well organised and busier than photographs suggest. Four things to expect.
Everyone is bag-searched at the entrance. There is one level-access entrance, stewards and Team London volunteers in high-visibility jackets, and clear signage. Assistance dogs are welcome.
The quiet options are real. An accessible viewing area sits on the north terrace in front of the National Gallery, main-stage speech is interpreted in British Sign Language on a screen beside the stage, ear defenders can be asked for at the information point, and a Mobiloo accessible toilet with a hoist and a changing table is brought in for the bigger events. Bring your own sling if you need the hoist.
The permanent facilities are thinner than you would expect, and they are listed in full on our page about the square. The two points that matter on a festival day: Café on the Square is shut, and the paid public toilets on the west side close for short periods through the day for cleaning, which is worth knowing when 20,000 people are on the square at once.
The lift from the north terrace and the event-day lift are not always the same story. City Hall's event pages describe a lift connecting the north terrace to the main square, while its own visiting page says lift access from the north terrace is unavailable while the lift undergoes essential maintenance. If a step-free route between the terrace and the square matters to you, ask a Heritage Warden on arrival rather than relying on either page.
Heritage Wardens in distinctive uniforms are on the square 24 hours a day and are the people to ask, or to report anything suspicious to. Security staff patrol and CCTV operates continuously.
Getting there, and the station to use
Charing Cross is the closest Underground station, on the Bakerloo and Northern lines, with an exit onto the square itself. Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus and Embankment are all a few minutes away on foot. Charing Cross main line station is about 325 metres, roughly three minutes, and City Hall describes it as step-free with a step-free route to the square.
For step-free access by Underground, City Hall points to Westminster, on the Jubilee, District and Circle lines, about ten minutes' walk away: Charing Cross Tube station is not step-free. Three Blue Badge bays are on St Martin's Street beside the National Gallery, about 250 metres from it. Our guide to step-free transport in London explains how to plan a whole day this way.
Ignore the "heritage bus" note on City Hall's older event pages. Some of them still warn that routes 9 and 15 are heritage buses without a low floor. There is no heritage bus service on either route now, and every bus that serves the square is a modern low-floor vehicle.
On foot, the square is one of the easiest points in London to reach from the south bank: it is a short walk from the Golden Jubilee footbridges, which is worth knowing if you are staying near Waterloo. It is also the end point of the London Parade route each 1 January, and the closest large open space to the West End theatres.
Where this year's dates are published
Two places, in this order. City Hall's own events listing carries every Mayoral event with its date, times and cost; the individual event page, published a few weeks ahead, is where the timings and the accessibility notes appear. Both are in our sources below. Nothing is ticketed, so there is no on-sale date to wait for. For the other free events that close central roads on a Sunday morning, see London's half marathons and 10Ks.
Frequently asked questions
Do you need tickets for events on Trafalgar Square?
No. Every event in the Mayor of London's cultural programme on the square is free and unticketed, including Diwali, Vaisakhi, Eid, St George's Day, Black on the Square and the London Symphony Orchestra's summer concert. You walk in, through a bag search at the entrance, and you may leave and return as you like.
How do I find out what is on in Trafalgar Square during my visit?
Check City Hall's events listing rather than a general what's-on site, because the square's programme is run by the Greater London Authority and published there first. Bear in mind that applications are not accepted more than six months ahead, so events later in the year may genuinely not be decided yet.
Can anyone hold an event in Trafalgar Square?
Anyone can apply. Rallies, demonstrations and small-scale filming and photography are considered individually, with at least 14 working days' notice, £5 million of public liability insurance and a risk assessment. Rallies are free but limited to three hours; filming and commercial activity cost £1,000 per hour plus VAT.
Is Trafalgar Square accessible for wheelchair users?
Largely yes on event days, which have a level-access entrance, accessible paths, an accessible viewing area on the north terrace and an accessible toilet. The complication is the lift between the north terrace and the main square, which City Hall's visiting page lists as out of service for maintenance while its event pages still describe it as working. Ask a Heritage Warden when you arrive.
Are there toilets on Trafalgar Square?
Yes, on the west side at the base of the central staircase, open daily from 10am to 8pm. They cost 20p, take contactless payment and include an accessible toilet with baby changing. They close briefly during the day for cleaning, and the café on the square is shut.
Sources
- London City Hall - Trafalgar Square (checked September 2026)
- London City Hall - Visiting Trafalgar Square, facilities and access (checked September 2026)
- London City Hall - Book Trafalgar Square, application rules and fees (checked September 2026)
- London City Hall - BMW Classics 2026 (checked September 2026)
- London City Hall - The Passion of Jesus in Trafalgar Square 2026 (checked September 2026)
- London City Hall - Black On The Square 2027 (checked September 2026)
- London City Hall - Diwali on the Square 2026 (checked September 2026)
- London City Hall - Carol singing in Trafalgar Square (checked September 2026)