Venue
Pall Mall, Trafalgar Square and Whitehall, London, United Kingdom
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London New Year's Day Parade guide
Marching bands through the West End.
In short
Families and anyone recovering from New Year's Eve will find London's New Year's Day Parade an easy afternoon out on Friday 1 January 2027. Performers, American marching bands, borough floats and vintage cars travel from Piccadilly to Westminster, and anyone can watch from the pavement. Start time and headliners are confirmed nearer the date, so check before heading out.
On the first afternoon of the year, thousands of performers march, dance and drive through the West End from Piccadilly to Westminster. London's New Year's Day Parade mixes American marching bands, borough floats, samba troupes and vintage cars into one long, cheerful procession, and anyone can watch it from the pavement.
It is the gentler counterpart to the fireworks of the night before. Where New Year's Eve is a ticketed rush to midnight, the parade is unhurried and family-sized, a chance to see the city's grandest streets given over to brass, drums and pom-poms in daylight.
It also has an unusual double audience. Half a million people line the route in a good year, while American viewers watch it live on public television, which is why so many of the bands have flown in from the United States for the occasion.
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Key Facts & Stats:
Where: London, United Kingdom
Venue: Piccadilly to Parliament Square via Regent Street
Held: Every year
Type of event: Cultural Events, Community Events, Parade
Nearest airport: London (LHR) · 2 flight routes
Currency: Pound sterling (£ GBP)
Time zone: GMT (UTC+0), BST (UTC+1) from late March to late October
Language: English
Map
Close to the venue
- Trafalgar Square Attraction · 280 m
- National Gallery Attraction · 350 m
- Westminster Abbey Attraction · 770 m
- London Eye Attraction · 810 m
- The Savoy Hotel · 830 m
Getting around
Hotels near the venue fill up around the event dates.
Warm clothing for a long January wait
You will stand still for a long time in midwinter air. Wear a warm coat over several layers, gloves, a hat and waterproof boots, and bring a flask and snacks, since leaving your spot to buy food usually means losing it. Check the forecast the evening before and pack for rain as well as cold. Keep a plastic bag for your seat or camera in case of drizzle.
Children, buggies and step-free stations
The parade suits families, but small children see little from the second row. Arrive early enough to claim space at the barrier so they can stand in front. Buggies are awkward in the thickest crowds around Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square, so a sling or carrier is easier. For wheelchair users, the Underground stations at both the start and the finish are step-free, which makes either end of the route the simplest to reach. Agree a meeting point in case anyone gets separated.
Photographing the bands as they pass
Bands march past quickly and in daylight, which helps. Stand where the route bends, such as the curve of Regent Street, to catch a whole band at once. Do not lean over the barrier or step into the road to get a shot; stewards keep the route clear for the performers and the floats. Leave flash off, since it does little at that distance and distracts the people next to you.
What happens on the day
- 1pm
Step-off at The Ritz
The head of the column leaves Piccadilly outside The Ritz London (the 2026 start time).
- Early afternoon
Piccadilly Circus and Regent Street
The parade swings round Piccadilly Circus and down Regent Street.
- Mid-afternoon
Pall Mall and Trafalgar Square
Then along Pall Mall into Trafalgar Square.
- Late afternoon
Whitehall to Parliament Square
The final run past the last big landmarks.
- All afternoon
Who you will see
Wave after wave of acts: American high school and college marching bands with cheerleaders, samba and brass bands, Pearly Kings and Queens, street dancers, classic cars and giant dinosaur puppets.
Watching free from the pavement or buying a grandstand seat
Most of the crowd pays nothing. The parade is free to watch from the pavements, and with no gates or ticket checks you simply find a gap at the barrier and stay put. The only thing worth booking is a grandstand seat. For the 2026 parade a seat on Piccadilly was £75, while the VIP stand on Whitehall charged £185, sold in advance by the organisers. Prices for the next parade may change, so check before you count on them.
Choose your stretch by what you want behind the performers. Piccadilly, near the start outside The Ritz London, gives you the first look at each act and a long straight view. Regent Street gives you the curve of grand shopfronts. Trafalgar Square and Whitehall bring the last big landmarks into view, with the finish close to Parliament.
Base yourself somewhere you can walk from. Mayfair, St James's and the streets around Charing Cross all sit within a short stroll of the route, which matters after a late New Year's Eve and with several central roads still closed from the night before. Book that room early, since it doubles as your bed for the fireworks too.
The parade's 1987 start and American marching bands
Westminster launched it in 1987 under the clunky title Lord Mayor of Westminster's Big Parade. That first year a university band from the United States joined in, reportedly New Mexico State University's Pride of New Mexico Marching Band, and American musicians have been the backbone of the line-up ever since. It was renamed in 1994, became the Millennium Parade for 2000 alone, and in 2025 took on the shorter London Parade branding.
Its American links explain the route. Until 2010 the procession ran from Parliament Square to Green Park. That year it was turned around so that the cameras filming for US audiences would catch Elizabeth Tower and Trafalgar Square near the climax, and the public broadcaster PBS still carries the whole parade live across the Atlantic.
It is also a local event at heart. Every one of London's boroughs is invited to put in an entry, and those floats and troupes are judged in their own competition. Charities in the capital have shared nearly £2 million from it over the decades. Even the pandemic only paused it: the 2021 edition went online, and a smaller live parade returned a year later.
Getting there
From Heathrow
The Piccadilly line runs without a change to Green Park, beside the start, in about 40 to 50 minutes. The Elizabeth line is faster into central London, about 35 minutes, but needs a change. There are direct flights to Heathrow from Dhaka, Sylhet, Bangkok and Phuket.
The start
Green Park has entrances on both sides of Piccadilly; the Jubilee and Victoria lines also stop there.
The finish
Westminster station opens onto Bridge Street beneath Portcullis House (Circle, District and Jubilee lines). Expect a queue when the last band arrives.
Crossing the route
The parade forms a two-mile barrier across the West End. Arrive on the side you want to watch from.
Where to stay during the festival
The hotel below, in London itself, is the nearest one we list to London New Year's Day Parade. The next date is 1 January 2027. Book as soon as your dates are fixed, since rooms close to the festival are the first to go.
Weather and what to pack
New Year's Day in London is usually cold, grey and damp, though rarely freezing. January averages a high of about 8°C and a low of about 2°C, with around 60 mm of rain in the month (1991-2020 normals).
Standing still at the barrier for a few hours feels much colder than the numbers suggest.
Worth packing
- A warm waterproof coat
- Hat, gloves and a scarf
- A flask of something hot
- A small step or folding stool for children to see over the barrier
Flights to London for London New Year's Day Parade
The busiest routes into London (LHR).
FromTo DAC LHR DhakaLondon Available airlines1 airline- Biman Bangladesh Airlines
FromTo ZYL LHR SylhetLondon Available airlines1 airline- Biman Bangladesh Airlines
Car hire in London
Airport transfer to London New Year's Day Parade
Met at arrivals at London Heathrow Airport (LHR) and driven door to door to Piccadilly to Parliament Square via Regent Street.
- London Heathrow Airport (LHR) → Piccadilly to Parliament Square via Regent Street
- 27 km · 40 min
Restaurants and food in United Kingdom
Places to eat in United Kingdom before or after the celebrations.
Magpie Café
14 Pier Road, Whitby YO21 3PU, United Kingdom
Cuisine:SeafoodFish and chips
- Dine-in
- Takeaway
Ubiquitous Chip
12 Ashton Lane, Glasgow G12 8SJ, United Kingdom
Cuisine:ScottishModern British
- Dine-in
- Bar
The Kitchin
78 Commercial Quay, Leith, Edinburgh EH6 6LX, United Kingdom
Cuisine:Modern ScottishSeasonal
- Dine-in
Dishoom Covent Garden
12 Upper St Martin's Lane, London WC2H 9FB, United Kingdom
Cuisine:IndianBombay café
- Dine-in
- Bar
- Outdoor seating
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Need help?
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Getting there
No. Standing anywhere along the public route is free. You only pay if you want a reserved seat in one of the grandstands, which the organisers sell in advance.
About two miles, or 3.2 km, from start to finish. The performers take roughly three and a half hours to cover it, so a short stretch of pavement shows you the whole parade.
General
Singer Sam Ryder and Heather Small topped the bill for 2026, alongside tribute acts and a long list of bands. The 2027 headliners are announced by the organisers closer to the day.
The connection goes back to the first parade in 1987, when a US college band took part. American schools and universities now send bands every year, partly because the event is shown live on PBS across more than 250 US stations.
In 2026 the last units reached Westminster at about 4.30pm, roughly three and a half hours after the start. Expect a similar pattern for 2027, though the organisers confirm the exact timings in December.
Yes. Over its lifetime it has raised close to £2 million for London charities, money that goes to good causes across the city.
Each of the 32 boroughs is encouraged to send an entry, and their floats and troupes compete for prizes from a judging panel. The contest was not held in 2021 or 2022, when the parade itself was disrupted.
Not entirely. The 2021 edition moved online, and in 2022 a scaled-down live parade returned to the streets before the full event came back.
No. The fireworks are a separate, ticketed show run by the Mayor of London at midnight beside the Thames. The parade is organised by Destination Events the following afternoon and is free to watch.
What's included
It cost £185 a seat for 2026, against £75 for the Piccadilly stand. You pay for a guaranteed view near the finish, where the crowds are thickest. The show itself is the same.