Ceremony of the Keys
 

I've run out of time. Can I write for tickets to the Ceremony of the Keys at the Tower of London and have them mailed to my hotel in London? Or better than that, can I pick them up at the Tower of London? Since I'm in the U.S. what postage would I put on the return envelope to have it delivered there in London?<BR>Thanks!

I was there in 1995 on my first trip to London and at that time you had to have tickets before hand and 6 weeks in advance with a specific date. It wouldn't hurt to contact them and have them delivered to your hotel if you have that much time left. I presume you have the address but if you don't it is Resident Governor, Queens House, Tower of London, London EC3N 4AB. Request must be accompanied by a stamped self address envelope (British Stamps Only or two international Reply Coupons.) YOu might try and see if they have a web site. YOu might also contact your hotel and see if they can be of help to you with this matter.<BR><BR>This is an interesting evening at the Tower. Hope you can get tickets. Shar

There have been numerous postings about the Ceremony of the Keys on this board. I suggest you use the search feature to see if the question about mailing them to your hotel may have been answered by someone. If nothing else, you will get a lot of information about the ceremony itself.

How soon are you going? Keys Ceremony tickets book up weeks, actually months, ahead of time. If your departure date is too close to have them mailed to the States you have indeed left it too late. They are not available from hotel concierege, the web site, or ticket brokers.<BR><BR>Shar provided the address - in addition to the info she gave your request also needs to include the full names/addresses of each member of the party and a range of dates since youe first choice is often not available. <BR><BR>

My family plans to be in London in early June of 2003. How soon can I request tickets for the Ceremony of the Keys? Thanks, Laurie

Nothing to prevent you from doing it now - but Jan., Feb. or early Mar. would be fine.

Where does one get British stamps here in the states? I'd like to write for tickets but have no idea where to get the stamps for the return envelope. And I don't even know what an International Reply coupon is or where to get one. Thanks

Two years ago I ordered the tickets late and was able to pick them up at the gate. They send you a letter that you have to show the guard at the gate (wait until he begins to let everybody in), then he takes you to the little guardroom right there a few yards from the gate and then he gives you your tickets. <BR><BR>Make sure when you write in asking for tickets that you give the address for each individual going with you. Once I went with my husband and two young daughters, giving one address (we all lived together) and the Tower wrote back asking for the individual addresses for each person, telling me they would not send the tickets until I sent that information. So I wrote back giving my name and my address, my husband's name and his address, my daughter's name and her address, etc. <BR><BR>Got the tickets two weeks later (all in one envelope).

You get the international reply coupon at your local post office. It comes already stamped (if I remember correctly). Once you actually see the thing, you will understand what it is.

Some local POs in the States say the International postal coupons have been discontinued. I contacted the USPS administration center and they assured me the coupons are still available. International Money Orders have been discontinued but not the postal coupons. So if you have trouble finding them talk to your local postmaster.

Actually, you now need to send 2 International Postal Reply Coupons according to the Tower's website:<BR><BR>http://www.hrp.org.uk/webcode/content.asp?ID=622<BR><BR>If you are interested, here is an article I wrote on taking children to see the Ceremony of the Keys:<BR><BR>http://www.frugalfun.com/kidstower.html<BR><BR><BR>David White<BR>http://www.KidsToLondon.com