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Well, it’s almost that time of year again. Christmas Day has been and gone, and soon we’ll finally wave goodbye to 2025 and ring in a brand new year.
You may be planning to spend NYE curled up in front of Jools Holland’s Hootenanny, you may have tickets to one of the hundreds of glitzy events going on across the capital or you may be intending to go out on the town and see where the night takes you. If you fall into the third category, just be warned that there will be parts of the city off-limits on Wednesday night.
Unsurprisingly, given the hundreds of thousands of people the descend on London’s streets to celebrate, NYE is one of the Met Police’s its busiest times of the year. It’s said that it ‘working closely with our emergency services colleagues to make sure Londoners and the huge number of people visiting the capital can welcome in 2026 in safety and security’.
Part of making sure Londoners are safe and sound on NYE is limiting huge crowds and blocking off certain areas of the city. So, here are all the no-go zones in London on New Year’s Eve this year.
RECOMMENDED: 🎆 Where to watch London’s 2025 New Year’s Eve fireworks if you didn’t get official tickets.
Central London
If you don’t have a ticket for the Mayor of London’s New Year’s Eve fireworks (now sold out), you won’t have access to large parts of central London, including around Big Ben, the London Eye, Trafalgar Square, Victoria Embankment, Tower Bridge, London Bridge, Waterloo Bridge and Southwark Bridge. Even if you do have tickets, the public are urged to avoid crowding on bridges, some of which offer rubbish views anyway, or will be completely closed for the night.
Paul Martinelli, the chair of the City Bridge Foundation, said: ‘Tower Bridge, London Bridge and Southwark Bridge provide a terrible view of the fireworks. The Millennium Bridge will be closed, and Blackfriars Bridge will be off limits to non-ticket holders.
‘We still expect to see significant crowding on the bridges, which can present a danger to all bridge users, including pedestrians and drivers who will also be using the bridges.
‘We want everyone to have a happy New Year’s Eve, but if you’re after fireworks, you’ll get a much better view watching the BBC’s coverage at home or in one of London’s numerous bars and restaurants.’
Here’s the full map of ticketed and closed off areas for the Mayor of London’s NYE fireworks event.
Primrose Hill
More than 30,000 people headed to Primrose Hill in 2024 to see in the new year and catch a glimpse of the city’s fireworks displays. But this year, the park will be closed and the Met Police have warned people not to try and access it.
Commander Nick John, who is charge of the Met's New Year's Eve policing, said: ‘The Royal Parks are urging people not to try to gather at Primrose Hill this year and we would echo those calls. Please make alternative plans. Anyone trying to access the park will find that it is not possible.’
Plan your night with Time Out’s guide to public transport on NYE.
Need to book something last minute? You may still be able to find tickets for one of these brilliant London New Year’s Eve parties.
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