Southend Pier is open daily 10:15am to 6pm now, but last winter it opened Wednesday to Sunday only, 10:15am to 5pm. Ticket prices, the train and the museum.
Southend Pier is open every day from 10:15am to 6pm at the moment. Last winter it switched to Wednesday to Sunday only, 10:15am to 5pm, and it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays in that timetable. Last entry is one hour before closing.
The pier has not yet said when its 2026 winter hours start. In 2025 the summer timetable was kept until Monday 1 December because of the Poppies on the Pier display.
The quick answer
- Now: open daily, 10:15am to 6pm. Last winter: Wednesday to Sunday, 10:15am to 5pm, closed Monday and Tuesday.
- Walking onto the pier costs £3.10 for adults and £2.10 for children aged 3 to 16. With the train return it is £7.70 and £4.10, or £19.50 for a family.
- Last entry is an hour before closing, and the pier warns times can change in bad weather. Check on 01702 212534.
Opening times now and last winter
| Now (checked 24 September 2026) | Winter 2025/26 | |
|---|---|---|
| Pier | Daily, 10:15am to 6pm | Wednesday to Sunday, 10:15am to 5pm |
| Offshore Cafe | Daily, 10:30am to 5pm | Wednesday to Sunday, 10:30am to 4pm |
| RNLI lifeboat station | Daily, 11am to 3:30pm | Wednesday to Sunday, 11am to 3:30pm |
| Pier Museum | Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays, 11am to 4:30pm | Closed, except bank holidays 11am to 4:30pm |
Sources: the pier’s opening times page today, and the same page as it stood in January 2026 and March 2026.
Last entry is one hour before closing, so in winter the last walk or train out is at 4pm. The pier says all times are “subject to change and are weather dependent”.
When the winter hours start
Last year the change came late. The council said the pier would “remain open under its summer timetable until Monday 1 December, when winter hours resume”, after Poppies on the Pier was extended to 23 November (council news, 13 November 2025). The display had more than 110,000 hand-knitted poppies along the pier and drew over 17,000 visitors in its first week.
Neither the pier nor the council has said whether Poppies on the Pier will return in 2026, or when this winter’s timetable begins. We will add the date when it is published.
Ticket prices
Tickets are bought on the day. Concession prices apply to over-60s, disabled visitors and students with ID (Southend Pier tickets).
| Pier entry (walk) | Entry plus train return | Entry plus fishing pass | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | £3.10 | £7.70 | £10.80 |
| Child (3 to 16) | £2.10 | £4.10 | £5.65 |
| Concession | £2.10 | £4.10 | £5.65 |
| Family | Not listed | £19.50 | Not listed |
For tickets and information, the pier gives 01702 212534 and vic@southend.gov.uk.
Christmas on the pier
The pier has no Christmas events listed for 2026 on its What’s On page. Its Santa on the Pier train visits were last listed in 2023. For where to meet Father Christmas this year, see Southend Santa’s grotto.
The pier has not published its Christmas and New Year opening days. The New Year’s Eve fireworks of the last two years were fired from a barge just east of the pier: see Southend New Year’s Eve fireworks.
Getting there
The pier entrance is on Western Esplanade, SS1 1EE. See parking in Southend for the seafront car parks and Southend roadworks and travel for closures.
Still to be confirmed
- The start date of the 2026/27 winter timetable.
- Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year opening.
- Whether Poppies on the Pier returns this November.
Last checked 24 September 2026.
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