Day trippers heading to the city for the bank holiday weekend will have to pay for entry to the pier from today. 

Brighton Palace Pier announced it would introduce a £1 admission fee earlier this month. 

The entry fee, which is in place from today and for all of the half-term week, will not apply to nearby residents who have a Brighton Palace Pier local residents card or children under the age of two.

From June 3, the fee will be in place on weekends during June and the full months of July and August.

This year marks the pier’s 125th anniversary and the costs of supporting the structure have risen substantially.

In the last five years, the cost of maintaining, repairing and operating Brighton Palace Pier has increased 31 per cent, an additional £2.7 million, taking the overall annual cost to £11.6 million.

The admission fee will be critical in helping to meet the challenges and costs of preserving the pier and continuing to remain open all year round, the Brighton Pier Group (BPG), which runs Brighton Palace Pier said.

All residents who have a Brighton Palace Pier local residents' card will continue to be admitted for free.

  • People who live in a BN postcode can apply for a residents card here: https://www.brightonpier.co.uk/resident-card-form.