The Wimbledon Championships (and how to be part of it in 2026)

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Anyone for tennis? We’ve always loved our days at the Wimbledon Championships. Over the years, we’ve watched players competing in several tournaments, including Qualifying, Doubles, Wheelchair, and Junior tennis. Yes, there is so much more to the Wimbledon Championship than the Gentlemen’s and Ladies’ main draw.

However, getting tickets for Wimbledon is notoriously difficult. Read on to find out how to apply for tickets in 2026. You too could attend the Wimbledon Championships next year!

Our Wimbledon experiences

We’re a sports-mad family that has had the unbelievable privilege of enjoying tennis through the world of professional tennis players and their coaches who have stayed with our family, whilst competing at the Australian Open between 2009 and 2025.

Through these wonderful connections, we’ve cheered on players who have become friends around the globe. We love sports travel, and I’ve had the pleasure of watching tennis at Roland Garros, the Thailand Open, the Malaysian Open, the US Open, and at the British tournaments in Eastbourne, Nottingham, and Birmingham, as well as here at Wimbledon.

I have enjoyed all the Grand Slams, and in 2023, this included my Fan Slam, as it’s known, which involves attending the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the US Open. A massive thank you to those concerned for helping me with this and for some incredible behind-the-scenes invitations over the years.

For the record, as tennis fans, we also purchased tickets for the Aussie Open, Roland Garros, and Wimbledon. Wimbledon is always the hardest Grand Slam to attend; numbers are so restricted compared with the Aus Open.

Why is Wimbledon so special?

Whilst every Grand Slam is notable, what I love most about Wimbledon is seeing grass-court tennis. Move over, party time at the Australian Open or elegance at Roland Garros; here comes the distinguished Wimbledon Championships.

The grass courts always look fabulous at the start of the tournaments. This is the fastest surface, and there are plenty of thrills and spills to be had. Players have to quickly adapt to grass court matches after the clay court season, with very little transition time and minimal opportunity to play on grass. There are just not as many grass courts around the world, so practice is often limited to a handful of warm-up tournaments.

As a result, Wimbledon always has an air of calm unpredictability about it.

Where Tradition is respected

Wimbledon was established in 1877.  It is the oldest tennis tournament in the world. It is viewed by many as the most prestigious of the Grand Slams and is steeped in tradition. Some might argue Wimbledon is rather stuffy and old-fashioned. For others, the adherence to tradition is exactly what makes it so great!

In Pursuit of Greatness

Whilst a day at Wimbledon is a big Bucket List tick for us tennis fans, for me, one of the great joys of attending Wimbledon is seeing how much every win (or loss) means to the players.

Where Grace is observed

For those of us brought up in the UK, we would call Wimbledon posh! Wimbledon is not a Grand Slam for the masses; spectator numbers are limited.

The crowd at Wimbledon is rather refined, also. I didn’t witness one Mexican crowd wave, nor was I bobbing up and down in my seat for people returning from the beer run for their mates. Although I’m with the Chair Umpire with the increasingly frequent calls to avoid opening champagne bottles during play!

Etiquette on clapping is respected, only when a player wins a point, not when the opposition fluffs it – Hmmmm unless it’s a Brit playing, then we’re pretty focally loyal!

Where actions are honourable

Public disdain is shown with a gentle boo unless players throw their racquet around, when they will hear loud boos to be reminded of the need for grace!

The only over-the-top patriotic attire I saw was a couple of ladies with tennis court fascinator hats. It’s not at all like the Aus Open, which has become more like a fancy dress outing, supporting your favourite players and your country. Here at Wimbledon, only a few waved small hand-held flags.

I always feel I’m in a much more serene world at Wimbledon!

Where the grounds are like a horticultural show

If you love gardens and horticultural achievements, you will love a wander around the Wimbledon Championships. The courts are mown to absolute pin-stripped perfection. Grounds Staff do an amazing job, and there is not a leaf out of place.

The colourful and impeccable garden beds would not be out of place at the Chelsea Flower Show. Take a wander and check out the Centenary Garden, Tea Lawn, Walled Garden, and, of course, The Hill.

White dress code

Then there’s the all-white dress code, which makes everyone look terribly smart.

Royalty

There is also the mega excitement of possibly watching a tennis match alongside royalty. Wimbledon is a star-studded event frequented by the rich and famous, from movie stars to athletes.

Where preparation is perfected

Whilst fans might be chuffed to bits to be at Wimbey (only my darling American friends call it this) every player has a story to tell, on their path to greatness. It is a great honour to play at Wimbledon. We should not forget, win or lose, partaking in the Wimbledon Championship will likely be amongst each player’s all-time top life achievements.

Won’t you come for a wander with me?

How to obtain Tickets for Wimbledon

The Wimbledon Championships remain one of the hardest Grand Slams to obtain tickets for. In my working days, I had several incredible Wimbledon tennis experiences through work. Corporate invitations come with lunch with Champagne, afternoon tea with strawberries and cream, and the best seats on Centre Court. Sooo if you don’t get a corporate invite, you should try the public ballot ….

Public Ballot

The 2026 Wimbledon Public Ballot is now open for applications until 23:59 BST, Tuesday 16 September 2025.

Most people obtain their entry via the Public Ballot, but don’t think even this is automatic, I read you have about a one in ten chance.

The ballot was first launched in 1924 and gives everyone an equal opportunity to secure tickets for The Championships. You need to be organised for this, as the ballot application, which opens in early September has a short window.

• You’ll need a myWimbledon account to apply to the public ballot if you don’t already have one.
• The ballot URL is https://ballot.wimbledon.com

Newmarket Holidays

To be more certain of tickets you can buy a tennis package. We obtained our Finals tickets via Newmarket Holidays, who The Wimbledon Championships have officially appointed for the sale of No. 1 Court tickets. Our package included a fairly average night at the Thistle Hotel Kensington, but it was centrally located, and our room was comfortable, overlooking Hyde Park. What this did give us, though, were two tickets to No. 1 Court and great seats in row E.

Make sure you check carefully the dates, as we booked for the second Friday, thinking we were attending the first week! We were happy with our two Ladies Doubles Semi-Final matches, but at one point, we weren’t sure whether we’d get to see any main draw matches at this time.

The Queue

Another option is the opportunity for last-minute on-the-day tickets. Some people camp overnight in The Queue for a coveted ticket to enter the All England Lawn Tennis Club. This offers up to 500 seats on each show court, as well as ground pass tickets.

They say The Queue is as much about the experience of being in the queue as it is, the big hooray of getting tickets to enter. BYO your own tent if you are a serious contender!

Returns Tickets

Our daughter was successful is attending afterwork in week one, where you can queue for tickets from those who have left and resold for charity.

Qualifying Tournament

For one of the best-kept secrets in tennis, consider The Qualifying Tournament. In this knock-out tournament, players play and win three consecutive matches to earn one of the 16 Championship places in each of the gentlemen’s and ladies’ draws. Held at Roehampton, entry costs £15. You can read why you should not miss Grand Slam Qualifying tournaments here.

Where to view

Centre Court

Centre Court has the best seats at Wimbledon and is tennis gold if you manage to secure them. Best start either befriending royalty, those who can offer you a corporate ticket, debenture holders and members of the All England Tennis Club. Or try your luck with the Public Ballot (see below)

Court No 1

Court No. 1, the second biggest show court at Wimbledon in the first week, is often THE place to be. I’m never going to say no to a Centre Court ticket, but I’d have been very happy to be watching some of the biggest and best duals on offer on Court No. 1 in week one.

We enjoyed watching the Semi-Finals for Ladies’ Doubles and Ladies’ Wheelchair on the second Friday. It was a rainy day, so we benefited from seeing the play with the roof closed. We found that the seats were incredibly close together, so if you can pick a seat, try to avoid sitting in the corners of the stadium.

The Hill

The grassy area behind Court No. 1 is a popular spot to watch tennis on large screens. Henman Hill or Murray Mound, with a Pimms in hand, is a popular hangout to watch Centre Court action on the big screens.

The best seat in the house for the London screenings of the Wimbledon Finals, if you can’t get courtside, has to be on Henman Hill/Murray Mound.

Getting to the Wimbledon Championships

Just be aware, Wimbledon is a bit of a hike from Public Transport. The nearest tube stations are Southfields (District Line) and Wimbledon (District Line and Main Line).  You can take a shared taxi from the Tube station. Pedal taxi bikes, covered in pink fluorescent fake fur, wait hopefully for passengers on the road up to Wimbledon.

You can get all the details of arriving by Public Transport here.

If you plan to arrive by car, you need to pre-book your car parking space. There is no car parking on site, but you do get closer than arriving by the Tube. Local houses displayed signs for car parking for £30 per day to use their driveways.

I hope you have enjoyed a wander around Wimbledon with me. Players play in ten different tournaments within the Wimbledon Championships. It’s a highlight of our British summertime, we are glued to the television, and it’s brilliant when we can attend in person.

Attending Wimbledon 2026

The Wimbledon Championships 2026 will take place from Monday, 29 June – Sunday, 12 July 2026, and the Wimbledon Public Ballot will open in early September. You will need to sign up to MyWimbledon here.

Hope to see you there next July!

Follow us on Social Media: Find more photos of my travels, tennis and worldwide stories on Instagram @littlewanderingwren.

If you have enjoyed this post, please do check out my other tennis posts:

Anyone for tennis series:

At Nottingham, Roland Garros, Thailand Open

Wimbledon With Love from Wimbledon

Australian Open: Why you will love the Australian Open Qualifying Tournament, Keeping cool at the Australian Open, Pimp my Dog, pimp the Car, Bye from the Australian Open

Roland Garros: How to enjoy ace days at Roland Garros

US Open: US Open what to see, do & love as well as the tennis.

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