Preliminary Googling shows there are several options as to where to buy Broadway tickets online. Going to the venue’s website seems the safest, but I’m guessing tickets can be obtained for less (?) on other sites such as Ticketmaster, SeatGeek, Broadway Direct, and others, but I don’t know if there are downsides to going this route.
I’ve been to dozens of touring Broadway shows, but never to one on Broadway. Any other advice is appreciated.
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Are you looking for last minute tickets? https://www.tdf.org/discount-ticket-programs/tkts-by-tdf/tkts-live/ Is the way.
If you are buying in advance, I would go to the web site for the show and book there.
Google TKTS. They have kiosks in Times Square where you can get greatly reduced ticket prices for same-day shows. You’ll want to show up and get in line at least an hour before they open, which is 11 AM IIRC. If you’re not super particular about exactly what show you want to see, this is the way to go.
TKTS in Times Square.
Protip-: if you don’t mind seeing a non-musical, go to the line for straight plays at the far left (ask if you’re not sure). You can get the tickets in less than ten minutes.
I should have been more clear in my post. I want to buy in advance, not last minute or same day.
Mostly wondering if shows are generally a better deal on the sites I’ve mentioned, if the chances of getting better seats are lessened by not buying from the venue, and if there are any other downsides from buying from these vendors vs the venue.
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If the sites are legit, they are all drawing off the same database of available seats. Personally, I would buy from the venue.
Out of curiosity, what show are you interested in? We keep talking about going, but I haven’t made up my mind.
We are planning on seeing Lion King.
What shows are you considering? I’ve seen 36 (yeah, I keep a list) touring Broadway shows, I can offer my 3 cents.
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Ticketmaster, SeatGeek and Broadway Direct are the official online sellers for certain shows. Telecharge is the other main vendor. Pick a show you are interested in seeing, go to the website for that show, and click the Get Tickets button. Whatever vendor it brings up will be the official one for that production.
Buying in person at the box office will save on fees but you may want to book in advance to make sure you have a ticket that day to want to go.
Just never buy from Broadway.com. They are a reseller that charges astronomical fees.
ETA: looks like Lion King is sold by Broadway Direct.
We’ve been to maybe twenty shows, but none recently. I listen to the Sirius XM’s Broadway Channel, and form some opinions from that. We’d definitely want a musical. Myself, I’d love to see Lion King, but feel my husband wouldn’t.
Maybe Moulin Rouge. We like the movie and it would surely be a spectacle.
Mrs. Martian and I managed to see four shows over a weekend, all purchased at Times Square TKTS with a grand total of maybe 15 minutes waiting in line. Here’s our system:
Only works if you are staying within a reasonable distance to Times Square. We usually stay near a bit north of Penn Station and west of Times Square. We can get to the TKTS booth while avoiding most of Times Square.
If you are set on a particular show, we’ve used Ticketmaster with no issues on previous trips.
There is also a TKTS booth in Lincoln Center on 62nd St that is way less crowded than Times Square.
We saw &Julliet last time we were in NYC. It was great.
we got our tickets from New York Theatre Guide. Went smoothly. Broadway.com is also recommended.
Absolutely not. Do not ever buy from that website. They are a reseller and will gouge you on fees.
I just looked at the first show that came up on Broadway.com, The Outsiders, and selected a random seat. They charge $107 in fees on a prime orchestra seat. So a $277 ticket is $384 if you buy from them.
Just second- (or third-)ing the suggestion to simply go to the official website of the show you want to see and click through to online ticket sales from there. (Or, if you’re more flexible about plans and willing to “wing it” a bit, do what @Marvin_the_Martian suggests).
Buying in advance, there will never be a cheaper option than the venue’s website.
(Also, I’ll just hijack to say that I saw Maybe Happy Ending last spring, and rank it as one of my favorite shows/productions. It’s a “small” show cast-wise, but I highly recommend it.)
Whenever I checked online, they had a different (overlapping but more limited) set of shows available than the Times Square booth. Which made sense back when TKTS sold leftover physical tickets (decades ago I remember you’d go to the window, ask for a show, then the person at the window would go and grab from the stack of tickets available for that show - you got whatever seats were at the top of the stack). Don’t know why it’s still that way now that the tickets are computerized.
I shouldn’t have listed the site, as I’ve never used it. When googling around, it seems legit.
I buy tickets above face value all the time for shows. I don’t love the extra fees, but I do like having better seats than are often available from the box office. New York Theatre Guide probably gouged me a bit, but we got great seats.
Well, there will always be fees added for buying online, even when you do go through the official sellers. The only way to pay no fees is at the box office. But it’s unfortunate that such a scummy site basically grabbed the most obvious website address way back when, and now people who don’t know better end up spending 40% in fees. (For comparison, the official seller adds about $20 in fees for the exact same ticket! $20 vs $107, it’s insane!)