Public Gallery

The public galleries of the debating chamber are open to the public at any time when the House is sitting. 

From the public galleries, you can watch the MPs as they answer questions, debate the issues of the day, and vote on legislation. This is the best way to watch democracy in action. 

The sitting programme lets you know if Parliament is meeting at the time of your visit. If you would like to watch from the public galleries, we recommend booking your spot, as capacity is limited.

As 2026 is an election year, the current Parliament is likely to stop sitting ahead of the election sometime between mid-August and September. To have the best chance of seeing the House in action, we recommend booking earlier in the year. Our booking portal currently shows sitting days up to the end of August 2026, and depending on the election timetable, more dates may be added. If the election timing affects your visit our team will contact you to talk through options.

Visiting the Public Gallery

You are able to choose from three sessions when visiting the public gallery:

1:45 - 3:00pm - Question Time

3:00 - 6:00pm - General Debate (before dinner break)

7:00 - 10:00pm - General Debate (after dinner break)*

*Please note, the after dinner session is only on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and the House finishes at 6pm on Thursdays.

You do not need to stay for the entire length of your session, and do not have to arrive at the start of your time slot.

Groups larger than 10 must book seats in the Gallery by emailing gallery.bookings@parliament.govt.nz. 

The public galleries are located above and to either side of the floor of the debating chamber. The gallery behind the Speaker is reserved for members of the press. The gallery facing the Speaker is called the Speaker’s gallery, and is reserved for official guests.

Access

Please note that we require the names of everyone in your group visiting the public gallery. These can be provided by emailing the list to gallery.bookings@parliament.govt.nz. If you do not provide a list of names in your group in advance, we will need to collect each person's name on arrival. All visitors to the public gallery must show photo ID when signing in before you may enter the Public Gallery. Acceptable forms of ID include, but are not limited to, drivers licence, passport, student or workplace ID (as long as it has a photo and your full name). 

Dress Code

Please dress appropriately for your visit to the public galleries. For example, hats should not be worn, except for religious reasons, and all visitors must wear shoes.

Learn what to know before you arrive, how to get to Parliament, our accessibility and more. Plan your visit before arriving at Parliament.

Important information for visiting Parliament

Tickets for this event are per-person. If there are not enough spaces remaining for your entire group, you will need to select another time or date. 

Please note, you will need to proceed through security screening on arrival. Please allow up to 15 minutes for this before entering the public gallery. 

All children (under 12 years old) must be accompanied by an adult, with no more than four children per adult.