Are you planning to buy Broadway tickets on a special day or during a holiday period? Take a look at our calendar breakdown below to find out what you can expect in terms of Broadway prices, discount availability and general ticket availability during the peak holiday times of the year.
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY
(3rd Monday of January) - This is the first of several holidays throughout the year that create a three-day weekend, making it possible for people to take brief trips to places like NYC. As a result, Broadway shows often won't offer any discounts for this 3- or 4-day period since they find they are able to sell plenty of tickets to tourists at regular prices. Ironically, the Monday that caps these three-day weekends is traditionally a dark day on Broadway, so there are usually only a few Broadway shows offering Monday performances - but they can always expect to do good business on holidays like Martin Luther King Jr. Day weekend.VALENTINE'S DAY
(February 14) - Not surprisingly, any Broadway shows that have romantic overtones sell really well on this day, as do any hit or big-name shows, sometimes even selling strongly into the next week. Ticket brokers like to buy this week and resell it two weeks prior to this date to get maximum profit from people trying to get last-minute Broadway show tickets for their sweethearts. If Valentine's Day lands on a Saturday, then it's a double whammy, with shows -- and ticket brokers -- upping the ante on the ticket prices twice.PRESIDENT'S DAY
(3rd Monday of February) - While not considered a major enough holiday to justify raising regular ticket prices during this long weekend, many Broadway shows will not honor discount codes during this time.EASTER WEEKEND
Generally occurring sometime between late March and mid-April, Easter is a time when Broadway experiences a significant spike in ticket sales. For anyone planning to see a Broadway show with family or to take a Spring Break trip to New York City during this time, it is wise to buy Broadway tickets as early as possible before seats start becoming scarce.MEMORIAL DAY
(Final Monday of May) - This is the last big holiday of Broadway's spring season. By Memorial Day, all of the Broadway season's shows have opened and the Tony nominations have been announced, so Tony nominated and high-buzz shows can be more difficult to get tickets to. Broadway discounts tend to be blacked out over Memorial Day weekend.INDEPENDENCE DAY
(July 4) - One of the exceptions to the rule, this is actually the rare holiday where Broadway tickets are heavily discounted. With the focus on fireworks in the evening, most Broadway shows don't even bother to hold performances on the night of July 4th anymore. But Broadway shows will often use the Independence Day holiday as an excuse to send out special July 4th discount deals, discounting matinee performances on that day as well as dates right around the 4th of July.LABOR DAY
(1st Monday in September) - Summer's last gasp and the end of the NYC summer tourist season, Labor Day weekend is often a time where families will take in a Broadway show. Family-friendly shows tend to sell particularly well, meaning that you are unlikely to get a discount deal on any of the Disney musicals or other big-name hit shows.THANKSGIVING
(4th Thursday of November) - Because so many people take a 4- or 5-day break for this major holiday, Broadway shows will often black out the entire week against discounts. As families gather, it is a popular time for people to go to Broadway shows as a family outing. To cash in on the surge of popularity, most Broadway shows up their regular prices for performances Thanksgiving Week. Ticket brokers also do good business this week, especially since many of them purchase tickets well in advance, so that they can sell them at top prices to last-minute buyers.CHRISTMAS
(December 25) - The mother of all holidays on Broadway, Christmas is essentially an entire 2-week, even 3- or 4-week period in Broadway terms. Many Broadway musicals will start blacking out discounts and upping their regular prices as early as December 15, sometimes continuing these discount blackouts into the first week of January. Only the least popular Broadway plays and musicals offer discount tickets Christmas Week, and even some of them are reluctant to offer any deals in the hopes that tourists angling for last-minute tickets will be willing to see any Broadway show that has tickets available.NEW YEAR'S EVE
(December 31) - Like July 4, this is a holiday celebrated largely at night, meaning that most Broadway shows don't bother to have an evening performance for fear of extremely low attendance. Many will be sure to schedule a matinee performance instead, and the prices for those will usually be higher than usual. Typically, New Year's gets lumped in with any increased Christmas holiday pricing - and it is also usually a blackout period for Broadway ticket discounts.
NEW YEAR'S DAY
(January 1) - The Christmas holiday popularity continues through New Year's Day, making it difficult to get discounted tickets on this holiday that marks the end of many people's winter vacations. The week after New Years is a ghost town on Broadway with discounts galore.
