What to know
- TIFF no longer requires online tickets or advance registration for its 2026 Fan Zones.
- The David Pecaut Square Fan Zone will remain capacity-controlled, with film-specific lineups and wristbands.
- King Street Fan Viewing Areas will be open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis, with no tickets or wristbands required.
- Fans should pack light, as some bags and items are prohibited and security checks may be in place.
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) is changing the way fans can get onto the red carpet this year, dropping advance registration and online tickets for its Fan Zones as the festival prepares to welcome stars and crowds across Toronto.
For TIFF 2026, fans will no longer need to register ahead of time to watch red carpet arrivals, but the process will vary depending on where they plan to watch.
At David Pecaut Square, capacity-controlled areas will still require fans to line up for individual red carpets, while the King Street Fan Viewing Areas will be open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis.
Here’s what you need to know before heading to a TIFF Fan Zone this year.
David Pecaut Square Fan Zone
There will be three fan areas at David Pecaut Square: the TIFF Fan Zone South, Rogers Fan Zone and RBC Red Carpet Gallery.
The entry process outlined by TIFF applies specifically to the TIFF-operated south Fan Zone.
Fans hoping to get into the area will need to line up for the specific film they want to see. Entry is first-come, first-served and space is strictly limited.
From Sept. 10 to 14, lineups open at 11 a.m. each day. Starting Sept. 15, lineups will open at 2 p.m. Fans cannot line up before those times and cannot save spots for other people.
Once fans are admitted, they will go through a bag check and receive a colour-coded wristband for that film. The Fan Zone opens two hours before the corresponding screening.
Fans must keep their wristbands on while inside the area. The Fan Zone will be cleared between red carpets, and leaving means giving up that spot. There is no re-entry with the same wristband, so anyone who leaves will have to join the back of the line again, subject to capacity.
Access to the Fan Zone will also close approximately 30 minutes before a screening begins.
King Street Fan Viewing Areas
The rules are different for the two Fan Viewing Areas along King Street, located in front of the Visa Screening Room at the Princess of Wales Theatre and the Royal Alexandra Theatre.
These areas are open to the general public and do not require advance registration, tickets, lineups or wristbands.
Fans can show up and claim a spot on a first-come, first-served basis. Unlike the David Pecaut Square Fan Zone, people will be allowed to remain in these viewing areas between red carpets.
However, TIFF says overnight camping will not be permitted, and fans cannot save excessively large areas for friends or people who are not immediately with them.
Enhanced security measures will be in place in certain sections, and fans may be subject to bag checks.
What can fans bring?
Anyone heading to the David Pecaut Square Fan Zone should pack light, as all bags will be checked.
TIFF says fans can bring water bottles, cellphones, purses, small tote bags and fanny packs.
Among the prohibited items are backpacks, bags larger than 12 by 12 by six inches, professional cameras with lenses longer than six inches, selfie sticks, tripods, monopods, chairs and ladders.
Fans also cannot bring aerosol canisters, laser pointers, megaphones, airhorns, alcohol, drugs, drug paraphernalia or weapons.
