Along the banks
Top 10 sights on the River Thames
The best of the riverside, from Westminster to the Tower.
1
Tower of London
Trace two rings of walls and a moat around a fortress begun in 1066, then stand beneath the White Tower that gives it its name. Then see the Crown…
Castlesabout 3 hTower Hill
Tickets from £38See on map
2Tower Bridge
Stand on the bridge above the Thames and watch the river slide past the Tower of London's walls. Gothic towers and Victorian steel make every…
Bridgesabout 1 h 15Tower Hill
Tickets from £18See on map →
3Cutty Sark
Step aboard a 19th-century tea clipper built for speed and wander her decks in Greenwich, beside the Thames. Stand beside one of the fastest ships…
Museumsabout 1 h 30Cutty Sark for Maritime Greenwich
Tickets from £20See on map →
4Shakespeare's Globe
Step into a rebuilt Elizabethan playhouse on the Thames and picture the crowds who once packed in for Shakespeare. Catch a show or a tour and hear…
Theatresabout 2 h 30Mansion House
Tickets from £6See on map →
5Borough Market
Wander the 1850s market halls of Borough Market, where cheese wheels, fresh bread and spiced oils crowd the stalls. Taste your way along the…
Markets & food hallsabout 1 hLondon Bridge
Free entrySee on map →
6Palace of Westminster
Stand beneath Elizabeth Tower, where Big Ben rings out over the Thames, and feel the weight of centuries of lawmaking in the Gothic stone around…
Palaces & royal sitesabout 1 h 30Westminster
See on map →
7Tate Britain
Wander through centuries of British art, then step into the rooms of J. M. W. Turner's paintings. Easy to lose a whole afternoon here while the…
Art galleriesabout 1 h 30Vauxhall
Free entrySee on map →
8Tate Modern
Step inside a former power station on the Thames and wander through the UK's national collection of modern and contemporary art. Give yourself a…
Art galleriesabout 1 h 30London Blackfriars
Free entrySee on map →
9Battersea Power Station
Walk the Thames path toward a huge brick power station that still dominates the riverside skyline. Then wander its shops and restaurants beneath…
Shoppingabout 1 h 30Battersea Power Station
Free entrySee on map →
10Millennium Bridge
Cross the steel span linking Bankside and the City, with the Thames wide and glinting beneath your feet. Pause mid-bridge and let the river light…
Bridgesabout 20 minLondon Blackfriars
Free entrySee on map →
Skip the queue
Riverside tickets
Entry to the sights that charge, with the lowest price from our partners.
London Eye
Rise slowly above the Thames in a glass capsule and watch London spread out in every direction. Pick the champagne option and toast the view as…
Viewpointsabout 1 hEmbankment
Tickets from £29See on map →
The London Dungeon
Live actors, special effects and rides drag you through London's grisliest past, all told with dark, gallows-style humour. Expect sudden jolts,…
Experiences & activitiesabout 30 minLondon Waterloo
Tickets from £27See on map →
SEA LIFE London Aquarium
Kids walk through a glass tunnel as sharks glide overhead, then watch penguins waddle and rays swoop past.
Zoos & aquariumsabout 1 hWaterloo
Tickets from £28See on map →
Old Royal Naval College
Tilt your head back beneath the Painted Hall's ceilings, then step outside to watch the Thames slide past the grand riverside buildings.…
Landmarksabout 1 hCutty Sark for Maritime Greenwich
Tickets from £18See on map →
Painted Hall, Old Royal Naval College
Painter James Thornhill worked on this ceiling for nearly 20 years. Painted columns and steps trick the eye into a far grander room. Most people…
Historic sitesabout 1 hCutty Sark for Maritime Greenwich
Tickets from £18See on map →
Somerset House
Step into a Georgian courtyard with the Thames glinting beyond its arches, then spend a slow afternoon among the paintings of the Courtauld Gallery.
Art galleriesabout 1 h 30Temple
Tickets from £16See on map →
The Courtauld Gallery
Step off the Strand and into Somerset House, where the Courtauld's paintings reward slow looking. Give an unhurried afternoon to its rooms and let…
Art galleriesabout 1 h 30Temple
Tickets from £16See on map →
Lift 109
A glass lift carries you up inside a power-station chimney and rises out of its top, so you hang 109 metres above Battersea in a see-through box.
Viewpointsabout 1 hBattersea Power Station
Tickets from £17See on map →
No ticket needed
Free along the river
Bridges, gardens and views that cost nothing.
Waterloo Bridge
Walk out over a bend in the Thames and face west for Westminster and the London Eye, then turn east to see the City's towers and Canary Wharf. Go…
Bridgesabout 20 minTemple
Free entrySee on map →
Chelsea Old Church
A riverside church where Sir Thomas More worshipped, rebuilt after 1941 bombs destroyed all but his chapel. Inside are Tudor monuments that…
Churches & cathedralsabout 30 minImperial Wharf
Free entrySee on map →
Chelsea Bridge
A 1937 suspension bridge, the first of its type in Britain, linking Chelsea with Battersea Park. It is floodlit at night, with LEDs along its…
Bridgesabout 10 minBattersea Power Station
Free entrySee on map →
Surrey Docks Farm
A riverside farm where goats, pigs and sheep live beside the Thames, with toddler clubs that let little ones meet the animals up close.
Zoos & aquariumsabout 1 hHeron Quays
Free entrySee on map →
Cheyne Walk
A riverside row of Georgian houses, seen from the street, once home to Turner, Rossetti, George Eliot, Whistler and Mick Jagger. Blue plaques make…
Historic sitesabout 40 minSloane Square
Free entrySee on map →
London Bridge
A crossing has stood here since Roman times, and the city grew up around it. Today's plain 1973 concrete bridge is not much to look at, but it…
Bridgesabout 10 minMonument
Free entrySee on map →
Golden Jubilee Bridges
Two footbridges, opened in 2002, run either side of the Hungerford railway bridge between Charing Cross and the South Bank. They are a free,…
Bridgesabout 10 minEmbankment
Free entrySee on map →
Albert Bridge
Stroll the span between Chelsea and Battersea and read its history in the steelwork: suspension-style elements, a cable-stayed origin, and…
Bridgesabout 20 minSloane Square
Free entrySee on map →
Hotels by the river
River-view hotels on a map with live prices.
All 446 things to do in London
Museums, landmarks and hidden gems on one map, plus 17 day trips.