Skip the Line Parliament & Westminster Abbey Fully-Guided Tour
Description
Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament are two of London’s highlight landmarks—and on this tour, you’ll have special access to both. Skip the line at Westminster Abbey and head inside the soaring church, where your guide will share facts about its royal history. Next, you’ll have the rare opportunity to explore parts of the interior of the Houses of Parliament, which is frequently off-limits to the public.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Meet your guide and small group of travelers. Here, your guide will introduce themselves before heading to the first stop of the tour.
Your day begins with skip the line entry into Westminster Abbey, the most serene time to see Britain’s most cherished church. With roots dating back over 1,000 years, this Gothic masterpiece is the traditional coronation site and burial ground of kings and queens, along with national heroes like Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, and William Wilberforce. On your visit, you’ll learn from a local expert guide how the British monarchy helped shape the country’s conversion to democracy, as well as a few interesting tidbits about Winston Churchill, one of the only non-royals to ever lay in state in the Abbey after his death.
Then, discover The Houses of Parliament. Enjoy a guided tour of the British Democracy with a qualified, Blue Badge tour guide, instead of following the audio guide. Visit the Chamber of the House of Commons, where Britain’s elected Masters of Parliament meet. Head over to the chamber of the House of Lords, where peers who had inherited their titles from the bluest bloodlines in the nation used to sit. Learn the highlights of the building’s history, including a failed bomb plot in 1605 that the British still celebrate today (ever hear of Guy Fawkes Night?). Walk in the footsteps of Henry VIII and Winston Churchill. History, legend, lore, and a lot of pomp and circumstance mix and mingle as you take in nearly one thousand years of history from one of the best guides in London.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Unfortunately due to the nature of this tour it is not suitable for guests with mobility impairments or with wheelchairs, or strollers.
- Sites on this tour are subject to occasional closures. If modifications are needed and time permits, we will reach out to you prior to your tour. For last-minute closures, modifications may be communicated at the tour start time.
- This tour is in English.
- This is a walking tour. Guests should be able to walk at a moderate pace without difficulty.
Reviews(170)
Patrick was amazing. Informative, charismatic, very knowledgeable and also not so detailed that he lost us. What a wonderful experience!!!
An excellent tour of Westminster Abbey with Amber. She was extremely knowledgeable, friendly and personable. She really brought the information to life with some interesting and fun facts. We then were taken to the Houses of Parliament where our Parliament Guide showed us the House of Lords, House of Commons and other areas. We found out so much about the history and the workings of Parliament. A great tour!
Paying extra to skip the line is absolutely worth it when you see how long the regular queue gets. We met our group in Parliament Square, and our guide Emmanuella talked us through the history of the surrounding buildings as she led us to the skip-the-line entrance. Using whisper sets, Emmanuella guided us through Westminster Abbey, weaving through the crowds to the tombs of past monarchs and pointing out the people honoured there with burials or plaques for their contributions to humanity. It was wonderful — the history felt alive rather than recited. From there, Emmanuella handed us over to Nick, one of the House guides, for the Houses of Parliament. Nick was a consummate guide — building suspense as he brought us into each room, blending history with how the spaces are still used today, and giving us the chance to sit where we could as he brought the day-to-day life of the building to life. Bottom line: Emmanuella and Nick were both knowledgeable, generous with questions, and made this tour well worth the cost. Couldn't have asked for better guides.
It was wonderful, not very crowded. Rosie was amazing. She was knowledgeable and funny. She that. Made the whole experience smooth and easy. Thank you Rosie!
Tour guide to the Abbey and separate guide at Parliament were both very good. Tour started at the Abbey at 9 and then at Parliament at 11, including travel and time to enter Parliamant. Would have liked more time in the Abbey.
Very nice visit to do in the morning. Very informative, and Rowland was great
We had a lot of fun. Informative in a fun way. You can tell he loves giving tours and sharing knowledge.
Such a great way to learn about the history of the abbey and Parliament. The tour was roughly 4 hours but the time flew by. While there are few stairs and it’s not a tremendously long walk, it is a long time on your feet and there are very few places to sit, so keep that in mind. Our tour guides were fantastic and very helpful!
Great tour, Robert is a vault of historic facts presented in a tasteful, unrushed, and humorous way.
Yulia is a terrific guide. She is extremely knowledgeable and provides detailed answers to questions.
