London River Thames Historic Sightseeing Tour

This tour takes us along the banks of the River Thames between two of the most famous buildings in the world, the Houses of Parliament & the Tower of London.
We will travel on both sides of this famous old river which locals lovingly refer to as 'Old Father Thames' at various points along the tour. The fine buildings of London are meant to be seen from the river side & we will learn how things have changed over the centuries and millennia & learn how the river has shaped and influenced London right up to the present day.

We will learn the stories of some people that lived along the banks and some of the terrible disasters that have befallen the city.It's not all bad news though as we will past some iconic bridges, amazing photo opportunities & some of the most funky parts of town that until now travellers rarely got the chance to explore.

We will see many of the most famous sights in London but also hidden places right by the river which are little changed from centuries ago.

Meeting Point

Caffè Nero

Unit B, Portcullis House, 1-2 Bridge St, London SW1A 2JH, UK

We will be just outside the cafe, a few feet from the main entrance of Westminster Underground Station and almost directly across the road from Big Ben.

What's included:

• Tour Guide

What to expect:

Duration: 3 hours

Houses of Parliament

Parliament Square, London, SW1A 0AA

We start at the Mother of Democracy and the famous Big Ben and learn about how over a thousand years ago this was all an island in the Thames

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Metropolitan Police

Victoria Embankment, London SW1A 2JL, UK

See the famous revolving sign of New Scotland Yard at the home of the oldest Police force in the world.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

London Eye

Westminster Bridge Road, Riverside Building, County Hall, London, SE1 7PB

One of the newest icons of London but also one of the most controversial when it was built.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

York Watergate

Watergate Walk, Charing Cross, London, WC2N 6DU

See the old ceremonial entrance way to London where all the big names from history would alight from their boats on the Thames and find out why now you can't even see the river from here!

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Victoria Embankment Gardens

58 Victoria Embankment, Temple Place, London, EC4Y 0DS

Beautiful Victorian Gardens along the river that were built to help alleviate a very smelly problem.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Middle Temple Hall

Middle Temple Ln., , London

Previously right up against the river and now a few hundred yards from it, we can see some of the beautiful gardens and paths in this old legal quarter of London that featured heavily in the writings of Charles Dickens and frequently used in TV and movies such as Downton Abbey.

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Queenhithe

Queenhithe, London, UK

See the mosaic that covers over 2,000 years of London history at the only surviving Anglo-Saxon docks in the world and learn of how King Alfred The Great re-established modern London here after expelling those pesky Vikings.

10 minutes

St. Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Churchyard, London, EC4M 8AD

See St Pauls from the now iconic view from the Millennium Bridge.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Millennium Bridge

Thames Embankment, London, SE1 9JE

Offering some of the best photo opportunities in the whole of Central London.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Tate Modern

Bankside, London, SE1 9TG

We won't go inside but can you guess what it used to be?

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Shakespeare's Globe

21 New Globe Walk, London SE1 9DT, UK

See the incredible Globe Theatre and find out why it is here in what was once the most salubrious part of London!

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

The Clink Prison Museum

1 Clink St, London SE1 9DG, UK

Find out the lurid details of what would happen to the unfortunate who were sent here at His Majesty's Pleasure.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Golden Hinde

Cathedral Street, St Mary Overie Dock, London, SE1 9DE

See the wondrous replica of the famous ship of exploration used by Sir Francis Drake.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Southwark Cathedral

1 London Bridge, Montague Close, London, SE1 9DA

One of the lesser known cathedrals in London.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Borough Market

8 Southwark Street, , London, SE1 1TL

The food market famous around the world which one way or the other has been here since Roman times.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

London Bridge

London, EC4R 9HA

The first and most historic bridge in London and yet oddly, not the most famous we will see.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Hay's Galleria

1 Battle Bridge Lane, , London, SE1 2HD

Now a high-end shopping and restaurant area but once the most advanced shipyards in the world.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

HMS Belfast

The Queen's Walk, London, SE1 2JH

See the famous old Royal Navy ship which is now a museum vessel and permanently moored on the Thames.

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

City Hall

Kamal Chunchie Way, , London, E16 1ZE

The home of the London Mayor and local government and surrounded by some of the new development which London is now also famous for. The best views of Tower Bridge can be found right here!

5 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge Road, London, SE1 2UP

Maybe the most famous bridge in the world which when it was built was also by far the most advanced too. People have flown under it, died from jumping off it but we'll just walk across with the opportunity for some great photos and to look through the centre gap and see the river below.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included

Tower of London

London, EC3N 4AB

We will finish outside the Tower of London whose moat once connected to the river and see Traitors Gate where those condemned souls would arrive by boat awaiting their dreadful fate.

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included