Which one to choose in London
Two churches in London. Westminster Abbey has 32 tickets and tours to book; Westminster Cathedral has 2 tickets and tours to book. The table and the two notes below put them side by side; the full pages have what to see, the ticket and the timing for each.
London, United Kingdom
The standard ticket includes a multimedia guide narrated by Jeremy Irons and covers the church, the royal tombs, Poets' Corner and the cloisters; booking online saves both money and the queue on Broad Sanctuary. Verger-led tours, about ninety minutes with a member of the abbey staff, cost extra and go into the shrine of Edward the Confessor, which is otherwise closed; they are limited to small numbers and sell out first.
London, United Kingdom
The cathedral is free to enter and asks for a donation. Two things are ticketed. The campanile lift carries visitors 64 metres up St Edward's Tower to a viewing gallery over Victoria and the Thames, and it costs a few pounds. The treasures exhibition in the gallery above the west end holds vestments, plate and relics and charges a similar amount; a combined ticket covers both. Luminiscence, a projection and music show staged inside the nave in the evenings, is a commercial production sold at several times that price and is the only expensive thing on offer here.
| Westminster Abbey | Westminster Cathedral | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Church | Cathedral |
| Height | — | 87 m |
| Opened | 901 | 1895 |
| Tickets and tours on GetYourGuide | 32 | 2 |
| Official website | yes | yes |