Royal London Guided Tour: Tower, Westminster, and River Cruise

The Tower of London is a great place and I had no idea, so that was the best part of the tour. We started off meeting our guide and she gave us a lot of history and info. We went inside and she dropped us off at the Crown Jewels. It was 100% worth it to book the first tour of the day to beat the crowds and the heat. We learned later that the Tower closed on some days due to heat, we are glad we didn't encounter that problem. Before she left us, the guide told us to meet her in about 90 minutes for the boat tour. She also gave the option to skip the boat tour and stay at the Tower. I would say about half of the group opted to stay at the Tower...and having gone on the rest of tour I may have changed my mind to do that same knowing what was in store after. We gave ourselves a little extra time to grab some lunch nearby the meetup spot (Joseph's fish and chips - great!) and then headed over to the "boat tour." I imagined a private boat but really we boarded a public taxi boat, no guarantee of seating or even being near the guide. She talked on about the buildings we passed but honestly I tuned out. We were on the boat maybe 10 minutes and then hopped off to continue the rest of the tour on foot. The guide was a fast walker and did not stop to check that we were following. She would just walk off and stop at some point and hold up her flag so we could find her. I suppose that's one way to lead a tour. She gave history on some places we passed along the way and when we got near Buckingham Palace, she told us she would take us to a secret spot with a great view of a nearby lake and the palace, a beautiful backdrop. We walked into a nearby park and stopped on a bridge where you could barely see the Palace at all. The bridge itself was very crowded. And that's where to tour ended. It wasn't a "pass by" as the itinerary states. We were far away! The guide said we could go on to the Palace ourselves, which we did. Overall, this tour is EXTREMELY overpriced. I would recommend you just go to Tower of London directly and if you fancy a boat ride, hop on a boat or book a boat tour from the Tower of London website. Also, about the guide, I've been on plenty of tours but this one was not very friendly. She was knowledgeable and told nice stories, but in down times she didn't try to ask where we were from or make any small talk whatsoever. I guess that's not required but I would say usually tour guides are much friendlier. I regret tipping her.

Self tour at Tower of London once inside, which surprised us. We did get to see the Crown Jewels as the first ones to enter so no line and no crowds. That was a huge win

Babs was delightful and so knowledgeable. We had so much learning about the big sights of London and the history of the monarchy. She was great with kids and adults and we would definitely do this again and recommend to others!

Our tour guide Jo is very jolly and friendly. She’s also very well versed about the history of the tour. She’s very helpful as well

Very comprehensive tour of the Tower and beyond. Babs, our tour guide, was enthusiastic and knowledgeable. Would highly recommend.