London - Thames Walk
Start: Parliament Square (Tube: Westminster)
Finish: Tower Of London (Tube: Tower Hill DLR: Tower Gateway)
Distance: 3¾ miles (6km) - an extra 1 mile (1.5km) if St Paul’s detour included
(All prices quoted are correct as at May 2026)
If coming from Westminster underground station take the Whitehall West exit, otherwise start on the west corner of Whitehall and Parliament Square.Standing with Parliament Square ahead of you the Houses of Parliament should be across the road on your left and Westminster Abbey should be ahead to the right.
Walk down Great George Street (away from Parliament) after a couple of hundred yards there is a pedestrian crossing. Cross both roads and walk down the side of Parliament Square approaching Westminster Abbey.
Cross the road again and you will be in the grounds of Westminster Abbey. Access to the Gardens, cloisters and adjacent St Margaret’s, where admission is free, but admission into the Abbey is £31.00 for adults, £28.00 for concessions and £14.00 for children. (there is no charge for attending services)
Once finished at the Abbey head towards the Houses of Parliament.
The building immediately in front is Westminster Hall, the oldest part of the Palace Of Westminster. Turn left and take in the close up views of Parliament.
Turn right into Bridge Street and head towards Westminster Bridge.
Cross the road at the pedestrian crossing before the bridge. Crossing the bridge you will have views of the London Eye to your left and Parliament to your right.Watch out for illegal traders and ‘find the lady’ scammers as you cross the bridge.
Once across the bridge go down the steps to your left which will take you down to the South Bank.
The first building you will pass is the Old County Hall building which is now home to the London Aquarium (£39.00 on the day for adults. from £28.00 if booked in advance) and the London Eye ticket office.
Immediately after County Hall is the London Eye (£39.00 on the day for adults. from £28.00 if booked in advance) , the largest Ferris Wheel in Europe, 135m tall, it was only meant to be a temporary attraction to celebrate the new millenium..
The walk takes you past Jubilee Gardens on the right, this area is often frequented by street entertainers always good entertainment.
Next up will be the Festival Halls, ugly grey buildings, but one of the major arts centres in the country. If you are a lover of second hand books there is a second hand book market outside – a delight for bookworms.
Moving on is an area used for temporary exhibitions. Around Christmas time there is a Christmas Market in the area. Other pop up attractions can be found throughout the year.
With so many distractions it can take a while to pass through this stretch.
Just after the Halls and to the right is Gabriel’s Wharf an area of eateries, some with outside eating and catering for most tastes and budgets.
You will soon come to the OXO Tower which has a bar / brasserie / restaurant on the top floor offering excellent views across the Thames and City – be warned it isn’t cheap though.Much better value is the Gelato sold in the café on the ground floor – if you are a lover of authentic Italian ice cream then you will be in seventh heaven.
With your ice cream in hand continue along the Thames, passing under Blackfriars Bridge where, shortly afterwards you will arrive at the Tate Modern. What used to be the Bankside Power Station has been converted into a gallery of modern art and apart from special exhibitions admission is free.
At this point you have the option to pop across the river to see St Paul’s Cathedral. The Millennium Footbridge, also known as the wobbly bridge because it used to - erm wobble when first built. Have no fears now it is quite sturdy.
You can see St Paul’s ahead of you as you cross the bridge. (By the way this is a useful stop point if you have had enough – just cross the bridge, turn right at the other end and you will find Mansion House tube station).
Like Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s charges admission (Adult admission £27.00, concessions £24.00, children £10.50, there is also a £1.00 admission for UK residents on certain benefits), admission is free for services
Once you have had a look at St Paul’s make your way back across the river to the Tate Modern.
Carrying on after the Tate you will quickly come across Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre or to be totally accurate a modern reconstruction of it. The theatre can be toured but, of course, it comes at a cost in this case £30.00 for adults and £13.50 for children, this is for a two hour guided tour.Resume the walk, pass under Southwark Bridge and you will soon reach one of the famous Thames side pubs The Anchor, from where the diarist Samuel Pepys watched the Great Fire Of London.
Under the railway bridge and you will enter Clink Street home if the infamous Clink Prison, the oldest in England. There is now a museum (£10.00 for adults £8.50 for children and concessions) on the site.
Carry on down Clink Street and you will be faced with a full size replica of Sir Francis Drake’s Golden Hinde. When you actually see the size of the vessel it fills you with awe they managed to sail it round the world. It is open to the public, cost £6.00 for all ages or £20 for a family of four.
As you come round the basin housing the Golden Hinde you will see Southwark Cathedral ahead of you – now this one is free to visit and walk around, assuming there are no services going on of course.
The next bridge you will come to is the most famous of them all - London Bridge. To be honest, nowadays, it looks little different than any other bridge.
Once under the bridge you have a choice, either bear left and continue along the river bank or veer right and make a detour down Tooley Street.
Carry on down Tooley Street and on your left you will see the Galleria shopping centre. One of the first shops is a Christmas Store where you can buy Christmas related items any time of the year.Inside the Galleria is a fascinating Heath Robinson type sailing ship.
As you emerge from the Galleria you will see, in front of you, HMS Belfast a former Royal Navy cruiser, again open to the public if, as they say, it floats your boat (£26.80 for adults, £24.10 for concessions and £13.40 for children, there is a £3.00 ticket for UK residents on certain benefits)
If you decide to take the river path instead look across the river just after you pass London Bridge and you will see a white tower with a golden top. This is The Monument and it marks the spot where the Great Fire of London started in 1666.
Turn to your right and ahead of you will be one of London’s iconic sights Tower Bridge.
Once you reach Tower Bridge go up the steps and stroll across the bridge.
Crossing the bridge you will have some great views of London. Contrast the Tower of London with the modern high rise buildings in the City of London, a perfect reflection of the old and the new.
The walk ends at the Tower Of London.
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