Tower of London on a Budget: Prices and Saving Tips
Tower of London on a Budget
The verdict: GBP 37 for an adult ticket is the going rate and there is no genuinely free way inside, since the Crown Jewels and the White Tower sit behind the paywall the moment you cross the moat. Children 5-15 pay GBP 18.50 and under-5s go free, but there is no free-admission day and no evening discount the way some museums offer. Book online rather than at the gate; it will not lower the price much, but it removes the 30-45 minute ticket queue that forms most summer mornings.
Key facts
| Price | GBP 37 adult / GBP 18.50 child (5-15) / GBP 29.50 senior, online (2026) |
| Hours | Tue-Sat from 09:00, Sun-Mon from 10:00. Last entry 17:00 |
| Time needed | 3-4 hours minimum to cover the Jewel House, White Tower, and grounds |
| Booking lead | Book a day or two ahead online to skip the gate queue, not for a lower price |
| Getting there | Tower Hill tube (District, Circle lines) |
Is there any way to see the Tower of London for free?
Not inside the walls. The exterior, the moat gardens, and the view from Tower Hill or the riverside path beside Tower Bridge are free, and give you the White Tower’s silhouette and the fortress’s scale without a ticket. Everything behind the gate, including the Crown Jewels, requires the full GBP 37 admission.
What’s actually included in the GBP 37 price that makes it worth paying?
The Crown Jewels, which are the real working coronation regalia rather than replicas, the White Tower’s Royal Armoury with Henry VIII’s own armour, and a free 30-minute Yeoman Warder tour included in admission. That last one is one of the better free-with-ticket experiences in London and covers most of the site’s history in one go.
When does the ticket queue actually get shorter?
First thing at opening, Tuesday to Saturday from 09:00, before tour groups arrive. Arriving right at opening and heading straight for the Jewel House first, ahead of the White Tower, avoids the worst of the moving-walkway queue that builds there by mid-morning.
The fortress sits two minutes from Tower Bridge , so budget one paid ticket here and a free walk across the bridge next door rather than paying for two separate attractions on the same stretch of river.
Book directly through Historic Royal Palaces for the current online rate, or add a Crown Jewels skip-the-line option via GetYourGuide if a summer queue is a bigger concern than a small saving.
Concrete tip: do the Yeoman Warder tour first, straight from the main gate, before the Jewel House queue builds. It is free with admission and gives you the context for everything you see afterward.