Castles in London: the Tower of London and Buckingham Palace
Forty listings at a median of 69.03 EUR and 150 minutes, one castle open every day of the year and one open for 81 of them.
London holds two castles worth crossing the city for, and they keep opposite calendars. The Tower of London has no weekly closing day and no closed season: whatever Tuesday in February you happen to have free, it is open. The State Rooms of Buckingham Palace open for 81 days a year, from 9 July to 27 September in 2026, and are shut on Tuesdays and Wednesdays through September. For the other 284 days London has one castle you can walk into and one facade you can photograph. That single difference should decide the order of your week here, and it is almost never the thing people plan around.
The catalogue reflects the city rather than the country. Across the 40 London listings the median price is 69.03 EUR and the median length is 150 minutes, against 134.41 EUR and 660 minutes an hour up the river at Windsor. Fourteen of the 40 are finished inside two hours. Only two run eight hours or more, and one of those declares 1,440 minutes because it is a day ticket, which is a validity window rather than a tour. Nobody in London is selling you a coach seat, because nobody needs to: both castles are on the Underground.
London is also the lowest rated of the three British destinations here, at a weighted 4.537 across 35,042 reviews, under the 4.653 the whole site averages. That is not a verdict on the two buildings. Both the best and the worst rated product in the entire United Kingdom catalogue sit in this city, a 5.0 across 758 reviews at 34.34 EUR and a 4.1 across 2,024 reviews at 75.79, and they are both about Buckingham Palace. What separates them is what each one promised.
What follows is the comparison the two calendars force on you, the ceremony timetable that decides which morning is spoken for, and how the London passes behave at each gate. The ticket mechanics of each castle, one at a time, are on the two pages under this one.
Choose a destination in London
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Tower of London
One ticket at 37 pounds booked ahead, with no circuits to choose between: the Crown Jewels, the White Tower and the Yeoman Warder tour are all inside it, and…
20 experiences -
Buckingham Palace
The State Rooms open for 81 days: 9 July to 27 September 2026, at 33 pounds booked ahead.
20 experiences
Castles Experiences in London
London Highlights by Tube and Bus, with Westminster Abbey and the Tower
No coach on this private day: you cross London on the tube and buses, with 90 minutes inside Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London included.
Marching Down The Mall: Changing of the Guard with a Historian
Designed with a former Guardsman, this walk moves with the Guards and the band down The Mall instead of watching from behind a railing.
Medieval Thames Walk from the Tower of London to St Paul's
A historian-led walk that passes the Tower rather than entering it, then takes the south bank: Winchester Palace, Borough Market, Southwark Cathedral.
Private Tower of London with the Ravens and the Torture Chamber
A private Blue Badge guide for three hours, taking in the torture chamber, the gates with their murder holes and the ravens. Children get a quiz with a prize.
Three Palaces on Foot and Afternoon Tea at the Orangery
The walk avoids the crowded route and ends at Queen Anne's 300-year-old Orangery for a full afternoon tea, with Spencer House and a red bus on the way.
Buckingham, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey, from the Ritz
Three hours on foot from the Ritz, then the Abbey with your ticket pre-booked and a free audio guide. Note that the guide does not go inside with you.
Changing of the Guard and Buckingham with its 16-Hectare Gardens
No guide may speak inside the palace, so yours briefs you outside and hands over the official audio tour at the door. The gardens run to 16 hectares.
Changing of the Guard from Green Park to Parliament Square
The walk follows the ceremony rather than waiting for it: it starts at St James's Palace, ends at Buckingham, and leaves you opposite Big Ben.
Changing of the Guard on Foot, from Victoria to Horse Guards
A front row spot for the guard change, then the walk carries on past Clarence House and St James's Palace to finish at Horse Guards Parade.
Tower of London Opening Ceremony, Then Westminster by Boat
The two royal ends of London in one booking, joined by the river rather than the tube, with St James's Palace on the Westminster walk.
Tower of London Private Family Tour with the Royal Beasts
A Blue Badge guide who works with children, tickets pre-booked, and a route through Mint Street, Tower Green and the Royal Beasts rather than the queue.
Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace and Jermyn Street
The rare Westminster walk that does not stop at the palace gates: it carries on into St James's, past the shirtmakers and hatters of Jermyn Street.
Westminster Abbey, Thames Clipper and the Tower of London in a Day
Guided entry at both ends and the commuter clipper between them. Check the date: the Guard changes Mon, Wed, Fri and Sun, and not at all in heavy rain.
Buckingham State Rooms and a Royal Walk from St James's Square
The Grand Staircase, White Drawing Room, Ballroom and Throne Room, entered on your own after a walk that starts at the William III statue.
Tower of London Beefeater Audience at the King's House
Fifteen minutes with a Yeoman Warder in the King's House, an area closed to regular visitors. The Express option drops it and runs 90 minutes instead.
Tower of London Opening Ceremony and Tower Bridge Glass Floor
The only three-hour version that goes inside Tower Bridge, high-level walkways and glass floor included, after the early entry to the Jewel House.
Tower of London Small Group with a Blue Badge Guide
A named Blue Badge guide with twenty five years on the site, a group kept small, and an optional afternoon tea at the Four Seasons afterwards.
Tower of London Entry with the Refurbished Medieval Palace
The Medieval Palace reopened in May 2025 after a major refurbishment, and the new display covers the households who served the kings, not only the kings.
Beefeater Meet and Greet with Tower Green and the Battlements
A private audience with a Yeoman Warder opens these three hours, then Tower Green, where three English queens were executed, and the walls. No re-entry after.
Buckingham Palace Interior and the Park That Was a Royal Zoo
St James's Park held the royal menagerie before it held picnickers. The walk crosses it to a palace whose doors open two months a year, tickets pre-booked.
Tower of London Opening Ceremony with an All-Day Ticket
A group of twenty in before opening for the Beefeater ceremony, then the Jewel House first. The ticket runs to closing, with a map and audio app included.
Tower of London Opening Ceremony with a Six-Language App
In before the public for the Beefeater-led Opening Ceremony, then the fortress at your own pace with an app in six languages. Nothing else on the itinerary.
Tower of London: the Scaffold Site, the Prison and the Crown Jewels
Other tours mention the executions; this one walks to Tower Green, the scaffold site and the torture rooms, with a Blue Badge guide and timed entry.
Westminster Abbey Guided or at Evensong: Two Walking Options
Two ways in: four hours with skip-the-line and a Blue Badge guide inside, or three hours ending at a free organ recital, evensong or evening mass.
Ratings collected by Viator, Tripadvisor and Tiqets
Two castles, two calendars
They are run by different organisations that share nothing. Historic Royal Palaces, an independent charity, runs the Tower. The Royal Collection Trust runs Buckingham Palace. Neither accepts the other's membership, and neither accepts a National Trust or English Heritage card.
| Tower of London | Buckingham Palace | |
|---|---|---|
| Run by | Historic Royal Palaces | Royal Collection Trust |
| Open | Every day of the year | 9 July to 27 September 2026, 81 days |
| Weekly closure | None | Tuesday and Wednesday in September |
| Time it asks for | Two to three hours, per its operator | About four and a half hours for the Royal Day Out; no figure published for the State Rooms alone |
| Nearest Underground | Tower Hill, Circle and District, about five minutes on foot | Green Park, Victoria and St James's Park. The operator publishes no walking time |
| With a London pass | Included, walk up, you may be asked to wait for the next slot. Audio guide not included | Included, but pass holders cannot pre-book a time slot at all |
| Listings here | 20 | 20 |
| Median price | 86.78 EUR | 50.62 EUR |
| Reviews | 22,771 at a weighted 4.524 | 12,271 at a weighted 4.563 |
The morning that is already spoken for
11:00, Monday, Wednesday and Friday
The Changing of the Guard is a military parade on public ground, not a tour. Nothing is sold, nothing is booked, and you watch from the railings, the Victoria Memorial or The Mall. Troops muster at Wellington Barracks at 10:30, the ceremony at the palace begins at 11:00, and the whole thing takes about 45 minutes.
It does not run every day, and the days change with the season, which is the single most common reason a London castle plan falls apart. The confirmed calendar, the ceremonies that stand in for it on the other days, and what a listing is really promising when it names a Tuesday are all on the Buckingham Palace page.
It can also be cancelled at very short notice, sometimes as late as 10:45 on the day, usually for weather or military duties. The army publishes the schedule about six weeks ahead, which is the horizon within which any of this can be relied on.
That timetable is why the two castles fit together on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday and fight each other on any other day. The parade ends around 11:45. The Tower asks for two to three hours and never closes, so an afternoon there is always available. Reverse the order and it does not work, because the parade will not wait for you.
And if you are in London on the wrong days, the arithmetic changes rather than collapses. The Tower is the only one of the two that is open, so it becomes the day rather than half of it. Windsor, which runs its own guard change on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, is an hour away by train and is the reason those days are not lost.
What a London pass does and does not do here
The London Pass and Go City both include the Tower and both include the State Rooms of Buckingham Palace, and in each case the terms matter more than the inclusion.
At the Tower, pass holders do not need to book in advance, which is genuinely useful, but the pass page adds that at busy times you may be asked to wait for the next available slot. The audio guide, which is an extra charge on top of admission for everyone, is not covered.
At Buckingham Palace the catch is larger and the Royal Collection Trust states it in its own words: London Pass holders cannot pre-book time slots. You arrive, you queue, and on a sold-out day you do not get in. Go City narrows it further: the State Rooms are included only from 1 August to 27 September 2026 rather than for the whole season, afternoons only, walk-up at Gate A on Buckingham Palace Road, and step-free access is not part of it and has to be arranged separately.
Read together, that is a pass which works well at the castle that never sells out and works worst at the one that does. It is not a reason to avoid buying one. It is a reason not to build the Buckingham part of your week on it.
Which of the two you can go inside, by month
This table is about interiors, not weather. Read from the two operators on 2026-09-05.
| Month | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tower of LondonNo weekly closing day and no closed season. What changes here are areas rather than dates: the Middle Tower was shut on 1 and 2 September 2026, with entry moved to the Middle Drawbridge, and the Wharf closes before gun salutes. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Buckingham Palace, State RoomsThe 2026 season runs 9 July to 27 September, with Tuesdays and Wednesdays closed in September and the Garden and East Wing tours starting on 11 July. Outside that window there is a facade and a parade, and no interior at all. | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
Sources: hrp.org.uk and rct.uk, read 2026-09-05. The Changing of the Guard runs all year on its own calendar, published about six weeks ahead.
What London sells, and at what price
Forty listings, split exactly twenty and twenty between the two castles, from three suppliers: 31 from Viator, seven from Tiqets and two from Civitatis. The median is 69.03 EUR, the first quartile 38.40 and the third 116.05. Only three listings pass 250 EUR, against seven at Windsor, which is what a city without a coach journey looks like on a price chart.
Nine of the 40 confirm instantly and 36 carry free cancellation. Exactly one declares skip-the-line access, and that restraint is accurate: both castles run timed entry that everybody shares, and there is no faster lane on sale at either. Any London listing promising to skip a queue that neither operator sells is describing something it does not control.
The last figure worth carrying away is the gap between the extremes. A 34.34 EUR product that promises only the guard change holds 758 reviews at 5.0. A 75.79 EUR product that promises the guard change and palace entry holds 2,024 reviews at 4.1, and it is the lowest rated thing in the whole British catalogue. Both were sold in a city where, for most of the year, the palace entry half of that promise cannot be delivered.
Who is selling what, and in which order to book it
The three suppliers behind these 40 listings do not do the same job. Viator supplies 31 of them and covers the guided walks, the combinations with Westminster and the river, and the private formats. Tiqets supplies seven and Civitatis two, and the listings of theirs that carry the most reviews in this city are plain entry tickets. Two of the three listings here that declare no duration at all are exactly that, and it is the honest answer: an entry ticket has an opening time, not a length.
Which suggests an order of operations for a London week rather than a shopping list. Fix the fixed things first, because they are the only ones that cannot move. The Buckingham season is 81 days and either your dates fall inside it or the question is closed. The parade runs Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 11:00 and the schedule is published about six weeks out. Everything else in this city bends around those two.
Then book the Tower for whichever day is left, because it is the one thing here that is open on all of them, and it is also the one where a pass genuinely saves you the booking step. Then, if a Tuesday or a Thursday is still unclaimed, that is the day Windsor exists for: it has its own guard change on those mornings, it is an hour from Waterloo, and it is the only way a London week gets a third castle without anybody buying a coach seat.
Planning two castles in London
Can I go inside Buckingham Palace?
Only in summer. The State Rooms opened on 9 July 2026 and close on 27 September, 81 days in total, with Tuesdays and Wednesdays shut through September. There is no winter version, no partial opening and no way around it. At any other time of year the palace is a facade, a gate and a parade.
Which London castle is open on a Monday?
Both, in season, and only the Tower outside it. The Tower of London has no weekly closing day at all. Monday is also one of the three days the Changing of the Guard runs, so in July, August or September a Monday is the single most productive day you can pick in this city.
How do I reach each of them?
Tower Hill station on the Circle and District lines is about five minutes on foot from the Tower. For Buckingham Palace the nearest stations are Green Park, Victoria and St James's Park; the Royal Collection Trust does not publish a walking time on its own visitor pages, so we are not going to invent one.
Is a London pass worth it for these two?
It works at the Tower, where you walk up without booking, though you may wait for the next slot and the audio guide is still extra. It works badly at Buckingham Palace, where pass holders cannot pre-book a slot at all and are turned away on sold-out days, and where Go City covers only 1 August to 27 September, afternoons, at Gate A.
What does a London castle listing cost here?
The median is 69.03 EUR across 40 listings, with a first quartile of 38.40 and a third of 116.05. The cheapest is 16.29 EUR and the most expensive 559.64. Half of everything sold in this city is under 70 EUR, which is not true of any other British destination in this catalogue.
Can I do the guard change and the Tower on the same day?
Yes, in that order and on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday. The parade starts at 11:00 and runs about 45 minutes, and the Tower asks for two to three hours and is open every day. Doing it the other way round does not work, because the ceremony will not wait and can be cancelled as late as 10:45 on the day.
Why is London the lowest rated British destination here?
It sits at a weighted 4.537 across 35,042 reviews, against 4.643 at Windsor and 4.781 in the Highlands. The spread inside the city is what drags it: the extremes of the entire United Kingdom catalogue are both here, a 5.0 and a 4.1, thirty-one euro and one full rating point apart, and both of them are sold as Buckingham Palace products.
Data verified on. Opening, seasons and pass terms from hrp.org.uk, rct.uk, londonpass.com and gocity.com. Ceremony calendar from householddivision.org.uk. Catalogue figures from our database.