PalenQ

Friend claims that he read that the London Dungeon, ubiquitously slammed on Fodor's as worthless Kitsch, is indeed London's number one tourist site.
I doubted that offhand but he claims he saw it topping such a list in some U.K. press - along with the London Aquarium, also on the Top Ten and another site off most tourists' radars.
But can the Dungeon really be amongst the top popular sites if even perhaps the top site?
I went thru it a few times and rather enjoyed it for the hoot it was but really can't fathom it's that popular.
Have you done the Dungeon and what do you think - i took my young son and he loved it as would be expected.

willit

I don't understand it, but that sort of attraction is undoubtably popular. I was quite shocked by the number of "Torture museums" in Tuscany - always seeming to do a good trade.

Madame Tussauds alwasys used to be very high in this sort of poll, another place of which I fail to see the attractiveness.

PalenQ

Madame Tussauds i think trades on its immense history but still, appealing to a more mass tourism that loves celebrity, etc. means that it will draw more than stuffy museums

And the Amsterdam Tussauds is also hugely popular, even with about a $20 entry fee.

dfr4848

I can (unfortunately) almost believe it. On our daughter's first trip to London years ago, we set out a day for her to choose what she wanted to do. She had some of the usual suspects on the list, but #1 was the Dungeon. Couldn't believe how crowded it was.

GeoffHamer

It depends on how you define a tourist attraction, but I'm sure the Tower of London, St Paul's, Kew Gardens, London Zoo or Westminster Abbey, amongst others, attract more visitors than the Dungeon.

Dukey

Mom and Dad to teenager: "What would you really LIKE to see? Kew Gardens or a TORTURE CHAMBER?????

Kid: "What a no-brainer question!"

traveller1959

I must admit: I have been there twice with my kids and I loved it (but I also read Stephen King and vampire novels from time to time). Worthless kitsch? Yes, but well done.

PalenQ

<Mom and Dad to teenager: "What would you really LIKE to see? Kew Gardens or a TORTURE CHAMBER?????>

Well for the typical kid Kew Gardens or some stuffy museum could well be a torture chamber

I'm all for giving kids cultural exposure but on trips also planning things with them and not the adults always in mind

flanneruk

The argument has to be complete garbage. You've only got to look round the place to see the number of people there are tiny compared to the Tower or Kew.It gets about 700,000 a year - a bit less than the Zoo, which I thought no-one went to any more

Or even Mme Tussauds - and that's the point. Merlin Entertainments, who own the dungeon and Mme Tussauds have just bought the London Aquarium. So it's possible someone's seen an article saying the Dungeon is part of the company who's got the most visitors in the private sector.

Still a drop in the ocean compared to the museums, art galleries etc

nytraveler

I can't believe any of those are even near the top of the list - unless you're counting only local kids and teens - rather than adults too - and tourists from all countries.

PalenQ

http://www.thedungeons.com/en/london-dungeon/index.html