devon

I will be in London mid to late January with my 11 year old. She really wants to visit the Tower of London. Research here recommends showing up for tickets before it opens. Does anyone know if the lines are shorter in the off season or is it a year round big attraction.<BR><BR>Thanks in advance.

Alan

I found the lines much, much shorter in January (1999) than in summer. Not only were lines shorter to get in, but inside was far less crowded. I looked at the Crown Jewels with just 1 other person in the room for over 15 minutes. In the summer you get about 30 seconds to see them as you get whisked through.

Nancy

If you buy a day pass or multi-day pass for the double decker tour buses which ply the tourist routes, the ticket incudes a special pass for the Tower and Madame Tussods (and maybe other attractions) that allows you to bypass the long lines. Defininately worth it. I can't remember the name of the bus company, but your hotel will surely have info. YOu can get on and off the bus and the various stops, stay as long as you want, and then go onto the next stop.

syrin

I was in London at Christmas-time last year. Went to the Tower in the morning, no lines, except inside to see the crown jewels and that line moved quickly. <BR><BR>The British Museum was also line and crowd-free. If you can, be sure to stop at the Museum of Natural History--it's great for grown-ups, if I were 11, i would have loved it even more!<BR>

devon

Thanks to you all for your speedy feedback! Sounds as if we don't need to be quite so compulsive about turning up before opening time. We'll still get there early in the day because my daughter is a lingerer at the sights she enjoys.<BR><BR>Syrin, I heartily agree with you about the Natural History Museum. We've been before (and had a fantastic time) so it's on my backup list for this trip.<BR><BR>Happy New Year!

Karen

Devon - I'll be there at the same time! Two other options that might interest you: You can buy Tower of London tickets at the train station when you buy a Visitor Card for the Tube, and avoid those lines altogether.<BR><BR>Also, if you plan to go to Hampton Court Palace or Kensington Palace in addition to the Tower, you can buy combination tickets for 2 or 3 of them and save some money. I believe you can do this at any one of them, and they are good for an extended period of time. <BR><BR>Happy travels, and maybe I'll see you at the crown jewels!<BR><BR>Karen

Jen

If possible, choose a nice day for visiting the Tower. Not only is there a lot of walking about outdoors, but you really must take one of the Beefeaers tours (included in the price of admission) and they reportedly aren't given if it's raining at all. If you do manage to get there at opening time, go see the jewels first, then go back to the entrance to pick up a tour.

aj

Devon,<BR><BR>We just got back from London and the Tower of London tour. The line was short. The weather was very cold so bundle up. All in all it was well worth the time spent. The line was shorter this time than the last time we went in June. We went in the morning around 11. The cost was ll.50 pounds.

quinty

Is it true that there's no tour if it's rainy?<BR>AJ - when you say very cold, was it hard to stay outside long? I will be there in 3 weeks and would love some current info.<BR>

aj

Quinty,<BR><BR>We were there Jan 12,last Sun., and it was very cold probably below 30 degrees. <BR>There was no rain and a beautiful sunny blue sky!!! We dressed very warm with layers and hat and scarf around our face. In fact one of the guards made a joke to me that there would be no &quot;robbers&quot; in the tower! A reference to the way I had my face covered to protect it from the cold wind. I think we were there during a very cold spell and not a normal temp for this time of year! It was not hard to be outside because of the interesting tour. Also you can go inside the buildings after the tour.I am from the South (USA) and not used to very cold weather!

K

To Quinty:<BR><BR>Yes, it's true, no tour in the rain.<BR><BR>Try www.weather.com for a forecast when you go. Right now it is 30s and 40s and always a chance of rain. If you bundle up, you can stay outside as long as you want. Depends on your tolerance I guess, but I plan to be outside a lot when I go in 2 days!

Shayne

Here's a great tip:<BR><BR>You can buy a ticket for the Tower of London at most tube stations. We bought our tickets the day before we went. We showed up at exactly 9:00 when it opened. We walked right past a big line of people waiting to buy tickets. We went right to the crown jewels and had them to ourselves for 30 minutes. We then walked back to the entry to join a free Beefeater tour. When the crown jewels are busy, you are whisked by them on a conveyor belt, with very little time to see them.<BR>

Quinty

AJ - thanks for the weather tip. That cold and sunny? Wow. I hope it was an abnormal cold spell. You're from Georgia, right? My parents now live in Alabama so I am familiar and just spent 3 weeks there at Christmas!<BR>K - I'll keep the rain in mind, put Tower as the first thing to do on my itinerary, that way if it is raining I can have other opportunities for the tour during the remainder of my visit.<BR>Shayne - That was exactly what I had planned. I'm glad to hear that it works!

xxx

Quinty, yes it was a particularly cold spell, we hadn't had that much snow in probably 10 years, but for the last couple of days London has been a lot milder - highs of 50 during the day. <BR>The next 5 days forecast predicts similar temperatures. Bear in mind though that even if the temps are fairly mild, if it’s windy the wind chill factor can make it feel a lot colder.