susnyk

We will be in London this July, 2011, and would like to tour St. Paul's. Can anyone tell me if I am likely to encounter long lines waiting to get in? Is there any particular time of day that would be better to visit, to avoid the lines?

Thanks,
Susan

texasbookworm

Go early. I recommend you plan to climb to the Golden Gallery, so pick a relatively nice weather day. I've been 3 times, varying from mid-morning to mid-afternoon. I didn't have a particularly long line any of those times, but earliest arrival had the least wait. And when we went in mid-afternoon and climbed to the dome, we had a queue going up last bits and they only let us out a few at a time onto the gallery and asked us to descend sooner than we would have liked. So I think the earlier the better. (Same to be said for The Tower and Westminster Abbey, if those are on your itinerary--so need several days or have to decide on priorities). (I'll be in London in 7 days!!)

alanRow

St Paul's is closed to tourists on Sundays, Saturdays are busy throughout the year, Fridays & Mondays get people taking long weekends.

Personally I've always found that Tuesdays are the quietest days for most major attractions

avalon

I've not encountered long lines in several trips to St Paul. As alan states it is closed to tourists on Sundays. You might want to attend a service then and avoid paying the entry fee which as I recall is 11 GBP per person. Also if you take the London Walks St Paul tour entry is free.

susnyk

Thanks, everyone. Good info!