Westminster Abbey

A thousand years of history

Every coronation since 1066 has taken place here, and the Abbey holds the ancient Coronation Chair used in the ceremony. It has also hosted royal weddings and state funerals watched around the world, which gives the building a continuing role in national life rather than the feel of a museum.

The architecture is high Gothic at its most ambitious, with soaring vaults and the intricate fan ceiling of the Lady Chapel at the east end. The cloisters and the quieter side chapels reward a slower look once you have taken in the main nave and the sanctuary.

Tombs and memorials

More than three thousand people are buried or commemorated inside, including many monarchs. You walk past the tombs of kings and queens, often elaborately carved, set close together in the chapels behind the high altar.

Poets' Corner gathers memorials to writers including Chaucer, Dickens, and many others, while the nave holds the graves of figures such as Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin. The Grave of the Unknown Warrior, set into the floor near the entrance, is the one spot in the Abbey that is never walked over.

Visiting practicalities

The Abbey is a working church, so it closes to sightseeing visitors on Sundays and during major services on other days, when you can still attend worship free of charge. Tourist visiting runs Monday to Saturday on a timed-entry system, with the last admission well before closing.

An audio guide is included with admission and helps make sense of the many tombs and chapels. Allow around ninety minutes to two hours for a full visit. Booking online ahead of time is usually cheaper than the gate and avoids the longest queues at peak times.

What's nearby

The Abbey could hardly be more central to royal and political London. The Houses of Parliament and the Elizabeth Tower that holds Big Ben stand directly across the road, and the river is just beyond, so you can fold all three into one walk.

From here St James's Park leads toward Buckingham Palace, and Trafalgar Square with the free National Gallery is a short walk north. The South Bank and the London Eye sit across Westminster Bridge, an easy crossing on foot.

Getting the most from a visit

Because the Abbey is still in daily use as a church, parts of it can close at short notice for services, rehearsals, or special events, so the odd chapel may be roped off when you visit. The free included audio guide is genuinely useful here, since the building is dense with tombs and small chapels that are easy to walk past without noticing what they are.

Photography is restricted inside the main church, which is worth knowing so you are not caught out, though the cloisters and outdoor areas are more relaxed. Dressing with the working-church setting in mind is appropriate, even though there is no strict dress code for visitors.

Arriving early on a weekday gives you the calmest experience, before the timed slots fill. If your schedule only allows a Sunday, you cannot tour as a visitor, but attending a service lets you experience the building's music and atmosphere at no charge, which some travelers prefer to the daytime route anyway.