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Black cab tours of London — the whole city from the back seat

A licensed London cabbie, a cab that seats up to six, and three or four hours of the sights with photo stops. Here’s what a private taxi tour costs, which themed cabs are worth it, and where to book.

  • Updated
  • Prices and ratings checked 21 Oct 2026; they change daily.
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Price per cab
~£250–£400 for 3–4 h
Seats
up to 5–6
Duration
2 h to full day
Pick-up
hotel, station, cruise port
Arvydas Venckus arwiz, CC0

Our verdict

Best overall

London: Sightseeing Black Cab Tour with Hotel Pick-up

The benchmark private cab tour — hotel pick-up, 3–4 hours of the big sights and a cabbie who stops wherever you want a photo. 5.0★ over 300+ reviews.

5.0★ · 320from £318 GetYourGuide →

Best value

London: Private Black Cab Night Tour with Hotel Pick-up

The night tour is the cheapest private cab on the platform and London’s floodlit bridges look better from a cab window than from an open-top bus in the cold.

5.0★ · 23from £248 GetYourGuide →

Best private option

London: Rock 'n' Roll Beatles Private Black Cab Tour

The Beatles and rock’n’roll cab — Abbey Road, Savile Row, the Apple rooftop — is the best-reviewed themed cab tour in London.

5.0★ · 79from £318 GetYourGuide →

Skip it if

You want to go inside the sights

Cab tours are about the outside and the stories. If you want the Crown Jewels or the Abbey’s Poets’ Corner, book a walking guide plus timed tickets instead.

How a private black cab tour works

You’re collected from your hotel by a licensed London cabbie — someone who passed the Knowledge, the exam that requires memorising the city’s streets — and driven between the sights you choose, with stops for photos and short walks. The classic route takes in Westminster and Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, St Paul’s, the Tower and Tower Bridge in three to four hours. Most drivers are happy to swap in Notting Hill, Abbey Road or a favourite pub.

Commentary comes from the front seat, through the cab’s intercom, and at each stop on foot. It’s informal and personal — less dates-and-dynasties than a Blue Badge walk, more anecdote and London knowledge.

The tours, side by side

TourLengthPrice per cabRatingGood to know
Sightseeing cab with hotel pick-up3–4 h~£3185.0★ (300+)The safe classic
Night tour with hotel pick-up2–3 h~£2485.0★Cheapest private cab; floodlit bridges
Iconic London taxi tour3–8 h~£279+5.0★Flexible length, tailored route
Panoramic black cab, custom 4 h4 h~£3995.0★Glass-roof cab
Beatles & rock’n’roll cab3–4 h~£3185.0★Abbey Road, Savile Row, Soho
James Bond locations by taxi4 h~£4994.4★Niche, lower rating
Harry Potter & London, full day8 h~£6995.0★Longest, for superfans

Prices are the “from” prices in our partner feed today; open the listing to see the exact price for your group size and date.

Private black cab tours you can book now

London: Sightseeing Black Cab Tour with Hotel Pick-up

  • 5.0★ 320 reviews
  • 3 - 4 hours

from £318

See on GetYourGuide

London: Rock 'n' Roll Beatles Private Black Cab Tour

  • 5.0★ 79 reviews
  • 3 - 4 hours

from £318

See on GetYourGuide

London: Iconic London Taxi Tour – Private tour

  • 5.0★ 69 reviews
  • 3 - 8 hours

from £279

See on GetYourGuide

London: James Bond Shooting Locations Tour by Black Taxi

  • 4.4★ 36 reviews
  • 4 hours

from £499

See on GetYourGuide

4-Hour Private Tour of London in a Panoramic Black Cab

  • 5.0★ 27 reviews
  • 4 hours

from £399

See on GetYourGuide

London: Private Black Cab Night Tour with Hotel Pick-up

  • 5.0★ 23 reviews
  • 2 - 3 hours

from £248

See on GetYourGuide

Prices and ratings checked 21 Oct 2026; they change daily.

What it costs per head

Private vs shared — what does it cost per head?

Private tours are priced per group, shared tours per person. Slide the group size to see when private stops being a luxury.

Private tour (whole group)—
Shared tour (per person)—

The shared comparison above uses the most-booked live-guided vintage bus tour. A cab for five on a three-hour tour typically works out at £50–£80 each — in the same range as a premium shared tour, but private, door to door and on your timetable.

Themed cabs worth knowing

  • Beatles and music: several cabs run Abbey Road, the Apple rooftop on Savile Row, Soho studios and Hendrix’s flat. These are among the best-reviewed private tours in London — see our Beatles tours guide.
  • Harry Potter: cab tours of filming locations — Leadenhall Market, Millennium Bridge, King’s Cross — are compared on our private Harry Potter page.
  • Film and TV: James Bond, Sherlock Holmes and Ted Lasso cabs exist; ratings vary more than for the classic route.
  • Night: the night tour is the cheapest private cab and arguably the most photogenic.

Booking direct vs a platform

Independent firms such as Black Taxi Tours of London take enquiries by email, let you pay the driver on the day and can build a route from scratch. Booking through GetYourGuide gets you instant confirmation, written reviews from verified customers and, on most listings, free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead. If you know exactly what you want and are flexible on date, ask direct; if you want certainty and reviews, book the listing.

Questions people ask

How much is a black cab tour of London?
On GetYourGuide, private black cab tours list from roughly £250 for a 2–3 hour night tour to around £400 for four hours, and up to about £700 for a full-day themed tour. Independent operator Black Taxi Tours of London quotes from £185 for two hours and £515 for its seven-hour “Best of London”. Prices are per cab, not per person — check the listing for the group size it covers.
How many people fit in a London black cab?
Most London taxis seat five or six passengers. Black Taxi Tours of London takes 1–6 passengers per cab; some platform listings cap at five. For larger groups you’ll need two cabs — the calculator below accounts for that.
Do black cab tours pick up from hotels?
Most private cab tours include pick-up and drop-off at a central London hotel. Several also collect from stations, cruise terminals or Heathrow for layover tours — check the listing for the pick-up area.
Are black cab tours wheelchair accessible?
London’s licensed taxis are designed to carry a wheelchair, and Black Taxi Tours of London states its cabs are fully wheelchair accessible. If you need the ramp, say so when you book so the right vehicle is sent.
Is a black cab tour worth it compared with a hop-on hop-off bus?
For two people the bus is far cheaper. For a family of four to six, a three-hour cab tour costs roughly the same per head as bus tickets plus a guided walk — with no queues, no fixed route and a guide who answers your kids’ questions.
Can we get out of the cab?
Yes — photo stops are the point. Most drivers will park and walk you through a short stretch, such as Westminster or Leadenhall Market, where the cab can’t go.

Sources

  1. Black Taxi Tours of London — tours, prices, accessibility (checked 21 Oct 2026)
  2. GetYourGuide — black cab tours in London (partner feed)

Written and checked by the Private Tours London desk

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