Our verdict
Best private option
Tower of London and Tower Bridge Private Tour
A Blue Badge guide for four hours at the Tower and Tower Bridge — the only fully private Tower tour in our feed. A 5.0★ average, but from just six reviews.
5.0★ · 6from £327 GetYourGuide →
Best overall
London: Tower of London Opening Ceremony & Tower Bridge Tour
In before the crowds for the opening ceremony, three-plus hours with a guide, then the Tower Bridge Experience. 4.8★ from 946 reviews — the most reliable way to do the Tower well.
4.8★ · 946from £149 GetYourGuide →
Best value
London: Westminster Abbey Skip-the-Line Entry & Guided Tour
Fast-track entry and a licensed guide at Westminster Abbey, bookable as a group or private tour, from about £75. 4.9★ from 543 reviews.
4.9★ · 543from £75 GetYourGuide →
Skip it if
You only need the Tower highlights
The Yeoman Warder tours are included in the £38 Tower ticket. For a couple with a few hours, that plus the Crown Jewels is most of the value of a guide.
How a Tower of London private tour works
A private tour of the Tower of London means a Blue Badge guide for your group — usually for a half day — who meets you outside, walks you through the White Tower, the Crown Jewels, the walls and the execution site, and answers every question in between. The one fully private Tower listing in our feed runs four hours, adds Tower Bridge, and starts from about £327. Booked direct, a Guild guide costs from £229 for up to four hours under the 2026–27 rates.
Two things catch people out. First, admission is extra on most private bookings — £38 per adult and £19 per child aged 5–15 on a standard ticket. Second, the Tower already includes guiding: Yeoman Warder tours are included in admission. A private guide is worth it for depth, pace and a route around the crowds, not because the Tower is hard to understand alone.
The shared alternatives are strong. The early-entry tour that starts with the opening ceremony and ends with the Tower Bridge Experience is rated 4.8★ by nearly a thousand people; the after-hours tour with a Yeoman Warder that ends at the Ceremony of the Keys holds 4.9★.
A Westminster Abbey private tour: the rules
Westminster Abbey is stricter than most London sites:
- Only authorised Blue Badge guides may guide inside. Any other “private guide” will be explaining from the pavement.
- Up to 20 visitors per guide. Bigger groups aren’t accommodated.
- Tickets in advance. The guide buys group tickets through the Abbey’s groups portal — from 1 October 2026, £30 per adult, £26 for over-65s and students, £12 for children aged 6–17.
- Monday to Saturday only. On Sundays the Abbey is open for worship, not sightseeing.
If you’re not booking a private guide, the Abbey’s own options are good value: the £32 adult ticket includes a multimedia guide, and a verger-led tour of about 90 minutes (maximum 20 people, English only) costs £10 extra — but can only be booked when you arrive.
Royal London tours compared
| Tour | Private? | Length | Price | Rating | Entry included? | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tower & Tower Bridge, Blue Badge guide | Yes | 4 h | ~£327 | 5.0★ (6) | Check listing | Groups, history lovers |
| Tower opening ceremony & Tower Bridge | No | 3.5 h | ~£149 | 4.8★ (946) | Yes — early entry | Beating the crowds |
| Tower after hours with Yeoman Warder & Keys | No | 1.5 h | ~£159 | 4.9★ (79) | Yes | Once-in-a-lifetime evening |
| VIP Beefeaters meet & greet + Tower tour | No | 1.5–2 h | ~£50 | 4.7★ (949) | Yes — timed entry | Budget Tower with a guide |
| Westminster Abbey skip-the-line & guided | Private or group | 2–5.5 h | ~£75 | 4.9★ (543) | Yes — fast track | The Abbey done properly |
| Abbey with a royal heritage guide | No | 2 h | ~£70 | 4.7★ (814) | Check listing | Coronation history |
| Houses of Parliament & Westminster Abbey | No | 3¾ h | ~£119 | 4.5★ (388) | Yes | Both buildings in one go |
Prices are “from” prices in our partner feed today.
| Platform | From | Rating | Check price & dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| GetYourGuideLondon: Westminster Abbey Skip-the-Line Entry & Guided Tour | £75 Lowest today | 4.9★ 543 | GetYourGuide → |
| HeadoutWestminster Abbey Guided Tour with Skip-the-Line Entry | £79 | 4.8★ 227 | Headout → |
Private and VIP royal tours, checked today
VIP Beefeaters Meet & Greet with Tower of London Guided Tour
from £50
See on GetYourGuide
London: Tower of London Opening Ceremony & Tower Bridge Tour
from £149
See on GetYourGuide
Tower of London Guided Tour with Skip-the-Line Access
from £57per person
See on Headout
London: Westminster Abbey Tour with a Royal Heritage Guide
from £70
See on GetYourGuide
London: Westminster Abbey Skip-the-Line Entry & Guided Tour
from £75
See on GetYourGuide
London: Houses of Parliament & Westminster Abbey Guided Tour
from £119
See on GetYourGuide
Tower of London After Hours with Beefeater & Keys Ceremony
from £159
See on GetYourGuide
Tower of London: Guided Tour with a Beefeater
from £69
See on TiqetsPrices and ratings checked 21 Oct 2026; they change daily.
Private guide or shared tour?
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.
The shared figure is a guided Tower tour with timed entry, rated 4.7★ by 949 people. The private rates don’t include admission, so add £38 per adult to the private side before you compare. On those terms private never quite wins on price — for ten people a half-day Blue Badge guide plus tickets is about £60 each against roughly £50 shared. What the extra £10 buys is a guide who works only for you, at your pace.
A royal day that works
- Morning — the Tower. Arrive for opening, see the Crown Jewels before the queues build, join a Yeoman Warder tour or meet your guide. Allow three hours.
- Midday — the river. Walk across Tower Bridge or take the boat west; see our Thames cruises page for options.
- Afternoon — Westminster. The Abbey’s general admission closes mid-afternoon on most weekdays, so don’t leave it too late. Parliament Square, Whitehall and Horse Guards are a short walk.
- Buckingham Palace. Outside the palace is free; tours and the Changing of the Guard are covered on our Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace tours page.
For a guide across the whole day, a full-day Blue Badge booking from £374 is the cleanest option — more on our Blue Badge guides page, and the shared version on history and royal walks.
Questions people ask
Can you do a private tour of the Tower of London?
Who can guide inside Westminster Abbey?
Is the Yeoman Warder tour enough, or do we need a guide?
Can we do the Tower and Westminster Abbey in one day?
Is Westminster Abbey open on Sundays?
How do we see the Ceremony of the Keys?
Sources
- Historic Royal Palaces — Tower of London tickets and Yeoman Warder tours (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Historic Royal Palaces — Ceremony of the Keys tickets (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Westminster Abbey — group visits with a Blue Badge guide (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Westminster Abbey — prices and entry times (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Westminster Abbey — verger-guided tours (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Visit London — Westminster Abbey visitor guide (Sunday opening) (checked 21 Oct 2026)
- Guild of Registered Tourist Guides — guide fees 2026–27 (checked 21 Oct 2026)
Written and checked by the Private Tours London desk