Please sign in to post.

Climbing St Paul's

Like most I visited St Paul's and it's quite a space, worth seeing. Rick is pretty high (pun intended) on going up into and onto the dome, I was standing near the entrance to it reading all the disclaimers (once you start you can't turn back, no claustrophobics, heart conditions, weak legs knees hips etc.). The woman guarding the stairway said So are you going to do it? I said I'm still thinking about it, she said Good! With great emphasis.

I found the upstairs and the downstairs more than enough, and you get a free audioguide. Nice gift shop on the way out and a small coffee cart with pastries.

Also be sure to look on the fencing outside the church for daily schedules, they'll tell you when there is evensong and when they might be closed for a special event. There was such a thing on one of my days in town, apparently some royals were involved in the ceremony based on the size of the cars in the entourage and the number of motorcycle cops. People were standing around outside asking each other if they knew who was there, no one did.

Posted by
7915 posts

The stairs do get steeper and narrower the higher you go. There are handrails for the uppermost stretch.

Posted by
370 posts

The last part of the climb to the top of the dome is a little daunting for those who may be afraid of heights or do not deal well with tight spaces. My 12 year old loved it, but I was less of a fan of that part of the climb. The view at the top is excellent.

Posted by
2687 posts

I was there in August with someone who'd just had a chemo treatment, and I tend to get winded easily. We read all the disclaimers and staggering numbers of stairs to each level and decided we wanted to venture up the 259 steps to the first level, the Whispering Gallery. There are a couple of places to pull to the side and rest, and a couple of times we just stopped and rested anyway; it was not crowded, and we did not feel claustrophobic, and the view down to the cathedral floor was worth it--but no photos allowed. We were pleased with ourselves but ventured no further up.

Posted by
866 posts

Man. I seriously contemplated going and making that climb, this last trip. I felt like I was ready and I could do it. I was going up and down stairs in tube stations. But! I've become so self conscious about being in the way of or holding up other people that I talked myself out of it, and I've been kicking myself since.

Posted by
505 posts

Christa, I begged off at that point, too, but my two adult kids went to the top. The pictures they got from there are really amazing. At first I was kind of regretting not going with them, but it has become a special brother/ sister memory they have together without me or their dad involved, so I am glad I stayed down.

St. Paul’s is one of my most favorite places. So special.

Posted by
4847 posts

Might be worth mentioning that there are two well known churches in London called St Paul's, so make sure you're going to the one you were planning to go to. The one near Covent Garden is supposed to be quite nice and is considered an actor's church since it's close to the theater district.