Thoughts on London City Pass

The bigger question is whether you'll get value for money, bearing in mind some sites (ie big museums) are free. These passes tend to force you into going to places you night not otherwise have been just to get value for money from the pass.

On your specific question, both Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London (not London Tower, incidentally) tend to book out in the mornings. So if you don't prebook a ticket on their web site, you may not get the times slot you want, but it's very unlikely you won't be able to visit that day. But you may end up visiting later in the afternoon.

What other sites are you planning to visit?

I've never purchased the London City Pass so I don't know how difficult it is to use.

However, a quick Google search of reviews mentions limited entry times to Westminster Abbey for pass holders.

And the Hop on Hop off bus is a huge time eater. You will be spending much of your time waiting for the bus and sitting in traffic.

Before purchasing, check open and closing times of the attractions you want to visit and get a realistic sense show long to plan at each site. Be sure to factor in time to get from place to place and meals. Then you'll better understand if the pass is good for your trip.

From what I read the London Pass very rarely makes financial sense. Although I have read of some that have used it successfully, they are very much in a minority.

Most of the museums and galleries in London are free to enter their permanent collections (although you are likely to need to pay for special exhibitions). HoHo buses are not recommended in London for a variety of reasons. It is very easy to organise your transport without anything the London Pass might provide.

What you probably need to do is list all the key sites you plan to see on your trip, making sure that you list no more than two key sites a day (or less if you are planning places like Windsor, Hampton Court or Greenwich for example). Then compare that list with entrance fees for places that have them against the cost of the Pass.

In April 2024, we had 10-day London Passes, from the Go City company. The more days you get, the cheaper the Pass is, per day. But to get maximum value, you have to choose sights carefully, and possibly go to several places in a day, not lingering too long. With 10 days at our disposal, we had time for fewer places per day, and more time at a sight. Also, if you’re not already on their e-mail list, sign up, and you’ll get frequent offers for discounts on the Pass, to save a bit more.

We got more than our money’s worth with the 10-day Pass, and ran out of time (and energy) before seeing everything of interest covered on the Pass. A Pass for fewer days might not provide the same value. In most cases, we simply walked up to the entrance desk (or window), and showed the Pass QR codes on a smartphone. Reservations were not needed (but I’ll describe our Westminster Abbey experience in a moment), although in August your experience might be different.

The View from The Shard, which we probably wouldn’t have done if it wasn’t already covered on the Pass, did require a reservation. They actually have walk-up windows that sell tickets, with a long rope maze, but with the reservation required with the Pass, we skipped all that. We showed up a few minutes early, and were admitted immediately.

For The Tower of London, we walked straight through the long maze railings, because nobody was in line! No reservation, no wait. But it appears the Pass could let you skip the line, if there was one. Again, you might have a different experience. As one of the more expensive sights, though, it was good that it was covered by the Pass.

St. Paul’s Cathedral had a dedicated line just for London Pass holders. We got in very quickly, without a reservation required or needed.

Westminster Abbey, another high-priced place, sent us to the back of the regular admission line. It took about 45 minutes to get to the payment window, where we flashed the Pass and got in. It was very crowded that morning. There was a separate door (with no line) for people who had booked separate, timed admission, but that wasn’t available through the London Pass. Those people certainly saved time, but I don’t know how much that cost them.

Greenwich was one place where the Pass really delivers value - Thames Clipper boat getting you to/from Greenwich, plus many attractions there that would otherwise require separate admissions. The Cutty Sark exhibit, though, I believe is currently closed for remodeling.

London is full of museums that don’t charge an admission fee, but there are other things that do. We didn’t ride the London Eye, but it’s another attraction that charges a hefty price.

If you are referring to the London Pass, I have used it without difficulty at both Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London. Admission is quick and seamless.

Lots of people freely give their opinions on this subject, but reality is that only you can decide if it is a good value for you or not by pricing out regular admissions of the places you know you will go and then comparing with the price of the London Pass. It has been a good value for me 3 times now.

A couple of hints. Plan on seeing two major sites a day. You may end up with time for a third, but don’t push yourself thinking you must obtain maximum value. Also, the longer your visit, the more likely the London Pass is to provide value to you. I’m not sure it would be cost effective for a 2-3 day visit, but once again price things out and see if it works in your situation.

One plus is that I have visited places I would otherwise of skipped. I went on the London Eye last trip, something I would never pay the money for as a stand alone ticket.

Here’s a similar question from another poster, from a couple of months ago. I responded to it as well.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/england/london-pass-79be8178-7e89-401e-b38e-03de935102d1

The Abbey website-

You can visit the Abbey by using a Go City London pass. There is no
need to pre-book. Access is granted subject to capacity and at busy
times you may be asked to wait for the next available time slot.
Before entering the Abbey, you will pass through security/bag check.
On busy days, it might be necessary to continue queuing after
security. Please check our entry times before arrival. Entry is via
the North Green. Admission to the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Galleries is
not included with your Go City London pass, but you will be able to
purchase tickets for the Galleries on arrival at the Abbey.

Thanks to all for the input. I have done the math and I have also done extensive Google searching, so I am already informed as far as that goes. I especially appreciate the comments from those who have actually used the pass as that is what I was looking for! I think we will likely pass on it for our this trip as I'd prefer to have specifically time reservations for the sites that I am most interested in.