Tower of London with Access to Crown Jewels

I think the Tower of London was one of the most significant travel experience I've ever had, primarily because of the extreme period of time over which this fortification (much more than just a "tower") was used. So I'd definitely recommend it to anyone interested in British history.

Personally, the crown jewels were a big yawn for me, but most people look at things very differently. There's quite a long queue to get in nearly every day.

How young are the children?

They are 9 and 7 years old and obsessed with jewels.

The Tower Bridge, The Tower of London and the Crown Jewels for jewel obsessed children would all be interesting for them. The guards outside the Crown Jewels are fun to watch as well. It's all kid appropriate, and just explore at their pace. I don't remember being in the Crown Jewels room very long at all, but long enough to marvel at them.

I have no clue how to answer what time or how long, as it's been too many years and our kids were teens but I just remember these as fun/interesting places for youngish children to absorb.

Any thoughts on how long we need to be at each or times of day to avoid! TY!

The Tower of London was amazing!! Go when they open and head straight to see the Crown Jewels. The lines will be short and you can take a couple trips on the people mover to view them. Then take one of the Beefeater tours. There were quite a number of school age kids on the tour. The Beefeater interacted a lot with the kids and was very funny. After the tour, I had an ice cream on a bench and watched an already long line to see the Crown Jewels continue to grow.

What Stacie said - arrive at the Tower early and go straight in to see the jewels. The children will be blown away. Go around twice so that you don’t miss anything. The ravens are cool to watch as well

There's quite a long queue to get in nearly every day.

Depends when you go. I was there 2 weeks ago and we just walked right in to the Crown Jewels. There were maybe 20 other people in there.

It’s a castle type building and the children will love it. Not only will they love the guards, they will enjoy the Yeomen Warders (Beefeaters) and the ravens. My guess you’ll spend 2-3 hours there if it’s your first visit to the Tower.

Tower bridge is right next to the Tower of London (ToL). We’ve never toured the bridge (climbing the stairs to the top), just walked across it. You may find that’s all the children want to do after visiting the ToL. You can view the bridge from the ToL.

The last couple times I was there it was December and there were no lines to get in or see the jewels.

I've visited London 5 times and each trip includes the Tower, sometimes it's the first place I go after I drop my luggage at the hotel. My main reason is to spend time observing the ravens but of all the historic places in London I find the Tower to be the most fascinating--set amongst modern buildings and with planes flying over you can't help but be struck by the glorious incongruity of it. Small children seem to love it, nice mix of outdoor and indoor things to do and you'll want to take a Yeoman Warder free tour. The Crown Jewels get crowded so get there early if time matters, but once inside it moves along quickly. My first visit I took the tour, visited the jewels, had lunch and wandered through all of the buildings and fell in love with the ravens so it was a long visit, perhaps 4-5 hours. Other visits have been around 3 hours. Walking over the Tower Bridge would be the perfect accompaniment.

Thanks! Do you have to buy extra tickets to see the crown jewels or does a ticket to the london tower give you automatic access? Thank you!!

The Crown Jewels are included in the ticket price. The Historic Royal Palaces website has lots of useful info.
https://www.hrp.org.uk/#gs.73hxji

You might add a trip to the Silver Vaults for the children who are mad about jewelry.

https://silvervaultslondon.com/#:~:text=The%20Silver%20Vaults%20London%20is,now%20open%20to%20all%20visitors.

You have received some great advice, especially about going to see the Crown Jewels first. If your family is up to it, I recommend that you arrive early to avoid the crowds (both tourists and school groups). If your children are interested in armor, there is not only a unique collection, but a hands-on family adventure that lets you learn how to fire cannon, shoot a bow, and even design your own musket. It is a fun tour through over a 1000 years of history.

be well fed and rested before you arrive.

There is a LOT to see and do. Definitely go on a Yeoman Warder (Beefeater) tour. They love questions, especially from the kiddoes. While they are tour guides with a group, they are the real deal. They have to have been in the military for at least 22 years, have reached the rank of Sergeant Major, with a clean history to even be considered to join the Yeoman Warder Body. The guards you see are active military. The jewels are real. In the White Tower the armour is real and historic. Real things happened there.

I have been a member there for many years, including during the pandemic shutdowns, and visit several times a year. I have never seen it all yet.

The kiddoes and you will run out of energy before you run out of Tower.

Take the advice to get there early and go to the Crown Jewels first, maybe go through twice. You won't get that chance after the first hour or so. Get on the website and study up before you arrive to know what to expect. Don't expect anybody to take you around and say, "Go and look at that", it isn't that sort of place. The folks who have the best time have a mental plan of what they want to visit and see. A walk around the fortifications can be very productive. See if you can find the zoo.

for recent info - up thread is somebody who went 2 weeks ago and walked into the Crown Jewels. I was there last Sunday and at 2 pm it was very busy. At 4pm I went to the cafe and it was out of food.

But a good piece of advice is if the kids get hungry there are a couple of ice cream wagons around, and the cafe has good, reasonably priced, nutritious food. And a place to sit down.

SandyO, do you know the name of that tour? My kids would love that! Thanks!

We were there with our 12 year old grandson and our 2 adult children about 10 days ago on a Thursday. We opted for tge 9 AM first slot.
Went to crown jewels staight away and there were no lines for the crown jewels. We were able to take the conveyor multiple times .

Then we took the first Beefeater Tour at 10. We all enjoyed the jewels and the Beefeater tour and the rest of the Tower. The tour was indeed funny and entertaining even with the emphasis on the torture etc.

We are glad we arrived early even though we had to take a packed tube ride from Earl's Court shortly after 8. That itself was an experience worth having once.

We were not sure how much the 12 year old or for that matter our adult children enjoy the Tower. It exceeded everyone's expectations and we spent more time than anticipated.

Enjoy!

@mac

The name of the tour is called the Armoury in Action Tour. Here is the link: https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/whats-on/armoury-in-action/#gs.76l44e.

The Tower of London might be my favourite tourist attraction in the world. I love history and have spent hours exploring the Tower.

I’ve only seen the Crown Jewels once, nice to see but not worth a long wait to queue for a repeat visit. I will see them again next time I’m in the U.K. as I want to see what’s changed since the coronation of King Charles

However, it’s a really expensive ticket for kids who may get bored easily. Perhaps find a YouTube video on the Tower to show them and judge their interest.