Tower of London
#6sur 10 lieux à visiter à LondonLondon, England, United Kingdom
Aussi appelé Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London
L'essentiel
Horaires d'ouverture : 09:00–17:30 and 10:00–17:30, last entry 17:00. Entrée : £37. Comptez 3 hrs. Meilleure période : 09:00.
Mis à jour le · Rédigé par Traveliac, avec assistance IA · 5 min de lecture
- Horaires d'ouverture
- 09:00–17:30
- Tuesday-Saturday 09:00-17:30 (last entry 17:00); Sunday-Monday 10:00-17:30 (last entry 17:00)
- Prix d'entrée
- £37
- Billet à partir de
- Durée nécessaire
- 3 hrs
- Meilleur moment de la journée
- 09:00
- Meilleurs mois
- May – Jul, Sep
- Adresse
- Tower of London, London EC3N 4AB
À propos de Tower of London
The Tower of London has stood on the north bank of the Thames since 1078, when William the Conqueror began the White Tower as both a royal residence and a statement of Norman dominance over a recently conquered Anglo-Saxon population. Built from Caen stone shipped from Normandy, with Kentish ragstone for the rougher lower courses, the White Tower's 90-foot walls were, at completion, the tallest structure in London. Successive medieval kings expanded the fortress outward in concentric rings — Richard the Lionheart added the first curtain wall in the 1190s, and Edward I completed the outer wall and moat by 1285, creating the 12-tower footprint that survives largely intact today. The Crown Jewels, housed in the Jewel House since 1994, include the Sovereign's Sceptre set with the 530-carat Cullinan I diamond and St Edward's Crown, used at every coronation since Charles II's in 1661, the previous set having been melted down under Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth. A moving walkway carries visitors past the display cases during peak hours to manage crowd flow, a measure introduced because static viewing caused queue backups exceeding two hours.
Meilleur moment de la journée : 09:00. At opening on a weekday, ahead of coach-tour arrivals, particularly to reach the Crown Jewels before the moving-walkway queue backs up past an hour.
Horaires de Tower of London
- Horaires d'ouverture
- 09:00–17:30
Mon–Sun 09:00–17:30 and 10:00–17:30 - Tuesday-Saturday 09:00-17:30 (last entry 17:00); Sunday-Monday 10:00-17:30 (last entry 17:00)
- Fermé le
- 24-26 December, 1 January
Bon à savoir : Winter closing time shifts earlier to 16:30 in some months; confirm exact seasonal hours at hrp.org.uk before visiting.
Horaires d'ouverture établis à partir de hrp.org.uk et de sources publiques, mis à jour le . Ils peuvent changer sans préavis — vérifiez avant de partir. Comment nous rédigeons ces guides
Prix d'entrée de Tower of London
| Billet | Prix |
|---|---|
| Billet standard | £37 |
| Tarif réduit (étudiant / senior) | £29.50 |
| Enfants | £18.50 |
Adult admission booked online starts from £37 as of 2026, seniors (65+) £29.5, children (5-15) £18.5, under-5s free. Prices are lower online than at the gate. Entry includes the Crown Jewels, White Tower, and the fortress grounds. As of 2026, verify current pricing at the official site before booking, as Historic Royal Palaces reviews rates periodically.
Tarifs établis à partir de hrp.org.uk et de sources publiques, mis à jour le . Ils peuvent changer sans préavis — vérifiez avant de partir. Comment nous rédigeons ces guides
Meilleure période pour visiter Tower of London
- Quiet
- Moderate
- Very busy
09:00 – 10:30
Morning OpeningBest time to go
First entry window; Crown Jewels moving walkway runs with minimal wait and Yeoman Warder tours are least rushed.
Quiet10:30 – 14:00
Tour Group Peak
Coach tours from central London hotels converge; Jewel House queue can exceed 45 minutes and White Tower staircases congest.
Very busy14:00 – 16:00
Afternoon
Crowd eases from midday peak; outer grounds and Medieval Palace remain comfortably paced.
Moderate16:00 – 17:30
Late Afternoon
Final entry window before close; light on the White Tower's east face is favourable for photography with thinner crowds.
Quiet
Histoire de Tower of London
William the Conqueror ordered construction of the White Tower shortly after his 1066 conquest, both to defend the eastern approach to the City and to overawe its inhabitants; the keep was largely complete by 1100 under William Rufus. Successive monarchs added defensive rings over two centuries, with Henry III and his son Edward I responsible for the concentric double-wall fortification and moat that gives the Tower its present footprint, at the time among the most advanced military architecture in Europe.
The Tower's function as a state prison began early and lasted centuries, holding figures from Anne Boleyn, executed on Tower Green in 1536, to Rudolf Hess, the last prisoner held there, briefly in 1941. Its reputation for brutality is, according to Historic Royal Palaces' own research, partly exaggerated by later popular history — only seven people were executed within the Tower walls itself, most state executions of the more famous prisoners taking place publicly on Tower Hill outside.
The Tower has also served as a royal mint, an armoury, and a menagerie housing exotic animals gifted to English monarchs, including lions and, in 1835, a polar bear kept on a chain to fish in the Thames. The ravens, kept at the Tower since at least the 17th century, are tended today by a dedicated Yeoman Warder role called the Ravenmaster, following a legend that the kingdom will fall if the ravens ever leave.
Règles et étiquette à Tower of London
Photography without flash is permitted throughout the grounds and most interior spaces, but strictly prohibited inside the Jewel House where the Crown Jewels are displayed, enforced by both signage and stationed guards. Large luggage is not permitted through security screening at the main entrance and there is no on-site storage, so visitors arriving with bags beyond daypack size should plan alternative storage first.
The Yeoman Warders (Beefeaters), full-time Tower residents who conduct free guided tours included in admission, depart roughly every 30 minutes and are worth prioritising early, since later tours run shorter. The Ceremony of the Keys, the nightly locking-up ritual performed for over 700 years, is free but requires a separate advance application, often booked out months ahead.
Ravens on the grounds are not to be fed or approached closely; historic feather-trimming has largely given way to training the birds to stay voluntarily.
Conseils pour visiter Tower of London
- 1
Tower of London tickets booked online in advance are consistently cheaper than gate prices and include a specific entry time slot, which is worth choosing as early as possible in the day to beat both crowds and the Crown Jewels moving-walkway queue.
- 2
The White Tower's arms and armour collection, including Henry VIII's personal suits of armour, sits on the upper floors and is frequently bypassed by visitors who head straight for the Jewel House — it rewards a dedicated 30-40 minutes and is rarely as crowded.
- 3
Combine the visit with Tower Bridge, a five-minute walk east, and St Katharine Docks, a converted marina just beyond, for lunch away from the tourist-menu restaurants clustered outside the Tower's west gate, which tend toward inflated prices. Pickpocket activity concentrates in the queue area and on the crowded Tower Hill Underground concourse rather than inside the fortress itself.
Comment se rendre à Tower of London
Tower of London, London EC3N 4ABItinéraire sur Google Maps
Depuis Tower Hill Underground Station
0.2 km · 3 min walk
£2.80 single Tube fare with Oyster/contactless (Zone 1)
Depuis Fenchurch Street Station
0.6 km · 8 min walk
Free on foot
Depuis Heathrow Airport (LHR)
32 km · 60-70 min
£13.90 off-peak Elizabeth line fare plus £2.80 Tube fare
Aéroport le plus proche
Depuis London City Airport (LCY)
9 km, approximately 25 minutes via DLR.
Gare la plus proche
Depuis Tower Hill Underground station (Circle, District lines)
200 metres, 3 minutes on foot.
FAQ — Tower of London
How much does it cost to visit the Tower of London?
Adult admission booked online starts from £37 as of 2026. Seniors pay £29.50, children aged 5-15 pay £18.50, and under-5s enter free. Gate prices are higher, so booking online in advance is advised.
Can visitors photograph the Crown Jewels?
No. Photography and filming are strictly prohibited inside the Jewel House where the Crown Jewels are displayed. Photography elsewhere on the grounds, including the White Tower exterior, is permitted without flash.
How many ravens live at the Tower of London?
A minimum of six ravens is kept at all times, per Tower tradition, tended by a dedicated Yeoman Warder called the Ravenmaster. Legend holds that the kingdom will fall if the ravens ever leave, though this is folklore rather than documented history.
Is the Ceremony of the Keys free to attend?
Yes, but it requires a separate advance application through the official Historic Royal Palaces website, as it is not included in standard daytime admission and demand regularly exceeds availability by several months.
Rédigé avec l'assistance de l'IA à partir de sources officielles et de registres publics, et publié seulement après les vérifications décrites dans Comment nous rédigeons ces guides. Personne chez Traveliac ne s'est rendu sur place. Mis à jour le . Comment nous classons et vérifions les lieux
