How many times have you been to London? How many times have you explored London on the river?
I can count numerous times I’ve been to the Capital and spent hours walking and walking, often looking up. To get the best sights but often the best sights can be seen away from the street. On the roof, on the Thames.
We arrived in London during the summer heatwaves and immediately knew we needed to avoid the busy shops and congested places.
Then we headed to the riverside to explore the boats along the Thames as the sun was shining brightly off the water, a suntrap. We knew that we would grab a boat and have a seat somewhere but we were looking for what the best offers were.
For our convenience we chose the City Cruise 24 hour river pass.
24 Hour River Pass
The River cruise boat offers both an open air upstairs deck and a covered below deck seating area. On the first floor, the covered seating area offers more comfort with tables to sit at and cushioned seating. However upstairs, if you get a sunny day like we did, you get the breeze in your hair, the fresh air and the undisturbed views.
On board I was very pleasantly surprised by the facilities and how clean and up to date they were. The toilets were very big for the size of the boat and super clean. They have disabled access and facilities and an onboard shop with drinks and snacks.
If you don’t want to browse your shop you can order via the app and get table service or service upstairs too!
The 24 hour pass is very smooth and gives you the freedom on choosing when and where you want to get on or off.
Where ever you choose to board you can go between Westminster Pier, London Eye Pier, Tower Pier and Greenwich Pier. Between each stop is 30 minutes and guided commentary.
The reasons to book with City Cruises
What we didn’t expect when we boarded was to have the added atmosphere all because of the staff. We we boarded the captain asked us if we wanted him to chat to us about the history and places of interest he knew. Our boat decided a big YES! The captain was hilarious! He had us all waving and people on bridges for luck and although we were all on our separate journey’s, we were all together. He absolutely made the trip the best and funniest!
Another reason to book is the price!
For an adult ticket is is only £20.50. That is an unlimited ticket to tour the Thames of London from Westminster to Greenwich. All of the docking stops have so much to explore and super easy to navigate and plan around. On a family tickets you can get up to 3 kids tickets free!
City Cruises have many other options to choose from and I am looking forward to trying another experience with them when I am back in London. They offer experiences such as afternoon tea, lunch and dinner options.
Don;t worry if you are not in London, City Cruises by Hornblower offer experiences across an amazing 111 countries worldwide. Be sure to check if your next trip destinations has a boat tour you can explore.
*Gifted experience
Here: For ideas of places to stay in London on a budget
