London · Thames · beside the Tower of London
Tower Bridge: tickets and opening times
Cross the high-level walkways, step onto the glass floor and see the Victorian engines that once lifted the bridge.
Today
Opening hours for every month are on the Opening hours page.
Checked against the official website on 31 October 2026 · Official source
In short
- The Tower Bridge entry ticket covers the North and South Towers, the high-level walkways, the Victorian engine rooms and an audio guide in several languages.
- Tower Bridge is open every day from 9:30 to 18:00, with last entry at 17:00. It is closed on 24, 25 and 26 December, and on 1 January it opens at 10:00.
- The walkways are 33.5 metres above the road. In the glass floor you look straight down at the traffic.
- You queue outside when you arrive, so bring a coat in winter.
The high-level walkways
Two walkways join the North and South Towers, 70 metres long and 33.5 metres above the road. From up there you look east and west along the Thames, to the Tower of London, St Paul's, the Shard, Canary Wharf, Tate Modern and HMS Belfast.
They closed to the public in 1910 and reopened in 1982.
The glass floor
The glass floor was installed in 2014 and measures 11.5 by 1.8 metres. Each panel can carry an elephant, or two black taxis. There is ordinary floor on both sides if you would rather not look down.
The Victorian engine rooms
The bridge was opened on 30 June 1894 by the Prince of Wales. Steam engines and coal-fired boilers lifted the bridge for more than 80 years, until 1976, and you can still see them. The engines raised the bridge in 60 seconds.
More than 20 tonnes of coal were burned each week, and more than 80 people worked to keep the system going.
The bridge opens
The bridge still lifts about 500 times a year to let ships through, and extra lifts can be added at short notice. If you are lucky, you will see it open.