Big Ben

Big Ben and Westminster

The clock tower at the north end of the Houses of Parliament has been officially called the Elizabeth Tower since 2012; Big Ben is the name of the 13.7-tonne bell inside it, which has been striking the hours since 1859. Everyone calls the whole thing Big Ben anyway. The tower underwent a comprehensive restoration between 2017 and 2022 during which the famous chimes were largely silenced; it is back to full operation and audible across Westminster on a quiet morning.

The building it sits on is more interesting than the tower. The Palace of Westminster occupies the site of a royal residence that burned to the ground in 1834 (with considerable help from the unusual decision to burn 10 tally sticks that stored in the House of Lords, which produced an uncontrolled blaze). The current building, designed by Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin in a Gothic Revival style, was largely completed by the 1850s. Pugin designed the interior decorative detail with an obsessive precision that consumed his mental health; he was admitted to Bethlem Royal Hospital in February 1852 and died in September of the same year at 40.

Visiting the Buildings

International visitors cannot go inside the Elizabeth Tower; tours are available to UK residents only through their local MP. You can stand at the foot of it and look up. The view from across Westminster Bridge, from the South Bank side, is the photograph everyone takes; early morning before 8am eliminates most of the other people taking the same photograph.

The Palace of Westminster offers genuine public access. When Parliament is sitting, visitors can watch debates from the public galleries in both the House of Commons and House of Lords. Check the parliamentary calendar at parliament.uk; this is free but advance booking is recommended. During summer recess (typically late July to early September), paid tours of the full palace run for around GBP 30. These are worth doing if you have any interest in British political history; the committee rooms, lobbying rooms, and division lobbies are the actual mechanics of British democracy made tangible.

Westminster Abbey

About 200 metres southwest: where Britain has crowned its monarchs since 1066 and buried many of its notable figures. Poets’ Corner in the south transept holds graves and memorials of Chaucer, Dickens, Hardy, and Kipling. Charles Darwin is buried here, near Isaac Newton. Entry is GBP 27 for adults; arrive when it opens at 9:30am on a weekday to beat school groups. The building rewards two hours of proper attention.

Tate Britain

About 10 minutes walk along Millbank from Westminster, Tate Britain is the national collection of British art from 1500 to the present. Free entry. The JMW Turner collection is the best reason to visit: the late Turner oils from the 1840s (Snowstorm: Steam-Boat off a Harbour’s Mouth, The Fighting Temeraire) are among the greatest paintings in Britain and less crowded here than equivalent works at the National Gallery. You will have the room largely to yourself on a weekday morning.

Eating

Borough Market, about 2 kilometres east along the South Bank, is the honest answer for food near Westminster. It operates Thursday to Saturday as a full market, Monday to Wednesday with a smaller selection. GBP 8-12 for a main-course street food serving; quality is consistently good.

The Cinnamon Club in the Old Westminster Library on Great Smith Street serves contemporary Indian food in a converted Victorian reading room. Mains GBP 25-35. The best restaurant in the immediate Westminster area and more interesting than the obvious hotel dining room options.

The Westminster Arms on Storey’s Gate is a genuine parliamentary pub rather than a tourist operation, frequented by Parliamentary staff. Reliable food and the correct atmosphere for the location.

Staying

The Corinthia London on Whitehall Place is the prestige option, rooms from GBP 400-700. For a more manageable rate, St Ermin’s Hotel on Caxton Street is well-positioned and runs GBP 200-300. Budget visitors should look toward Pimlico or Vauxhall, both on the Victoria line, where guesthouses start around GBP 100 per night.

Getting There

Westminster tube station (Circle, District, Jubilee lines) deposits you essentially at the foot of the tower. Waterloo is a 10-minute walk across the bridge with National Rail connections from the south. The area around Parliament Square was pedestrianised on the north and west sides in 2018 and is considerably more pleasant on foot than it used to be.