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    City Cruises

    3.6 (135 reviews)
    Open 8:00 am - 7:00 pm

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    Recommended Reviews - City Cruises

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    Top deck row 1
    Thomas B.

    Even if you can't afford one of the big fancy ones with the dinner, it's really really important to see London from one of the river boats. Find one that has plenty of open airspace and do it in the daytime so you can enjoy the weather if it works that way. Otherwise you'll be down below with windows. I can't explain all the history of London of the things that we saw along the river, but you have to remember that historically everything happened along the Thames river. It was so easy to fill up my camera with beautiful images with the London eye at the London Bridge, the tower of London, Big Bend, Parliament, oh my God. What a delight. And the cruisers so helpful in accommodating on these river cruises, such great uplifting personalities to make the trip totally

    Waiting to board the cruise at boarding point 4
    Amber M.

    I took a tour down the Thames River and it was awesome. I purchased the ticket online from City Cruises and just showed up for the river cruise. I did have a little trouble finding boarding dock A. It was hiding. I walked right past it. Once on board the boat everything was fine. The captain also pointed out important landmarks of London. For example the London Eye, Big Ben, the House of Parliament and the Tower Bridge. Definitely worth it!

    London Eye
    Ronald M.

    I highly recommend this cruise along the Thames, and can think of no better way to get acclimated to the city of London for first time visitors like us. Starting at Westminster Bridge, pretty much anything London along the Thames is included; Big Ben and Parliament, the Eye, the Globe theater, National Theatre, the Cleopatra Needle which dates back to 1450 BC, a gift from Egypt, the city's tallest building the Shard, Waterloo Bridge, London Bridge, Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, just to name a few highlights. This is a round trip cruise, with a stopover in Greenwich Towne. Reboard when you're ready to return. And of course there is live narration, which is quite humorous at times, if you get someone like Dylan. And though scripted and using the same dialogue, our return guide, unfortunately not Dylan, was, to put it quite bluntly, lame and boring. But it was about a 90 minute round trip course in this city's long history that we thought was well worth the cost.

    the starter waiting for us...
    Martin T.

    In a roundabout way we found ourselves creating a wonderful evening date. Looking for a river cruise she found the "dinner" cruise and decided that was it. So...C booked us online about 4 or 5 hours prior and that worked ok and off we went. Its raining in London go figure... arriving a tad early to the dock at Westminster, yep right there by the big clock. The "que" grew behind us, glad we were early. They check you in upon boarding and walk you to your table, wow vip table. The wine and cocktails were ordered and we looked around thought H.S. this is great. Dinner was lovely, live music, and a great perspective from the Thames. Quite the date, thanks babe. So open the wallet and take the special someone out for a spectacular evening and a memory for ever. Cheers Foodguy CA, martin

    Leaving Greenwich
    Rachel J.

    We had an amazing experience hopping on and off throughout the day. We opted to sit on the top, and although it was raining off and on, it was worth the view. They do have inside as well, with bathroom access. The guide was interesting and hilarious, narrating the sites along the river. The staff were exceptional, giving my son some colored pencils and coloring pages during the ride, and just overall friendly. I would recommend buying your pass ahead of time, so you don't have to wait in line, and make sure you are in line at least 10 minutes before departure. We didn't do our research, but if I were to do it again, I'd ride all the way from Westminster to Greenwich first, then from Greenwich to the Tower, then the Tower to the Eye, and walk across the bridge back to Westminster. We hopped on and off too many times, but still had fun!

    Christmas day turkey lunch.
    Dorothy G.

    We were greeted with a glass of sparkling wine which was nice. The bread and butter was good, as was the salmon pate appetizer. The main plate was mediocre at best with very dry turkey and bland gravy. The quantity was generous with baked root vegetables, fried potatoes, sausage wrapped in bacon and dry stuffing balls. There was a side of cranberry relish.

    Joanna T.

    A City Cruise was one of the things included on our London pass and it was a great way to see the city on a sunny afternoon. This boat company stops at Westminster, Tower Bridge and Greenwich. You can get on/off wherever and whenever you like with a day pass. We took the boat all the way down to Greenwich (takes an hour or so) - along the way you'll see Canary Wharf, a bunch of repurposed warehouses and perhaps some celebrity homes. We hopped out at Greenwich and spent a few hours exploring - there's the Cutty Sark, a nice market and the Royal Naval College & Observatory, plus the cute town center itself. If you do this make sure you arrive in plenty of time to get the boat back as they do get crowded and definitely know when the last boat leaves. On board, each boat varies in terms of seating (some have an upper deck, etc). All have a bar (yay!) and toilets. Staff were generally very nice too!

    Vivienne C.

    City Cruises is one of the many boating companies operating on the James river which visits various places, from the London Tower all the way to Greenwich. Decided to come here with the London Pass and it was a phenomenal experience. The boat itself is double deckers. The top floor had open viewing so it can get a bit chilly at times because of the wind. The bottom floor, depending on the boat you were on, was fairly new and had an abundant of seating. There is a tour guide who will talk about all the major attractions in English on the ride. The information itself is actually pretty good and entertaining and helps you really understand the life next to the James river. They also introduce a variety of stuff from celebrity houses to house prices to famous landmarks. Amazing transportation with an amazing tour guide equals to an amazing experience. Highly recommend! Also the views don't hurt either.

    Rizma W.

    A great way to see all of the highlights of London at one time, without the crowds. There is (very spirited!) commentary on the different landmarks, and the narrator/guide is absolutely hilarious! While you enjoy your ride, there is a concession stand on board that serves beer, wine, cocktails, sandwiches and assorted snacks. There is both indoor and outdoor seating available. Be sure to wear layers, because they have the heat set on "Hades" inside. Fortunately, the windows have minimal glare, so it's easy to take really good pictures while seated comfortably (and warmly) inside. The boat goes back and forth between Greenwich and London Eye Pier. The entire cruise takes about 2 hours, and passengers are welcome to disembark and reboard at any point along the boat's route.

    Paul P.

    Don't take the City Delta, as the toilet is not working. A subtle fact not shared with the world. I would rate this higher but I find it appalling that the toilet is out of service. At least for the 2 days that I am aware. Otherwise this is a good view of the city and generally good information. Hopefully management fixes the toilet.

    Amazing view of Tower Bridge
    Correy H.

    If you have a few hours and the weather isn't too terribly cold then I highly recommend City Cruises. Besides being able to hop on and hop off the boat, the live tour/commentary was outstanding. Each of the Captains (tour guides) really made the boat ride entertaining and interactive. A nice bonus is the snack bar down below where you can grab a glass of wine or beer. TIP: I recommend getting your ticket online ahead of time (via Viator). The price is cheaper --- BUT you still have to check in with the ticket office.

    LaRena F.

    09/12/17 This was amazing. Loved the history from the employee as we traveled along the Thames river. This boat goes to Greenwich. This boat leaves from London Tower and goes to Greenwich. Cruising London's oldest thoroughfare and passing by some of the most historic landmarks such as London Tower, Tower Bridge, Docklands, Canary Wharf,London Eye, Cleopatra's Needle, Greenwich and so much more. Views and sights are remarkable! Boat is clean and has bathrooms and a nice little snack bar that includes sandwiches and drinks. You can't beat the views from the top deck. Employee's are kind and knowledgeable. It really is a must do!

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    4 years ago

    Very cheesy cheapy cruise. Cheap wine. Cheap food. It's a tourist trap. Very expensive for what you get.

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    City Cruises Reviews in Other Languages

    Review Highlights - City Cruises

    The hop-on/off option was great since we didn't leave the Greenwich Pier and had to go back to Tower Bridge.

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    The English Bus - The English Bus

    The English Bus

    (85 reviews)

    Southwark

    Great reviews on Yelp guided us to The English Bus for our tour of Stonehenge. I liked the idea of…read morea small group tour. We had a great experience! We easily booked on line a couple months in advance of our trip to Stonehenge, Bath and a Secret Place. I had a few questions, which were answered quickly through email. Instructions and itinerary were provided after we bought we tickets. Additional and helpful information was sent a few day prior to our trip. Noelh, our tour guide, was knowledgable, interesting and fun from the moment he picked us up in London. He provided information beyond the tour stops. He was engaging and had a good understanding of the geology of Stonehenge as well as the historical background. He made well time stops for breaks. We spent about two hours at Stonehenge, two hours at Bath and an hour at the Secret Place. The Secret Place was worth the extra and I highly recommend. Noelh offered a brief and interesting walking tour at each site and left us time to explore on our own. We were allowed to bring snacks on the bus but we didn't need them because we stopped plenty at places for food and drink. Noelh provided water. Bring water and rain gear. There were UBC ports for phone charging on the bus. The bus was very comfortable. Noelh was sensitive to a woman that was having mobility issues and arranged for her to skip part of the walking tour. I enjoyed Stonehenge and the Secret Place immensely, I was glad I saw Bath, but it was too crowded during our visit. Others on the tour really loved Bath. I highly recommend The English Bus tours.

    Tommy was awesome! We loved Bath! Go to the places he suggests. The Cotswolds were lovely and we…read moregot to see where "War Horse" was filmed. Stonehenge is incredible. How people got those rocks in those spots aligned with the solstice- it's baffling with their simple tools.

    London Duck Tours - Beatrice and the London Eye

    London Duck Tours

    (36 reviews)

    Waterloo, Southwark

    I didn't believe it for a second. No way could a duck support me on a tour of London. They are not…read moreknown for their strong backs. The notion that I would be getting shown around by, or transported by an actual duck were soon put to rest when I saw that we would be getting shown around in an odd looking little yellow bus thing. Imagine my surprise when after driving around for a short while the driver decided to drive straight into the Thames River. Luckily, the odd little yellow bus thing actually turns into a boat, of sorts. The reason this tour is so popular, I'd imagine, is because of exactly that; it's a road vehicle that can turn into a boat. That novelty alone would compel almost anyone to shell out £19. If you're a tourist; then why not. If you're going to do the bus tours, why not get on a weird yellow thing that also turns into a boat. But if you're a local - then think twice. Because it wasn't long into this tour that I realised I had just done what I promised myself I would never do; get an atypical tourist ride around London. The novelty of being on the water wears off in about nine seconds. Especially when you have a really annoying know-it-all tour guide. And as the dude hogging the microphone with his really weird moustache tells you "and this is Westminster..." you can't help but feel you would have been better off at home. It's not that there is anything fundamentally wrong with this tour, or my disgust that historic World War 2 boats have been turned into yellow tourist fodder - but simply, it just isn't really all that good or worthy of your money. Which brings me to my final point - which is certainly interesting. It turns out that these little yellow boat things are actually converted vehicles from the 1940's that were used during World War 2. In fact, it's entirely possible that this yellow thing that is showing you around London was a part of the D-Day invasions on Normandy. As someone who World War 2 is very important to; I would much rather see these in museums in their original state than painted yellow and showing tourists around; but that's just personal opinion.

    Great fun and an interesting way to see the city…read more Our guide was really funny and gave lots of funny and insightful information about London. It was great to take a trip down the Thames as you really do get a different perspective on the Palaces of Westminster and London. I would like the tour to be a little longer but to be honest it's much better than a double decker bus.

    Golden Tours - Harry Potter Studios Tour

    Golden Tours

    (391 reviews)

    Victoria

    We booked despite the bad reviews because it was the only way to get Harry Potter tickets during…read moreour quickly planned trip. We read the reviews and understood we were going to need some patience. The problem with many reviews were the meeting instructions (via TripAdvisor) so we went to the Baker Street location a day early to scout it out. We could not find signage for Golden Tours. We did see a Harry Potter bus dropping off a group and assumed (wrongly) that the spot was also the meeting spot. Actually they do have a location (store front) near the Baker street stop. It is not on Baler Street. If you come out of the tube and turn away from the wax museum, you will find their store from down the next block. That is the meeting spot point for tours! Very important thing to know and find -- because you have to meet there to get your tickets beforehand. We missed our bus time despite arriving 45 minutes early. The staff was less than kind about this part of the trip and made no apologies for the lack of directions. They gave us headphones but there was no movie on our bus. We had set our expectations low for our son, due to the reviews so we didn't mind -- but there were some disappointed families near us. The bus was clean enough but no WiFi and the phone charges didn't work on most seats. The driver for this portion of our trip was great and very helpful given that he had to help us find someone on site to get our Entry tickets. Despite the set backs, we finally had tickets in hand and enjoyed the studio tour from here on out on our own. The trip back was easy enough but this bus driver was less friendly and at one point was screaming at another driver along a busy street in London. We actually found it comical and thought it added to the busy city feel, but I could see how many guests would find this very unsettling. All in all, it is OK if this is the way you can get entry tickets to something on your must see list, but if you have options - I'd try another company.

    I was here during Christmas season and booked the Christmas lights tour, and I was very…read moredisappointed. When arrived, the guide just scanned everyone's ticket and let everyone on. There was no direction or distraction to go upper beck or lower. When I arrived to the top, it was already full. I know everyone there did not pay for upper deck, because they just let everyone up on a first come first serve basis. When we confronted the guides, they refused to check everyone's ticket. We did not get the experience we paid for, and there is an up charge to sit on the upper deck. Also, the driver clearly did not know the route! The guide kept telling him he's going the wrong way and we were stuck in traffic in the wrong place most of the time. The driver made an illegal u-turn, that put the everyone in danger. The driver did this twice, and there was clearly conflict between the guide and driver. Would not recommend this company. They did not try to rectify the situation, did not honor those that paid for their spot, and overall not enjoyable with the conflict with driver and guide. Update *** they offered me a 25% refund, which is a very low compensation for what I paid for. What makes this company even more of a scam, they are asking via email for my bank account and routing number for the refund. I told them I do not feel comfortable and just refund to the card I purchased the tickets with. THEY ARE A SCAM. AVOID THIS COMPANY AT ALL COST.

    Thames River Party Boats - Welcome aboard The WELLINGTON, our stately non-moving vessel, offering five distinct spaces available for hire and accommodating up to 300

    Thames River Party Boats

    (13 reviews)

    Westminster

    My friends Steve, Terry and I decided to spend a day floating down the Thames and go to Richmond…read moreand just enjoy the summer day. We bought our tickets from at the ticket booth at Hampton Court located on the River Thames just across the Thames from the Big London Eye and directly across the street from Big Ben. If you have a Travel Card which is a daily travel pass, you can receive a 30% discount. Our 1100 departure came and went but eventully this smal boat arrived and docked closer to 1115am. The three person crew were very friendly, welcomed us aboard and off we went. We were lucky enough to be on The Connaught, a vintage ship from the Edwardian times celebrating her 99th year plying the Thames; fortunately, her engine and crew were not that old! This ship has an open deck up front as well as in the back but if you want to stay out of the wind and cool breezes there is a large covered area below with windows, tables and chairs and a bar! We became very friendly with the bar tender buying several pints of beer. The captain of the Connaught gave commentary along the way which was nice but he also just let us enjoy the peace and quiet to enjoy the beauty of the Thames. Immediately upon our departure, I realized how the Thames slices through Central London and winds its way through the city. If you are a Planespotter, you'll love this trip too because we pretty much followed the landing and take off patterns of London's Heathrow airport; we were lucky enough to be under Emirates new A380 from Dubai as it made its final approach to LHR, the wingspan seemed to dwarf that of the 747-400!. We passed many old buildings on the banks of the Thames, what were once loading dock areas of the past have been converted to very trendy lofts offering excellent views of the Thames. I especially liked the numerous bridges that we sailed underneath, some were built over 100 years ago and still operating! Each one seemed to have it's own personality, I would take this tour again just to see the bridges. As we continued closer to Richmond the city of London left us and the countryside welcomed us, lots of weeping willow trees on the banks, rustic flowers blooming in the late summer season and large estates began to appear with very large back yards and private launches for their own boats; that's the life! Eventually we arrived at the first lock we needed to get through to enter the next section of the Thames. If you have cruised through the Panama Canal you will understand how this works, this was a miniature version but using the same engineering. Within 10-15minutes we had risen about 8-10feet, the lock in front of us was opened and we continued on our way to Kew. On this trip we did not leave the Connaught at Kew but I highly recommend going to Kew Gardens, they are absolutely beautiful and the conservatory has one of the best displays of Orchids I have seen. We picked up a few more customers and left for Richmond. At this point we were truly in the country and there's nothing to do but just sit back and enjoy the gentle motion of the ship, take in the sunshine, have a sip of your beer and be thankful for a wonderful day. We arrived in beautiful Richmond, many restaurants and pubs along the river and incase you don't want to take the ship back to London there is a train that will whisk you back to Waterloo station in just 25minutes. I truly enjoyed this trip and recommend it for anyone who is visiting, traveling by boat/ship beats riding the underground anyday.

    We had spent a very nice morning at Hampton Court Palace, enjoying a picnic in the sun until about…read more3.00pm when we decided to take a river boat ride back into Central London for our train home. We boarded our river boat just beside Hampton Court Palace and were heading back to Westminster Pier. I did take a seat under the awning for the trip as it was a blazing hot day and am glad I did. The journey back to Westminster Pier took 3 hours, but only made a few stops along the way. Those that sat up top predictably got quite sunburnt. The most picturesque part of the route is from Hampton Court, through the river as far as Barnes and Mortlake. You can see some beautiful properties which lie beside the banks of the river and it's extremely pretty. Once you are past Putney, it's mainly a few parks and office buildings, but the journey itself is very pleasant, relaxing and a great chance to chat with friends, have a beer/wine or whatever and just relax.

    City Cruises - boatcharters - Updated June 2026

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