--- site: London Drum url: https://londondrum.com/events/?p=16699 canonical: https://londondrum.com/events/?p=16699 title: "City Cruises London - River Thames Sightseeing Boat Tour" description: "My review of the City Cruises sightseeing boat tour down the River Thames, using one of their hop-on hop-off tickets to sail past London's landmarks" author: Craig Cross updated: 2026-10-12 clipped: 2026-11-15 --- # City Cruises - Westminster to Greenwich sightseeing boat ![City Cruises](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-boat.webp)
## Useful things to know before your visit Address: City Cruises, Westminster Pier, Victoria Embankment, Westminster SW1A 2JH. Telephone: 0800 459 8105 ### What are the dates and times? Every day · Westminster Pier: Every 40 mins from 10 AM to 7.30 PM (last boat to Greenwich is at 4.40 PM) · London Eye Pier: Every 40 mins from 10.10 AM to 7.40 PM (last boat to Greenwich is at 4.50 PM) · Tower Pier: Every 40 mins from 10 AM to 7.40 PM (last boat to Greenwich is at 5.30 PM) · Greenwich Pier: Every 40 mins from 10.30 AM to 6.30 PM ### How much do the tickets cost? Prices start from £25 ### Which buses go to City Cruises? Bus routes for Westminster Pier: 11, 24, 148, 211 - For London Eye Pier: 12, 53, 59, 76, 77, 148, 159, 211, 341, 381 - For Tower Pier: 15, 42, 78 and 100 all stop close by ### Which is the closest train station? The nearest station is [Westminster](https://londondrum.com/transport/trains.php?station=westminster), which connects with the Circle, District and Jubilee lines. It only takes two minutes to walk to City Cruises ## My review of City Cruises **Worth a visit?** ★★★ **Good value?** ★★★ **Good for kids?** ★★★ Reviewed by [Craig Cross](https://londondrum.com/about.php) on I don't get on very well with the sun. Put it this way: we're not friends. If I have to go on a boat then I usually like to do it in the rain but there's no escaping its flames this morning and we're fanning the air with whatever we've got: hats, hands, bags or magazines. I'm having to squint at the river because the water's glistening like diamond lights. ![The open top-deck on a City Cruises boat](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-top-deck.webp) _The top-deck of a City Cruises boat_ City Cruises operate the largest tourist boats in London with 250 seats downstairs and another 250 on the open-air top deck. They've also got a handy table service up there so you can order your food off a QR code and have someone bring it up to you so you don't lose your seat, because these boats are busy - _very busy_. People use them with the [London Pass](https://londondrum.com/attractions/discount-passes.php) so they're always packed with people. ![Big Ben and Parliament behind Westminster Pier](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-westminster-pier.webp) _Big Ben and Parliament behind Westminster Pier_ After five minutes the water starts churning against the side of the boat and we pull away from the pier with [Big Ben](https://londondrum.com/attractions/big-ben.php) behind us and the [London Eye](https://londondrum.com/attractions/london-eye.php) to our right. Then comes [Cleopatra's Needle](https://londondrum.com/attractions/cleopatras-needle.php), the Royal Festival Hall, [Shakespeare's Globe](https://londondrum.com/attractions/globe-theatre.php), [Tate Modern](https://londondrum.com/attractions/tate-modern.php) and [St. Paul's Cathedral](https://londondrum.com/attractions/st-pauls-cathedral.php) by the Millennium Bridge. ![Cleopatra's Needle on Victoria Embankment](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-needle.webp) _Cleopatra's Needle on Victoria Embankment_ If you want the recorded commentary then you have to download their app and listen to it on your phone, but they also stand a man at the front who points out all the sights with some PC-free gags. He's actually quite funny and has managed to make me laugh a few times (not an easy feat). I might even put some money in his tip bucket. ![St Paul's Cathedral and the Millennium Bridge](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-st-pauls.webp) _St Paul's Cathedral and the Millennium Bridge_ As you approach [The Shard](https://londondrum.com/attractions/shard.php) keep an eye out for the full-size replica of [Francis Drake's Golden Hinde](https://londondrum.com/attractions/golden-hinde.php) in a dry dock by Southwark Cathedral. If you look to the left after you pass under London Bridge then you can glimpse the top of [The Monument](https://londondrum.com/attractions/monument.php) where the Great Fire of London broke out. Then you get a great view of the City skyscrapers, the big guns of [HMS Belfast](https://londondrum.com/attractions/hms-belfast.php), and the bricked up entrance to Traitor's Gate before we pull into the pier. ![The City of London](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-square-mile.webp) _Skyscrapers in the City of London_ ![Traitor's Gate by the Tower of London](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-white-tower.webp) _Traitor's Gate by the Tower of London_ While we're waiting for the tourists to disembark at the [Tower of London](https://londondrum.com/attractions/tower-of-london.php) a seagull has landed on the railing and become the star of the show all of a sudden. Forget the landmarks. Forget the thousand-year-old White Tower to our left because everybody is crowding round to get a photo of this mangy old bird with green seaweed in his beak. ![Passing under Tower Bridge](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-passing-tower-bridge.webp) _Passing under Tower Bridge_ When the boat gets going again it passes straight under [Tower Bridge](https://londondrum.com/attractions/tower-bridge.php) before opening up the motor in the choppy waters before [Canary Wharf](https://londondrum.com/attractions/canary-wharf.php). There are no landmarks around here so you can pass the time trying to find four riverside pubs. First up is The Mayflower which stands near the spot where the Pilgrim Fathers set sail for America. Further along is the Captain Kidd which is close to the execution site of the famous pirate (he actually met his end in Execution Dock - look for a riverside warehouse with a big 'E' on the top). ![The Captain Kidd and The Prospect of Whitby](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/riverside-pubs.webp) _The Captain Kidd and The Prospect of Whitby_ The third one is a tiny little place called The Prospect of Whitby which is supposed to be oldest pub on the river (it's actually just the uneven floor that dates from the days of Henry VIII). ![Approaching the skyscrapers at Canary Wharf](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-canary-wharf-skyscrapers.webp) _Approaching the skyscrapers at Canary Wharf_ And the fourth one is The Grapes - look for Anthony Gormley's statue of a man rising out of the water on the bend before Canary Wharf. This one is part-owned by Sir Ian McKellen and he's put his Gandalf staff behind the bar. ![Cutty Sark behind Greenwich Pier](https://londondrum.com/i/eve/city-cruises-greenwich-pier.webp) _Cutty Sark behind Greenwich Pier_ When you finally reach Greenwich you'll float slowly past the [Cutty Sark](https://londondrum.com/attractions/cutty-sark.php) and settle next to the [Old Royal Naval College](https://londondrum.com/attractions/old-royal-naval-college.php). If you look past the buildings then you should be able to see the [Royal Observatory](https://londondrum.com/attractions/royal-observatory.php) on top of the hill.

I've ranked a boat trip to Greenwich as ★17 in [my top 25 London bucket list](https://londondrum.com/planner/top-25-ultimate-bucket-list.php) It also appears in my [two-day London itinerary for families](https://londondrum.com/planner/two-day-itinerary-with-kids.php) and [one week in London itinerary](https://londondrum.com/planner/one-week-itinerary.php)