Home to the Mayor of London, the bulbous glass-clad City Hall was designed by Foster and Partners and opened in 2002. Visitor access is limited to the lower-ground-floor cafe, the 1st-floor viewing gallery and the Chamber during debates and Assembly meetings.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. HMS Belfast

0.17 MILES

HMS Belfast is a magnet for kids of all ages. This large, light cruiser – launched in 1938 – served in WWII, helping to sink the Nazi battleship Sand…

2. Tower Bridge

0.18 MILES

It doesn't matter from where you first glimpse Tower Bridge, with two neo-Gothic towers rising gracefully from either side of the Thames: London's…

3. Gibbon's Rent

0.19 MILES

Buried between soaring blocks of flats, this tiny alley has been transformed by locals into a secret garden lined with potted plants. A small wooden…

4. Tower Bridge Exhibition

0.21 MILES

The inner workings of Tower Bridge can't compare with its exterior magnificence, but this geeky exhibition tries to bridge that gap with details of the…

5. Hay's Galleria

0.22 MILES

This beautiful shopping arcade was an enclosed dock in the 19th century. The wharf handled all sorts of goods, although perishable foodstuff was the main…

6. Tower of London

0.25 MILES

Few parts of the UK are as steeped in history or as impregnated with legend and superstition as the titanic stonework of the Tower of London. Not only is…

7. Fashion & Textile Museum

0.3 MILES

This brainchild of designer Zandra Rhodes has no permanent collection, just quarterly temporary exhibitions, which have included retrospectives on Swedish…

8. All Hallows by the Tower

0.31 MILES

The oldest church in the City, All Hallows has been a place of worship since 675 CE. It was spared in the Great Fire, but much of today's building is from…