There aren't many plus points to write home about regarding the current situation, but perhaps one of them is a crowd free visit to one of the many top London attractions.
So, with our preferred time slot secured we headed off to Tower Bridge on a very wet day, which might otherwise have been spent with me mostly trying to persuade my nine and seven year old to put their electronic devices down!
Our entry into the North Tower of Tower Bridge, where your tour begins, was all very swift and efficient with friendly members of staff there to greet you at every point along the way. After a climb up a fair number of stairs (that day's workout achieved right there!) it was great to be encouraged to take a seat and listen to one of the Tower Bridge Guides telling us about how often the bridge normally lifts in an average year (that will be 900 times); compared to when it first opened which was 6,000 times a year. Wow, those bridge lifting operators were kept very busy a hundred years ago!
After catching our breath, and suitably bridge informed, it was then onto crossing the west walkway where you get to step onto a stretch of glass floor to peer down at the bridge traffic and River Thames some 42 metres below. My somewhat safety conscious son was reassured to hear that the glass floor can support the weight of six elephants!
During the school holidays, and on the third Saturday of every month, Tower Bridge runs family activities throughout the day which are included in your ticket price. The activities on offer are all Covid secure and particularly suited to those aged 6-10 years. This half term the challenge is to make a paper aeroplane to fly across the glass floor of the east walkway, hoping to make it from South London into North London! This activity certainly appealed to my competitive pair who got stuck right in trying to make the most aerodynamic flying machine. Sadly, all aeroplanes failed to make it over to North London, so like their designers they remained very much in South London!
A visit to Tower Bridge is a great way to spend a couple of hours learning about one of London's iconic sites, and you certainly get the VIP treatment if you visit right now.
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