Thames River Cruise Guide: Every London Boat Trip Compared
If you are planning a boat trip in London, search results can mix four different things: sightseeing cruises with commentary, the Uber Boat river bus, the slow boats upstream to Kew and Hampton Court, and the Regent’s Canal narrowboats.
The river bus and the sightseeing cruise leave from the same piers and look much the same in the queue, but they are different. The river bus is transport only, with no frills. The sightseeing cruise starts at £15 with a commentary as you pass the London sights.
We have taken the Westminster to Greenwich cruise with the live commentary, and we take the Uber Boat down to Greenwich and back most times we are in London. One evening run back up towards Westminster at sunset is still one of the nicest things we have done on the river.
This guide covers all four, with prices checked against the operators’ own sites in September 2026, every pier and its nearest station, which trips work with limited mobility, a one-day plan built around Greenwich, and our pick for eight kinds of visitor.
The Uber river bus has its own guide to routes, piers and tickets, and December sailings are in our Christmas cruises and New Year’s Eve cruises guides.
Note that Uber river bus fares do not count towards the TfL daily cap, so for three or more hops in a day the £29.30 online day ticket is the cheaper buy.
TIP: if you only take one boat, the City Cruises sightseeing cruise from Westminster to Greenwich shows you the most. From £15, it passes Parliament, the London Eye, St Paul’s, the Globe, the Tower and Tower Bridge in that order.
Which boat trip is right for your trip
| If you want | Take | How long | Roughly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commentary and the landmarks explained | A City Cruises sightseeing cruise | 70 minutes Westminster to Greenwich, 40 to the Tower | From £15 |
| To get to Greenwich and back cheaply | The river bus | Timetabled, no lingering | From £7.20 each way online |
| A whole day on the river, on and off at will | A hop-on hop-off river pass | 24 hours across four piers | From £26 |
| Forty minutes and back where you started | The London Eye River Cruise | 40 minutes, circular | From £15.50 |
| A slow day out to Kew or Hampton Court | Thames River Boats from Westminster | 1 hour 15 to Kew, up to 3 hours 30 to Hampton Court | From £20 single |
| Lunch or dinner on the water | A City Cruises dining cruise | One sailing a day | Lunch from £39, afternoon tea from £55, dinner from £90 |
| Something fast and loud | A speedboat or RIB | 20 to 90 minutes | From £37 |
| To see the canals rather than the river | A Regent’s Canal narrowboat | 45 minutes one way | From £17 |
Thames sightseeing cruises
City Cruises is the main sightseeing operator and serves four piers: Westminster, London Eye, Tower and Greenwich.
Boats run through the day with live or recorded commentary in English and an audio guide in eight languages. Most boats have an open upper deck, and all have an enclosed saloon, toilets including an accessible one, and a bar with hot and cold drinks and snacks, so a wet day means sitting inside rather than missing the trip.
We did the Westminster to Greenwich run on a June afternoon with a friend, sat inside in the middle of the boat, and had a live guide pointing everything out as we passed it. It was good, and it is the one we suggest to anyone who has not been on the Thames before.
You can buy tickets at any of the four piers on the day; booking online skips the queue. Under-fives travel free; children are 5 to 15 and adults 16 and over, and there is no senior fare listed for the sightseeing tickets.
24-hour hop-on hop-off river pass
The 24 hour river pass lets you get on and off at all four piers for a full day. It suits a day built around Greenwich or the Tower, where you want the boat as the way of getting between them rather than a single round trip.
It is from £26 on City Cruises’ own site, with the exact fare shown once you pick a date.
Single sightseeing tickets
If you want one trip rather than a day pass, a single sightseeing ticket starts at £15 and is the cheapest way to get the commentary.
City Cruises gives Westminster to Greenwich as 70 minutes, Westminster to the Tower as 40 and the Tower to Greenwich as 30, so an hour and a half is the safe figure for anything booked at the Greenwich end.
Greenwich is worth the trip in its own right. Our guide to things to do in Greenwich covers a full day there, and the Tower Bridge and Tower Hill guide covers the other end.
Thames River Sightseeing, the other Greenwich operator
Thames River Sightseeing runs the same Westminster to Greenwich route, an hour each way, with the skipper doing the commentary rather than a recording. Adult tickets are £17.20 and children 5 to 15 are £11.30, with both discounted online at the time of writing to £14.62 and £9.60.
The boats have an open-air upper deck, an enclosed lower deck and a licensed bar. Electric wheelchairs are not allowed, and one carer per disabled passenger receives a 50% discount.
The London Eye River Cruise
The London Eye runs its own 40-minute circular cruise from London Eye Pier, with live commentary and no stops, from £15.50, or from £49 combined with the Eye itself.
It is the one for a day that cannot spare the afternoon Greenwich needs: you see Parliament, the South Bank and the City and you are back where you started. The London Eye lists wheelchair access for the cruise and runs a British Sign Language guide on the indoor deck.
The river bus, which is not a cruise
Uber Boat by Thames Clippers is public transport. Fast catamarans, mostly enclosed seating behind glass, no commentary and no lingering at landmarks. Londoners commute on it. You see the same stretch of river as the sightseeing boats, without the commentary, and there is a café bar on board.
It is how we usually get to Greenwich and back. It is quick, there is no fuss at the pier, and the run back up towards Westminster in the evening, when the light is going, is worth timing for. One sunset return from Greenwich was one of the nicest evenings we have had in London.
It is also much cheaper. Single fares start at £7.20 online for the East or West zones and £11.70 for Central, against £9.40 and £16.40 if you buy at the pier, so buying in the Uber app or the Thames Clippers Tickets app before you board is the cheaper way in.
River bus fares sit outside the daily cap. You can tap on with contactless or Oyster, but river bus journeys do not count towards it. Three or four hops on a contactless card will cost more than simply buying the day ticket, which is £29.30 online for an adult and £58.70 for a family of two adults and up to three children.
A TfL Travelcard gets a third off standard fares, and a 60+ Oyster photocard or Freedom Pass gets 50% off, though a Freedom Pass cannot be used as pay-as-you-go and has to be presented at the pier for a discounted ticket.
We have a fuller guide to using the Uber Boat river bus covering routes, piers and how to buy tickets.
Upstream to Kew, Richmond and Hampton Court
The fourth kind of boat goes the other way. Thames River Boats, run by the Westminster Passenger Services Association, sails from Westminster Pier upstream to Kew, Richmond and Hampton Court, and it is a slow day out rather than a sightseeing hop: the river narrows, the city thins out and the banks turn to parks and boathouses.
| From Westminster to | Journey time | Adult | Senior (60+) | Child (5 to 15) | Family (2 adults, 2 children) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kew | 1 hour 15 to 1 hour 45 | £20 single, £27 return | £17 single, £23 return | £10 single, £14 return | £50 single, £71 return |
| Richmond | 1 hour 45 to 2 hours 30 | £22 single, £33 return | £18.50 single, £26 return | £11 single, £16.50 return | £55 single, £83.50 return |
| Hampton Court | 3 hours 15 to 3 hours 30 | £27 single, £36 return | £21 single, £30 return | £13.50 single, £18 return | £67.50 single, £90 return |
Journey times vary because the Thames is tidal and the boat either works with the tide or against it. Departure times move for the same reason, so the Upcoming Sailings page on the Thames River Boats site is the only reliable timetable.
Going one way by boat and back by train from Hampton Court, Richmond, or Kew Bridge keeps you on the river and leaves only one long leg to plan around.
Our guides to getting to Hampton Court Palace and visiting Hampton Court Palace cover the day at the other end.
Lunch, afternoon tea and dinner cruises
| Cruise | What it is | From |
|---|---|---|
| Lunch Cruise | A sit-down lunch in daylight, which suits anyone who would rather not be out late. The cheapest of the meals. | £39 |
| Evening Cruise with Canapés | Canapés and music rather than a full meal. Shorter and lighter than a dinner cruise. | £42 |
| Afternoon Tea Cruise | Sandwiches, scones and cake, and the easiest to fit into a day. | £55 |
| Dinner Cruise | The full evening, with dinner and a live singer. | £90 |
| Elvis Tribute Cruise | Dinner with an Elvis tribute act. | £115 |
| Jazz Dinner Cruise | Dinner with a live jazz band. | £119 |
| Murder Mystery Dinner Cruise | Dinner with actors and a plot. Better with a group than as a couple. | £141 |
There is at most one sailing a day, so booking ahead matters more here than for the sightseeing boats.
Speedboat and RIB trips
Two operators run these. Thames RIB Experience runs a 20-minute blast from Tower Millennium Pier from £37, a 45-minute trip out to Canary Wharf from Embankment or Westminster at £57, and a 70-minute run down to the Thames Barrier at £74. Thames Rockets departs from the London Eye Pier, with a 60-minute trip at £59.95 and a 90-minute Barrier voyage at £79.95.
The pier enforces health restrictions. Both operators refuse passengers who are pregnant. Thames RIB Experience will not carry anyone with heart or back complaints, and Thames Rockets advises against it for neck or back conditions. A RIB across open water is a hard ride, and the small print is applied on the day.
Regent’s Canal: Little Venice to Camden
Forty-five minutes at walking pace through Regent’s Park, past the back of the zoo, and through the Maida Hill tunnel, which is 248 metres of complete darkness. Three operators run it, and they work differently.
| Operator | Fares | Shape of trip |
|---|---|---|
| Jason’s Trip | Adult £19 single, £25 return. Concession (under 14 and over 65) £15 and £20. Under-fours free. | One-way, 45 min, live commentary from Little Venice only. Runs all year, no booking needed, just turn up. |
| London Waterbus Company | Adult £17. Children 4 to 16, over 60s, students and disabled travellers £14. Under-fours free. | One way, 45 min. Choose the historic narrowboat for commentary or the wide barge for a bar and no commentary. |
| Walker’s Quay (Jenny Wren) | Adult £23, over 65s £21, children £14. | 90-minute round trip from Camden with commentary, and the only one that goes through Hampstead Road Lock. |
Jason’s Trip and London Waterbus are point-to-point, so you can take the boat one way and the tube back. Jenny Wren returns you to where you started. Jason’s gives commentary only on the Little Venice to Camden direction, which is worth knowing if you are choosing a direction.
Little Venice is at Browning’s Pool, W9 2PF, nearest tube Warwick Avenue. The Camden end is at West Yard, NW1 8AF, nearest tube Camden Town.
These boats do not stop at London Zoo. The zoo is about a fifteen-minute walk from the Camden end.
Check the London Waterbus and Walker’s Quay booking calendars to confirm they are running on your dates.
One day on the river: Westminster to Greenwich and back
This is the day we would build for a first visit, and it is the one we have done ourselves more than once.
- Morning. The City Cruises sightseeing boat from Westminster Pier, or from Tower Pier if you are starting at the Tower of London. Seventy minutes to Greenwich from Westminster with the commentary, thirty from the Tower. Booked online the night before, or bought at the pier on the day.
- The middle of the day. Greenwich itself: the Cutty Sark beside the pier, the market, the park and the Greenwich Observatory up the hill. Our Greenwich guide covers the day.
- Coming back. The Uber Boat river bus from Greenwich Pier.
- Timing. Leave it too late, and the boats back are very busy; the last time we did, ours was packed.
For the rest of the trip, our London Travel Guide and Itinerary Planners bring the planning together in seven chapters with four bonus eBooks, for $39. See what is inside.
The piers
| Pier | Postcode | Nearest station |
|---|---|---|
| Westminster | SW1A 2JH | Westminster, directly connected |
| London Eye (Waterloo) | SE1 7PB | Waterloo, 6 minutes |
| Tower | EC3N 4DT | Tower Hill |
| Greenwich | SE10 9HT | Cutty Sark DLR, 6 minutes |
| Little Venice | W9 2PF | Warwick Avenue |
| Camden | NW1 8AF | Camden Town |
North Greenwich is not Greenwich. It is on the Jubilee line; the name sounds right, and it is the O2 arena, about two miles from Greenwich itself. The pier, the Cutty Sark and the market are at Cutty Sark DLR. City Cruises puts this warning on its own Greenwich page.
City Cruises also lists two different addresses for Tower Pier on its own site, one of them St Katharine’s Way. The pier you want is Tower Millennium Pier, EC3N 4DT, below the Tower itself.
Accessibility on the river
The river bus is by far the most accessible option, and the only operator here that says electric wheelchairs are welcome. The others vary a great deal, so it is worth checking the row for your boat before booking.
| Boat | Wheelchairs | Carer ticket | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uber Boat river bus | Every boat, up to four chairs on larger ones. Electric chairs welcome. | Free companion ticket from any staffed ticket office | Accessible toilets on all but three boats. Staff cannot lift or push a chair. |
| City Cruises | Must be able to walk on with a helper. Two chair spaces per boat; three boats with no access. No electric chairs. | 50% off for one carer, at the pier only, with a disability badge | Dining cruises need a collapsible chair and a transfer to a table seat. |
| Thames River Sightseeing | Most boats adapted. No electric chairs. | 50% off for one carer | You may have to wait for an accessible boat. |
| London Eye River Cruise | Wheelchair access listed | Not stated on the cruise page | British Sign Language guide on the indoor deck. |
| Thames River Boats (upstream) | Lightweight, non-motorised chair only, and only if you can step aboard with the crew’s help | Not published | Hampton Court is reached by steep steps only. Toilets not wheelchair accessible. |
| Speedboats and RIBs | No space for a chair | Not published | You step in, with a carer’s help if needed, and sit unaided. |
| London Waterbus (canal) | Folded chairs only. No mobility scooters. | Dual ticket for traveller and carer, £17 | About five narrow, steep steps to board, with handrails. Basic toilet on board. |
| Jason’s Trip and Walker’s Quay (canal) | Not published | Not published | Call or email before booking. |
Uber Boat piers are step-free except Cadogan, London Bridge City and Wandsworth Riverside Quarter, and Millbank is temporarily not step-free while maintenance work continues. City Cruises’ booking page doesn’t tell you which boat you will get, so the only way to be sure is to call 020 7740 0400 before booking.
The Thames is tidal along this whole stretch, and the piers are floating pontoons reached by hinged ramps, so the slope changes through the day. A ramp that was an easy walk in the morning can be a noticeably steep climb by the afternoon.
What the London Pass covers
The London Pass includes the City Cruises 24-hour river pass, redeemable at Westminster, the London Eye, the Tower, or Greenwich. Westminster is the main collection point, though Doug used his at Tower Pier after the Tower of London: tapped on, straight aboard, and down to Greenwich with nothing to collect first.
Jason’s Trip also accepts the Go City London Pass as payment for the canal trip, which makes it one of the better-value inclusions if you are already going to Little Venice. London Waterbus does not take it.
The pass does not cover the river bus, City Cruises single sightseeing tickets, Thames River Sightseeing, the London Eye River Cruise, upstream boats, or any speedboat operators. Whether the pass pays for itself on your trip is worked through in our guide to the London Pass.
Our pick for every kind of trip
- First time in London. The Westminster to Greenwich sightseeing cruise, and make a day of Greenwich at the other end.
- On a budget. The river bus, bought in the Uber app or the Thames Clippers Tickets app. No commentary, but the views are the same.
- Short on time. The London Eye River Cruise: forty minutes, live commentary, back where you started.
- Limited mobility. The river bus, from Westminster or Greenwich, both step-free.
- With grandchildren. A RIB if they are old enough and nobody has a bad back; the canal boat if they are small.
- A special occasion. The afternoon tea cruise in daylight, or the dinner cruise if you want the evening.
- A palace day. Thames River Boats upstream to Hampton Court, and the train back from Hampton Court station.
- Seen the Thames already. Little Venice to Camden by narrowboat, which is a different part of London entirely.
If you are here in December, City Cruises runs a separate festive programme including Christmas Day, which we cover in our guides to Christmas cruises in London and New Year’s Eve cruises. For the rest of London’s attractions, including tickets and timings, see our guide to things to do in London.
