Skip long queues at Madame Tussauds, Tower of London and London Eye
Fast track tickets, often referred to as ‘skip the line tickets’ or ‘priority tickets,’ typically come at a higher price. It’s important to keep this in mind when you’re thinking about making a purchase.
Since the covid-19 pandemic attractions have mostly moved over to timed ticket entrance systems. This works well for reducing visitor numbers at certain times of day and has the advantage of being less crowded from a visitor’s perspective.
Whilst it is still possible to purchase fast track tickets for Merlin London attractions (such as the London Eye and Madame Tussauds). In some instances you might decide it is no longer necessary, because in some cases the queues will currently be shorter than usual anyway.
Therefore even if you can’t book fast track tickets, it is nearly always essential that you pre-book online in advance of your trip; including the most busy and popular attractions such as Tower of London, London Dungeon and Windsor Castle.
It is also worth knowing that free to enter museums and art galleries including the British Museum, National Gallery and Tate Modern are still accepting walk-up visitors. Although we strongly advise you to pre-book to guarantee entry.
The London Eye – fast track tickets
Being the world’s tallest observation wheel, The Lastminute.com London Eye is an unforgettable experience that lets you see iconic London landmark and spectacular views of the capital of England from high above the River Thames.
Iconic landmarks to be seen include Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, St Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey.
Fast track tickets – reduce queuing time to 20 minutes
The London Eye is a popular attraction in London that often experiences lengthy wait times. It’s important to note that both regular tickets and fast track tickets operate on a time slot system, with slots available every fifteen minutes.
With fast track tickets, you can enjoy a special entrance that helps you skip the long queues, making your wait much shorter.
According to the London Eye, those with fast track tickets usually enter in around 20 minutes, while standard ticket holders might have to wait 45 minutes or more.
One rotation of the London Eye will take around 30 minutes.
To enjoy VIP Experiences like the Champagne Experience or Cupid’s Pod, please make sure to arrive at least 45 minutes ahead of your scheduled time.
While there is technically a ‘gate price’, it’s really not necessary since it’s highly recommended to book your tickets ahead of time to ensure you don’t miss out. The London Eye tends to get quite crowded, so there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to purchase tickets at the gate on the day of your visit.
Fast track tickets, similar to regular tickets, are available at a reduced price compared to buying them at the entrance on the day of your visit.
Tower of London – pre-book saves time on arrival
The Tower of London stands out as one of the most well-preserved and historically significant castles in England. After the Normans conquered England in 1066, they established this castle as the first in a series of fortifications that would be built across the country.
The Tower has served as a jail, a refuge, and a fortress, making it one of the safest spots in London. With England’s rich and often dark history, it is steeped in fascinating tales.
Today it is one of the most popular attractions in London for people of all ages and for many first time visitors comes under the “must see” category.
The Tower of London is still allowing you to purchase walk-up tickets from on the day from the ticket office on Tower Hill, but pre-booking your tickets in advance is recommended to save yourself queuing time.
There are no fast-track tickets for the Tower of London, but purchasing in advance does streamline the whole process, allowing you to download a voucher onto your phone ahead of arrival and simply scanning it at the gate, instead of printing the tickets off.
Tickets purchased in advance on-line are also cheaper than tickets purchased on the day.
More about the Tower of London
Madame Tussauds – fast track tickets
Madame Tussauds is one of those London attractions where in the past queuing has become legendary (think over two hours at peak times).
For this reason fast track has served a necessary purpose, giving people the chance to reduce their queuing time significantly – albeit at a price – around £10 more per ticket.
Despite standard entry now being entirely based on timeslots, Merlin (who own Madame Tussauds) are still offering fast track tickets. Remember, currently Madame Tussauds are offering reduced capacity entrances, so in theory you should not be in as long a queue as you traditionally would, even at peak times.
Whether to pay the extra for fast track tickets then is really a matter of preference: they will still save you some queuing time as they operate from a separate dedicated entrance.
You can review all your tickets options, including fast track tickets from the official Madame Tussauds website (below).
London Dungeon – Any Time Entry tickets
The London Dungeon is a more gruesome version of Madame Tussauds. The attraction consists of a series of set scenes reproducing chilling aspects of medieval London. Expect lots of darkness, dripping water, skeletons, caged rats, tolling bells etc. to add to the atmosphere. Naturally there are scenes of torture in all its variations.
All are brought to life with special effects very well done, originally conceived for film and TV. Actors add life to the displays and among other things may sentence you personally to death.
Historically the London Dungeon have always offered fast track tickets. However most London attractions are currently operating set time-slots meaning you pre-book for a specific time.
At the moment London Dungeon are offering ‘Anytime Entry ‘ tickets which as they suggest, allow you to enter at any point on your chosen day. They are, like fast track tickets, more expensive – but if you need to be flexible with your timings they might just work for you.
Tickets can be purchased from the official website (below). You will need to scroll down on the ticket page to find the fast track tickets, which are underneath standard and combined attraction tickets.
St Paul’s Cathedral – timed entry tickets
St Paul’s Cathedral is one of the most famous and most recognisable sights of London, with its dome, dominating the skyline for 300 years. At 365ft (111m) high, it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1962, and its dome is also among the highest in the world.
St Paul’s is open for sightseeing from Monday to Saturday. Currently the Whispering Gallery remains closed to the public until further notice, whilst the Golden Gallery is subject to availability due to continued distancing measures and there may be time restrictions in place.
You now need to book tickets in advance to gain entry to St. Paul’s Cathedral; you select both your visit date and preferred timeslot.
Booking on the official website only allows for bookings up to one month in advance; if you wish to guarantee tickets for further ahead there are some third-party websites (see below) who have a reserve of tickets for up to three months in advance, for which you pay the same ticket price.
The View from the Shard – your ticket options
The Shard isn’t only the tallest building in London, it’s the tallest in the whole of Western Europe. So essentially the proposition is a very simple one. Ride a fast lift to the top floors (69 to 72) and take in breathtaking 360-degree views of England’s capital that stretches to 40 miles (64km) on a clear day.
Like other London attractions, Shard tickets are timed entry, every 15 minutes, and you can stay as long as you wish!
Tickets are often sold out in the days leading up to any weekend up to about three weeks ahead – after this time you can usually find tickets available for a weekend.
The View from the Shard offers a few different ticket types. You can choose from a general standard ticket or Shard tickets with a cruise.
When you decide to visit might affect your decision as to whether to pay extra and purchase Shard fast track tickets. If you visit on a quiet period on a weekday you might find you don’t have to queue very much at all. Visit on a weekend and it will likely be a different story. In theory, timeslots should reduce your waiting time, but you should still expect to have to queue.
Fast track tickets for Mastercard holders only:
These tickets are called “Mastercard VIP Tour” and only for Mastercard holders only anyway. The package includes a glass of champagne, guidebook and digital photos included.
If you wish to book these tickets please visit the official Shard website.
Alternatively click on the banner below for general admission tickets.
More about The View from the Shard
Windsor Castle – timed ticket entry
Windsor Castle is always a busy place and at peak times in summer queues are known to be up to an hour. In the past when you could still buy walk-up tickets, prebooking for a set date was always a good idea if you wanted to avoid queuing during peak periods.
Today it is required that you prebook your tickets for Windsor Castle. This gives you a guaranteed entry slot, which helps to manage visitor numbers inside the Castle.
The busiest times for entry to Windsor Castle have always been mid morning, although now with number control this is more regulated.
The link below will take you to Visit Britain, where you can purchase official Windsor Castle tickets for the same price as from the official RCT website, with timeslots running every half an hour.
Hampton Court Palace – pre-book tickets to guarantee entry
Like Windsor Castle, Hampton Court sits besides the River Thames west of the capital. Famous for its connections with Henry VIII, Hampton Court is a true palace built to impress with extensive grounds. There is so much to do at Hampton Court Palace it is worth allowing an entire day to do it properly. It is a great day out for both adults and families alike.
Strictly speaking, it is still possible to purchase walk-up tickets at Hampton Court – however, like nearly all popular London attractions, Hampton Court are strongly recommending you to pre-book. Not only do you guarantee your entry, saving you a wait and trouble when you get there, you also save a few pounds off the gate rate price.
During peak times, such as school holidays, hourly timeslots are in place – meaning you can arrive at any time during that one hourly slot. During off-peak times (during UK term time) there are no timeslots and you can arrive any time within our opening hours (pre-booking still advised).
Tickets include all open public areas of the palace plus the gardens, courtyards, the Maze and the Magic Garden (weekends only). Access to the Magic Garden is on a strictly first come, first served basis.
Family saver tickets are also available.
More about Hampton Court Palace
Huge savings on top London attractions with the London Pass
The London Pass can save you £££’s on walk-up entry prices for over 80 of London’s top attractions.
Included in the pass are:
Tower of London, Tower Bridge, London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Madam Tussauds, London Bridge Experience, Chessington World of Adventures, London Zoo, St. Paul’s Cathedral, View from the Shard, and many, many more.
Go City London Explorer Pass – this pass is similar to the London Pass only instead of allowing entry for a set number of days, it gives entry for up to 60 days, and you purchase by the number of attractions you wish to visit.
To purchase either of these passes follow the links below.
THE LONDON PASS by Go City
The more you visit the more you save
- Access 90+ London attractions
- 1 to 10 day passes available
GO CITY London passes
Save up to 50% on top London attractions
- Choose from two passes: All-Inclusive (unlimited) and Explorer (over 60 days)
- Many of London’s popular tours and attractions to choose from
Popular London Attractions – Advance Purchase and/or Fast Track Tickets
- London Eye: Amazing panoramic flight on the world’s highest observation wheel. » Fast track tickets available.
- The Shard: Tallest building in Western Europe with viewing of London from the top. » Fast track tickets available.
- St Paul’s Cathedral: Cathedral of the Diocese of London, venue for royal weddings. » Pre-book to guarantee entry.
- Westminster Abbey: Along with St Paul’s, England’s main religious building. » Pre-book to guarantee entry.
- Tower of London: Home of the Crown Jewels and a rich thousand-year history. » Pre-book to guarantee entry.
- Madame Tussauds: See wax statues of the most famous people in the world. » Fast track tickets available.
- London Dungeon: The creepiest attraction in town, the London Dungeon. » Fast track tickets available.
- Hampton Court Palace: Henry VIII’s medieval palace set in vast grounds. » Pre-book to save money.
- The London Zoo: World-class zoo in the centre of London. » Flexi tickets available.