Big Ben: The Bell, the Tower, and the 334-Step Commitment

Big Ben is not the tower. It’s the 13-tonne bell inside the tower, cast in 1858 at a Whitechapel foundry and named, most likely, after Sir Benjamin Hall, the Commissioner of Works who oversaw its installation. The tower itself is officially called Elizabeth Tower, renamed in 2012 to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. This distinction matters mainly because it’s the kind of thing a tour guide tells you at the start of the visit and everyone promptly forgets, but the bell’s specific character is worth knowing: it cracked in 1859, just two months after installation, was rotated slightly to present a different striking surface, and has sounded like that ever since. The famous Westminster chime you hear on the hour is not quite what was originally intended, and it’s better for it.

Getting Inside: The Tour

The tower is open to visitors, but “open” requires a significant asterisk. Tickets are released on the second Wednesday of each month at 10am, for visits three months out. They sell out within minutes. There is no walk-up option, and the only way in is through the official UK Parliament website. Adults pay £55, children aged 11-17 pay £35. Children under 11 are not admitted.

The tour involves climbing 334 steps on a narrow spiral staircase. At the top, you stand in the belfry where the bells hang, in close proximity to the clock mechanism, with views over Westminster from the open windows. The tour is 90 minutes. Ear defenders are provided for when the bells strike, but expect noise.

If you cannot get a tour ticket, the exterior views are free and excellent: from Westminster Bridge, from the Victoria Tower Gardens on the south side of Parliament, and from Parliament Square. The tower was restored between 2017 and 2022 in the most significant renovation since its construction, and the stonework is cleaner and more detailed than it has looked in decades.

The Houses of Parliament

The Palace of Westminster, the building the tower rises from, is itself worth a guided tour independent of the Big Ben visit. Free public tours require advance booking through your local MP or via the Capitol Visitor Center. They cover the Central Lobby, Westminster Hall (the oldest part of the palace, dating to 1097 and one of the finest medieval timber-roofed spaces in Europe), the House of Commons chamber, and the House of Lords. When Parliament is in recess, access is more available; when in session, observing debates from the public gallery is possible with advance reservation. This is considerably more interesting than most people expect.

Where to Eat Nearby

The Cinnamon Club in the Old Westminster Library, a five-minute walk from the bridge, does modern Indian cooking in a converted Victorian reading room. Lunch is around £35 per person, and the architectural setting is part of the reason to go.

For something considerably less formal, The Two Chairmen pub on Dartmouth Street behind Westminster is a proper pub with a decent kitchen and a room that hasn’t been dramatically renovated since the 1980s. Good for a pint and a pie if you’ve just done the Houses of Parliament tour and want to sit down.

The Wolseley on Piccadilly, 15 minutes’ walk north, is London’s best brasserie for breakfast: high ceilings, grand room, good coffee, full breakfast from £16. Book ahead for a weekend.

Where to Stay

The area immediately around Westminster is expensive and, to be honest, not the most exciting part of London to base yourself. Park Plaza Westminster Bridge is convenient and reliable, with Thames views from upper floors. Mid-range: The Z Hotel Westminster on Buckingham Gate is well-run, compact, and significantly cheaper than its neighbours while still walking distance from the main sights.

If you’re willing to take the Tube, staying in Southwark, Borough, or Bermondsey puts you in neighbourhoods with better food and drinking options at lower room rates, with Westminster a 10-minute connection away.

Practical Notes

The Tower Bridge, often confused with Big Ben by visitors who haven’t quite arrived yet, is 2.5 kilometres east along the Thames. They are different structures. Big Ben is the clock tower next to Parliament, over the river from the South Bank. Getting off at Westminster station on the Jubilee or District lines puts you at the base of the tower within 90 seconds.

Westminster Bridge offers the most photographed angle: the tower framed above the Thames from the north side, particularly good in early morning light before the tourist coaches arrive. The surrounding area gets extremely crowded at midday. Go before 9am or after 6pm for a clearer view.