Houses of Parliament Tour
Guided 90-minute tour through the Palace of Westminster — Westminster Hall, the Commons and the Lords brought to life
Guided 90-minute tour through the Palace of Westminster — Westminster Hall, the Commons and the Lords brought to life
The Palace of Westminster has been the seat of English and British parliamentary power for nearly a thousand years. A guided tour takes you inside over 1,100 rooms worth of Gothic Revival architecture designed by Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin — from the medieval hammerbeam roof of Westminster Hall to the green and red leather benches where laws are debated and made.
Your guide walks you through the route that MPs and Lords take daily, pointing out centuries of art, stonework and political tradition along the way. You will stand in both chambers, pass through the Royal Gallery and see the Sovereign's Robing Room where the monarch prepares for the State Opening of Parliament.
The Palace of Westminster has served as the home of the English Parliament since the thirteenth century, though the building you see today is largely Victorian. A catastrophic fire in 1834 destroyed most of the original medieval palace, leaving only Westminster Hall, the Jewel Tower and the crypt chapel standing. The competition to design a replacement was won by Charles Barry, whose Gothic Revival masterpiece — with interiors by Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin — took thirty years to complete.
Walking through the palace today, you move between periods of history. Westminster Hall dates from 1097, with its famous hammerbeam roof added in 1401. The Victorian lobbies and chambers, completed in the 1850s and 1860s, are densely decorated with tile, carved stone, brass and stained glass. The House of Commons, destroyed by a Luftwaffe bomb in 1941, was rebuilt in a simpler style by Giles Gilbert Scott and reopened in 1950.
The guided tour follows the ceremonial route used by the monarch at each State Opening of Parliament. You enter through the Sovereign's entrance, pass through the Norman Porch and into the Robing Room, where the monarch puts on the Imperial State Crown and parliamentary robes. From here you walk through the Royal Gallery — lined with Maclise's colossal battle paintings — into the Prince's Chamber and then the House of Lords itself.
After the Lords, the tour moves through the Central Lobby, the octagonal hub linking both chambers, and into the Members' Lobby and the House of Commons. Guides explain the conventions: the mace that must be present for the House to sit, the lines on the carpet that members may not cross, and the division lobbies where votes are physically counted. The tour ends in Westminster Hall, where you can stand beneath the medieval roof that has witnessed the trials of Guy Fawkes, Charles I and Thomas More.
Guided tours in English depart every fifteen to twenty minutes on operating days. Saturday tours run year-round; weekday tours are available during parliamentary recess periods in Easter, summer and Christmas. Tours are not available when Parliament is sitting, so checking the calendar on the official website before booking is essential. The visitor entrance is at Cromwell Green on St Margaret Street — look for the airport-style security screening area.
Accessibility is good: the tour route is step-free and wheelchairs are accommodated, though you should note this when booking. Photography is permitted in most areas but not in the debating chambers themselves. There are no cloakroom facilities, so travel with small bags only. Allow extra time afterwards to visit Westminster Abbey, the Jewel Tower or the Supreme Court, all within a few minutes' walk.
One child goes free with each full-price adult ticket — book online in advance for guaranteed entry
Saturday tours run year-round and sell out weeks in advance, especially in summer. Midweek recess dates are easier to get but check the parliamentary calendar first.
Airport-style security screening at Cromwell Green takes time. Late arrivals may lose their booking without a refund, so build in a comfortable buffer.
The tour covers a fair distance through corridors and staircases over 75 to 90 minutes. The palace floors are hard stone and there are no places to sit down along the route.
The Abbey is directly across the road. Buy a morning Parliament tour and an afternoon Abbey ticket for a full day of Westminster history without backtracking.
Weekday tours only run when Parliament is in recess. The UK Parliament website publishes recess dates well in advance — plan around Easter, August or Christmas breaks.
London Travel Writer · 12+ years covering UK attractions and tourism
Last reviewed: March 9, 2026
