St Paul's Cathedral
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St Paul's from Ludgate Hill
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St Paul's Cathedral is without doubt one of London's most prominent buildings, and of all Sir Christopher Wren's churches in the City this is his most best known legacy. It is also the site of Charles and Diana's fairytale wedding and the Queen's recent birthday and Jubilee celebrations. As one of the principal London landmarks a visit to St Paul's is on almost every visitor's agenda. Millions of people come to the steps of the church and take their pictures by the huge columns that line the entrance. Yet a far smaller crowd is found wandering around inside.
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The beautiful Quire ceiling
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There are three main elements to a visit to St Paul's. Firstly there is wandering the floor of the church. Run your gaze up the marble white walls and mighty columned arches and your eyes will soon rest of the spectacular ceiling art that adorns much of the Cathedral, particularly the Quire (yes, that's how they spell it). St Paul's main feature is the Dome, designed by Wren as observatory linking heaven and earth. Standing or sitting directly below it is impossible not to be impressed by its sheer size and beauty. There is a No Photo policy in St Paul's, although this was widely ignored as many folk snapped away at the Dome and the beautiful mosaics around the Cathedral.
The second, and perhaps most memorable aspect of a St Paul's visit is a climb up to the Galleries. The first ascent involves a climb of 257 wide and gentle steps to the Whispering Gallery. This is the wide base of the dome itself, and visitors can walk around its full circumference. The Whispering Gallery gets its name from the fact that if you whisper into the wall on one side of the gallery a listener positioned on the other side of the dome, 32 metres away, can hear that whisper. It's a marvel of 17th century acoustic design, and it even works when the Gallery is packed with a crowd of noisy Russian school children.
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The final ascent to the Golden Gallery
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Climbing from the Whispering Gallery, another 119 steps will take you to the Stone Gallery, offering excellent external views over London. The views are better still from the uppermost Golden Gallery, although if you choose to climb the final 152 steps during peak tourist season be prepared for a very slow climb, and the numbers allowed onto the tiny Golden Gallery are restricted and a queue grows on the final ascent. From the top the views are spectacular and on a par with those from the London Eye (while the Eye is a higher strcuture St Paul's benefits from being on a hill to start with).
Once you have descended back to ground level, the final part of St Paul's to explore is the crypt. Here you'll find the tombs of the great and the good, including the prominent tombs of Admiral Nelson and the Duke of Wellington. There is also a new display that goes by the name of Oculus, that shows panoramic films about the history of St Paul's from it's earliest times. It is projected onto three sides of a small sub-terranean chamber, and viewers sit on the floor to observe the short films.
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View from the top
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A visit to St Paul's is a must for any visitor and an unforgettable experience to enjoy the historical heart of London
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£11.50
St Paul's Cathedral - Tickets
St Paul's is an iconic feature of the London skyline. A new exhibition, Oculus, is now open at St Paul's Cathedral. Oculus will span a timeline of 1400 years of history interspersed with images and dates that float across the screens.
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£14.50
St Paul's Cathedral & Tower Bridge Exhibition
Save up to 25% on entrance tickets to the Tower Bridge Exhibition and St Paul's Cathedral. The new exhibition, Oculus, is now open at The Cathedral spanning a timeline of 1400 years of history.
Prices from:
£26.50
Tower of London & St Paul's Cathedral
Jump the queue at the Tower of London and save 10% when you purchase Tower of London and St Paul's Cathedral tickets.
Prices from:
£27.00
St Paul's Cathedral & The London Eye
Save up to 12% with our London Eye and St Paul's Cathedral package. Visit the new Oculus exhibition at St Paul's Cathedral.
Prices from:
£30.00
St Paul's Cathedral & Original London Open Top Bus Tour
Save up to 20% on the Original London Open Top Bus Tour and entrance to St Paul's Cathedral, where the new exhibition Oculus has just opened.
Prices from:
£40.00
London & The City, Tower of London, St Pauls & River Cruise
Take in the Gems of London as you visit some of the most popular sights and attractions in the city including St Pauls Cathedral, The Tower of London and a River Thames Cruise on this fully guided tour.