Is the London Go City Pass Worth It? An Honest Verdict and How to Get the Most Out of It
Is it worth it?
- Worth itYes, if you're a tourist with 2-4 full sightseeing days. You'll realistically see 3-4 big paid sights a day, and that's where the pass pays off.
- Skip itNo, at a relaxed pace or if you mainly want London's free museums. Buy the few tickets you need.
- Skip itNo, if you live in London. Visit one place at a time instead.
- Save up to 50%
- 100+ attractions
- Refund if unused (90 days)
What is The London Go City Pass?
A city pass is one ticket that gets you into many attractions, usually for less than buying each ticket separately, but only if you use it enough.
With the London Go City Pass you pick a number of days and visit as many included attractions as you like on those days, each one once.
The seller advertises savings of up to 50% compared with buying each ticket separately. That's the best case, for someone who packs in many paid sights. Light sightseers save little or lose money.
- Attractions
- 100+
- Pass length
- 1-7 or 10 days
- Starts
- First scan
- Each day ends
- Midnight
How to get the most value out of The London Go City Pass
The pass charges by the day, so the more paid sights you fit into each day, the more you save.
| Don't | Do this instead |
|---|---|
| Activate the pass in the afternoon | Start at opening time. Each day ends at midnight, so a 3 pm start wastes most of a paid day. |
| Zig-zag across the city | Group by area: Tower of London, Tower Bridge and St Paul's in one go. Give Windsor or Hampton Court their own half-day. |
| Head to the next sight without knowing how busy it is | Check live crowds on beatthecrowd.co first. Go where it's quiet now and come back to the busy one later. |
| Pre-book slots before your dates are fixed | Booking a slot starts the pass. Book once your dates are set, then plan the rest around those slots. |
| Plan a Sunday around churches | St Paul's and Westminster Abbey close to sightseers on Sundays. Use Sunday for palaces and towers. |
Before you set off for the next attraction, check how busy it is right now on beatthecrowd.co. An hour in a queue is an attraction you don't get to.
Check live crowds in London →Who The London Go City Pass is for
Good fit
- You'll pack several big paid sights into each pass day
- You want the big paid landmarks: Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, St Paul's, Tower Bridge
- You're happy with early starts and full days
- You like one QR code instead of booking every ticket separately
Skip it if
- You prefer 1-2 sights a day at an easy pace
- You're mainly visiting museums: most of London's big ones are free
- You live in London or have already seen the main sights
- You only want one or two paid attractions
- Save up to 50%
- 100+ attractions
- Refund if unused (90 days)
What the pass covers
The pass includes 100+ London attractions and tours, each entered once. Below are the big sights most people buy it for, and which ones need booking, cost extra or aren't included.
- Big-ticket sights earn the cost back: Tower of London (about £37), Windsor Castle (£32+), St Paul's (£27), a Thames cruise.
- 100+ attractions doesn't mean 100+ savings. You'll visit a handful, and most are small or niche. You only save on what you actually go to.
The big sights
- Tower of LondonIncluded
- Westminster AbbeyBook a slotBook in the Go City app, up to 10 days ahead. Closed to sightseers on Sundays and during services.
- St Paul's CathedralIncludedClosed to sightseers on Sundays.
- Tower BridgeBook a slotBook in the Go City app, up to 10 days ahead.
- Kensington PalaceIncluded
- Hampton Court PalaceIncluded
- The Royal MewsIncludedSeasonal: open spring to autumn, and closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays outside the summer holidays. Check before you go.
- London Transport MuseumIncluded
- The Courtauld GalleryIncluded
- Moco Museum LondonIncluded
- Imperial War MuseumIncludedGeneral entry is free anyway. The pass adds a souvenir guidebook, collected at the level 0 information desk.
- Stonehenge (day trip)Book a slotA half-day coach tour. Pick a date in the tour's booking portal and add your pass numbers.
- Windsor CastleBook a slotPass entry only after 1 pm, subject to availability on the day. The castle closes on some weekdays outside summer.
- The View from The ShardBook a slotIncluded. Book a slot in the app, up to 30 days ahead.
- London EyeBook a slotIncluded. Book at least a day ahead (up to 15 days). Standard entry, no fast track.
- Madame Tussauds LondonBook a slotIncluded. Book a slot in the app, up to 15 days ahead.
- Warner Bros. Studio Tour LondonNot includedNot on the London Pass list. Book directly, from about £56.
- Buckingham Palace State RoomsNot includedNot on the London Pass list. The pass covers the Royal Mews next door instead.
- British Museum, National Gallery, Natural History Museum, V&A, Tate ModernNot includedFree to enter anyway.
Also on the pass
- Stadium tours: Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Wembley, London Stadium
- Hop-on hop-off bus tours
- Guided walking tours
- Up at The O2
- London Cable Car
- Day trips: Stonehenge, Blenheim Palace
- Food and drink: afternoon tea, gin and brewery tours
- Museum of Illusions, Imperial War Museum and more
The pass works like a credit balance at each attraction's gate price. Once it's used up the pass stops working, even if days are left. £1 of gate price is 1 credit: a 1-day adult pass has 305 credits, a 3-day 670, a 5-day 1,010 and a 10-day 1,700. Most visitors never hit it.
Some sights need a timed slot booked in the pass app after you buy. Look for the 'Reservations required' label. The big ones: the London Eye (at least a day ahead, up to 15 days), Tower Bridge and Westminster Abbey (up to 10 days ahead), plus day trips like Stonehenge and Blenheim Palace.
- Save up to 50%
- 100+ attractions
- Refund if unused (90 days)
Pass vs individual tickets
Add up the gate prices of the sights you'll really visit on your pass days. The pass only wins if that beats its price. For reference, the four biggest sights (Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, St Paul's, Tower Bridge) come to about £113 at adult gate prices. Free museums don't count.
| Pass length | Adult price | To break even |
|---|---|---|
| 1 day | From £105 | About 4 big sights, e.g. Tower of London, Tower Bridge, St Paul's and Westminster Abbey (about £112-115) |
| 2-10 days | More in total, less per day. Check the live price for your length on the buy page | 3-4 big paid sights on every pass day |
Worked example: one packed day
Monday to Saturday: Tower of London and Tower Bridge in the morning, St Paul's at lunchtime, Westminster Abbey in the afternoon. Book the Tower Bridge and Abbey slots in the app first.
| Attraction | Adult ticket bought separately |
|---|---|
| Tower of London | About £37-38 |
| Tower Bridge | About £16-18 |
| St Paul's Cathedral | £27 |
| Westminster Abbey | £32 |
| Total separately | About £112-115 |
| 1-day London Go City Pass | From £105 |
| You save | About £7-10 |
Skip any one of the four, or swap one for the free British Museum, and the pass loses money. Compare against each attraction's online price, which is often lower than the gate price used in savings claims.
- Save up to 50%
- 100+ attractions
- Refund if unused (90 days)
Fine print
- Activation
- Starts at your first scan, not when you buy. Pre-booking a slot also counts as activation.
- Days
- Consecutive calendar days. Each ends at midnight, whatever time you started.
- Visits
- Each attraction once per pass.
- Validity
- Activate within one year of purchase.
- Refunds
- Full refund within 90 days if not activated or pre-booked. None once used.
- Closures
- Attractions can close on your day. Check opening days, especially churches on Sundays.
- Entry
- Scan your pass QR code at each entrance. You can print it as a backup.
- Guarantee
- If your sights cost less than the pass, you can claim the difference within 14 days of your last use. Only for passes bought on the London Pass website, scanned at least 3 times every pass day.
Is it safe? Where people lose money
- Reassuring: It's the official London Go City Pass, sold through GetYourGuide, a large booking platform.
- Reassuring: Unused passes can be refunded within 90 days of purchase, as long as you haven't scanned in or pre-booked.
- Reassuring: Entry is a QR code in an app, with a printable backup.
- Watch out: No refund once it's started, even if you only use one day of a three-day pass.
- Watch out: Attractions can close on your day, and the pass can't guarantee they'll be open.
Where people lose money
| Don't | Do this instead |
|---|---|
| Count free museums as value | The British Museum, National Gallery and Natural History Museum are free. Leave them out of your maths. |
| Buy more days than you'll fill | Buy pass days only for your busiest sightseeing days, not your whole trip. Few people do several paid sights every day for a week. |
| Turn up at The Shard or Madame Tussauds without a slot | Both are on the pass but need a time slot booked in the app first: up to 30 days ahead for The Shard, 15 days for Madame Tussauds. |
| Queue at whichever sight you reach next | Check beatthecrowd.co before you go. An hour in a queue is an attraction you don't get to. |
| Expect transport to be included | It isn't. Use contactless or an Oyster card for the Tube and buses. |
Queuing is the easiest way to lose value. Check which London sights are quiet right now on beatthecrowd.co, and go there first.
Check live crowds in London →- Save up to 50%
- 100+ attractions
- Refund if unused (90 days)
Alternatives
Choose 2-7 attractions and use them within 30 days of first use. Read our verdict.
Planning your order and avoiding queues is the simplest way to get full value: see how busy London’s attractions are right now →
- Save up to 50%
- 100+ attractions
- Refund if unused (90 days)
FAQs
Is the London Go City Pass worth it?
+
Only if the paid sights you visit on your pass days cost more than the pass. The four biggest sights (Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, St Paul's, Tower Bridge) come to about £113 at adult gate prices; compare that with the price for your number of days. At 1-2 sights a day, or with mostly free museums, individual tickets are usually cheaper.
When does the London Go City Pass start?
+
The first time you scan in at an attraction. Pre-booking a timed slot also counts as activation. Each pass day then ends at midnight.
Does the London Go City Pass include the London Eye?
+
Yes. Standard entry (no fast track) is included, but you must book a slot in the app, at least a day ahead. The Shard and Madame Tussauds are included too, also with a booked slot.
Does the London Go City Pass include transport?
+
No. Use contactless or an Oyster card for the Tube and buses.
Can I visit an attraction twice?
+
No. Each attraction can be entered once per pass.
Can I get a refund?
+
Yes, if the pass hasn't been activated or used for a reservation, within 90 days of purchase.
London Go City Pass or London Go City Explorer Pass?
+
The London Go City Pass suits short, packed trips (pay by the day). The Explorer Pass suits slower trips where you know the 2-7 sights you want (pay by attraction, 30 days to use).
Is there a limit on how much I can use?
+
Yes. The pass runs on credit at each attraction's gate price, with a cap that depends on how many days you bought. Most visitors don't reach it.