First, sort out your Harry Potter tour and, if you like, a visit to Big Ben. Then book your slots for the free viewing platforms at Sky Garden or Horizon 22.

For other attractions, it mainly depends on whether you need a specific day and time.

London is well worth a visit even without a long list of tickets. However, if you want to get inside any of the following places, booking in advance is essential.

What to book first

Venue	When to book	Booking
Harry Potter Studios	Immediately after selecting a date	Booking required
Big Ben – tower tour	Tickets on sale 3 months in advance	Monthly sales
Sky Garden	Up to 3 weeks in advance	Free booking
Horizon 22	After the dates have been published	Free booking
Buckingham Palace – interiors	After selecting a tour	Visitor calendar

An empty calendar does not necessarily mean the tour is fully booked. For some venues, bookings for your preferred date may not yet be open. This is particularly true when planning a trip several months in advance.

Before allocating tickets to specific days, you should also choose where to stay in London. For a short stay, I’d mainly compare these two options:

• Park Plaza London Westminster Bridge – a convenient location for Westminster and the London Eye. When choosing a room, pay attention to the view; the hotel’s location alone does not guarantee a view of the sights.
• Motel One London–Tower Hill – ideal for a morning visit to the Tower and sightseeing in the City. Standard rooms are small, around 16 m².

Harry Potter: I wouldn’t put off booking this

You’ll need a ticket purchased in advance for the Warner Bros. Studio Tour.

If the studios are the main reason for your trip, check your tickets first and only then confirm the rest of your itinerary. I wouldn’t wait until the last week.

• When to book: as soon as you know your travel dates and tickets go on sale.
• How much time to allow: most of the day, including travel to and from the city centre.
• What to do if tickets are sold out: try another day or contact the authorised ticket agents listed on the studio’s website. When comparing packages that include transport, look at the total price.

You can find transport options and details in the Harry Potter Studios guide.

For example, on my last trip, we wanted to book tickets about a week in advance, but the only available slot wasn’t until 6.15 pm, which certainly wouldn’t have been enough time for a proper tour.

Sky Garden and Horizon 22: free, but requires planning

With free viewing platforms, you’ll need to check availability.

Without a booking, you’ve practically no chance of getting in.

An alternative to the free viewing platforms, where no booking is required, is the Garden at 120.

Sky Garden

Dates are published on a weekly basis, no more than three weeks before your visit. If you’re planning your trip much further in advance, make a note of when to check the calendar again.

Ideally, choose several suitable times. If you’re only staying for a short time, don’t limit yourself unnecessarily to just the hour before sunset.

Book your free reservation via the official Sky Garden website. We describe transport and what to expect during your visit in a separate Sky Garden guide.

Horizon 22

Horizon 22 also offers a standard free visit on selected dates. Select a standard free ticket from the calendar; paid experiences are a different product.

If you only have a few days in London, make sure you secure a slot before you travel. I wouldn’t base your whole day’s itinerary on the possibility of getting a place without a booking.

Book on the official Horizon 22 website.

Is one viewing platform enough for you? First, make your decision based on our comparison of London’s viewing platforms. Only then should you look for a date.

Big Ben and Buckingham Palace: check exactly what you’re buying

With these two attractions, there’s a crucial difference between viewing them from the outside and visiting the interior.

A tour of the Big Ben tower

You can take photos of Big Ben from the outside without a ticket. A tour inside the tower must be booked separately and places are limited.

Tickets go on sale on the second Wednesday of the month at 10.00 am London time for visits three months later.

If you’re interested in this tour, keep an eye on the UK Parliament’s calendar.

Please read the terms and conditions before purchasing: the standard tour involves 334 steps and is suitable for visitors aged 11 and over.

The interiors of Buckingham Palace

The State Rooms are not normally open all year round. Standard tours take place in the summer; outside this season, selected guided tours may be available.

You should therefore first check the palace’s current programme to see if the tour you’re interested in is taking place on your chosen dates.

You do not need a ticket to view the palace façade. Practical information is available on the Buckingham Palace page.

What to buy a few days in advance

For the following attractions, I’d sort out tickets mainly because of the programme and to choose a specific time slot. It isn’t necessary to automatically buy everything several months in advance.

Venue	My recommended lead time	Where to start
London Eye	About a week	Tickets
Tower of London	A few days to a week	Tickets
Westminster Abbey	A few days to a week	Tickets
The Shard	A week to 14 days	Tickets
Tower Bridge – interior	A few days	Tickets

• London Eye: buying tickets online in advance is cheaper than buying them on the spot. The time shown on the ticket indicates your place in the queue, not the time you’ll actually board the capsule.
• Tower of London: booking an admission ticket does not guarantee you’ll skip any queues for the Crown Jewels. I’d allow at least 3 hours for the visit.
• Westminster Abbey: there are no regular guided tours on Sundays. Please reschedule your visit for another day.
• Tower Bridge: crossing the bridge is free of charge. A ticket is required for a tour of the interior and the upper walkways.

You can find further details about visiting the London Eye, the Tower of London and Tower Bridge.

Free museums: booking in advance is helpful, but not compulsory everywhere

You don’t necessarily have to plan a visit to a free museum in the same way as a paid attraction with limited availability.

Museum	Regular collections	Booking
British Museum	Free	Recommended
Natural History Museum	Free	Recommended
National Gallery	Free	Optional

The British Museum and the Natural History Museum also accept visitors without a booking, subject to current capacity. At the Natural History Museum, a free booking guarantees entry; at the British Museum, it helps with priority entry during busy times. Special exhibitions may have separate paid tickets.

I would book a free slot at the British Museum mainly if you only have one specific morning to visit the museum.

What you can leave until you get there

If you’d prefer a more flexible itinerary, you don’t need to base your whole day around your booking.

• Westminster Bridge and the view of Big Ben: no booking required.
• Walking across Tower Bridge and strolling along the riverfront: no ticket required to cross the bridge.
• The Garden at 120: a free rooftop garden, open to the general public without a booking.
• Shad Thames, Soho and Covent Garden: walks without a booking.
• Borough Market: no admission fee; the market itself is closed on Mondays.

However, if a specific West End show, a football match or a renowned restaurant is the reason for your trip, you should book these straight away. In such cases, it depends on the specific event and the date.

How I’d organise the bookings into the itinerary

1. Choose the most important experience. Harry Potter, a tour of Big Ben or a specific show can shape the whole day.
2. Check the hotel’s location. Compare hotel prices in London for your dates and how well they fit in with the neighbourhoods you’ve planned to visit.
3. Book one sightseeing attraction. Booking several similar attractions may unnecessarily fragment your itinerary.
4. Add in paid attractions. Leave time between two visits for transport, meals and any waiting times.
5. Leave the rest open. Parks, walks and some museums can easily be rescheduled depending on the weather.

For a specific order of attractions, use our 3-day London itinerary.

Before you arrive, also check transport options from your London airport – I wouldn’t book your first journey for straight after your scheduled arrival.

Have you ever experienced a sold-out date or, conversely, visited a place without a booking? Please write in the comments which place and time of year you’re referring to.