St Paul’s Cathedral is one of the most famous sights in London, with a dome that has dominated the London skyline for over 300 years.
The cathedral is dedicated to Paul the Apostle and dates to AD 604.
More than 1.5 million tourists visit this attraction in London every year.
In this article, we explain everything you need to know before buying St Paul’s Cathedral tickets.
Top St. Paul’s Cathedral Tickets
# St Paul’s fast-track entrance ticket
# Welcome to London Tour
# Walking tour + St Pauls Cathedral entry
Table of contents
What to expect at St Paul’s Cathedral
St Paul’s Cathedral tickets
If you want to explore St Paul’s Cathedral, you must buy a ticket.
You can cancel these tickets with a full refund, up to 24 hours before your date of visit.
Where to buy tickets
You can get your St Paul’s Cathedral entry tickets at the venue or buy them online, much in advance.
If you plan to get them at the attraction, you must get in the ticketing window queue.
Depending on the time of the day (and month), you may have to wait in the ticket counter line for 10 to 20 minutes to buy your ticket.
The second and better option is to book tickets to St Paul’s Cathedral online.
When you buy them in advance, you save yourself a lot of waiting time and save money.
Why online tickets are better
We recommend you buy St Paul’s Cathedral admission tickets online because of two reasons –
Reason 1: Online tickets are £2 cheaper than the price you will pay at the venue
Reason 2: You won’t have to stand in the queue at the ticketing counter
How online tickets work
When you buy St Paul’s Cathedral tickets, they get emailed to you.
You don’t need to take any printouts.
Now all you must do is, reach the cathedral between 8.30 am and 4 pm on a weekday.
Since you are within the sightseeing hours, you can show your entry ticket on your smartphone and walk into the church.
St Paul’s Cathedral ticket price
St Paul’s Cathedral tickets cost £17 for visitors 18 years and above and £7.20 for kids between six to 17 years when you book them online.
Seniors 60 years and older and students with valid IDs of educational institutes qualify for a £2 discount and pay only £15 for entry.
Children five years and younger don’t need tickets.
If you visit as a family, you can further reduce your St Paul’s Cathedral ticket costs by opting for the family ticket.
The family ticket for one adult and up to three kids costs £29, while a family ticket for two adults and three kids costs £41.
St Paul’s fast-track entrance ticket
The fast track admission is the cheapest and most popular St Paul’s cathedral ticket.
You skip the long lines at the ticketing counter, and walk right in to explore the cathedral floor, the crypt, and go up the galleries.
It includes the multimedia guide, which you can pick up at the entrance.
Ticket price at the venue
Adult ticket (18+years): £19
Student ticket (with valid ID card): £17
Seniors ticket (60+ years): £17
Child ticket (6 to 17 years): £9
Online ticket price
Adult ticket (18+years): £17
Student ticket (with valid ID card): £15
Seniors ticket (60+ years): £15
Child ticket (6 to 17 years): £7.20
Important: If you are a family, we recommend choosing the ‘Family’ option on the ticket booking page. If you buy the family package, you will save more than £8.
Welcome to London Tour
The Welcome to London Tour starts at 7.45 am and lasts nine hours.
You drive around the city of London to see the significant landmarks and stop by at various places.
During the day, you also experience a scenic private cruise on the River Thames, a private tour of the Tower of London to see the Crown Jewels, and a tour of St. Paul’s Cathedral.
This ticket can be canceled 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
Ticket price
Adult ticket (17 to 59 years): £99
Seniors ticket (60+ years): £96
Child ticket (3 to 16 years): £89
Walking tour + St Pauls Cathedral entry
This six-hour tour starts at 10 am and is the fastest way to explore 30 London attractions in a day.
At the end of the tour, you get to step into St. Paul’s Cathedral, one of the oldest cathedrals in the world.
Ticket price
Adult ticket (14+ years): £66
Child ticket (3 to 13 years): £10
If you want to keep it simple, we recommend this Old London walking tour in which you get to explore St Paul Cathedral from the outside.
St Paul’s Cathedral, Tower of London & River Cruise
In this popular combination ticket, you get whisked around London’s landmarks and cruise along the Thames.
A local guide gives you a guided tour of St Paul’s Cathedral and the Tower of London, after which you can go on a River Thames cruise to Westminster Pier.
The four-and-a-half-hour tour happens in an ac coach, with a personal audio headset, so that you can hear the guide at all times.
Kids two years and below join the tour for free.
Ticket price
Adult ticket (17+ years): £81
Child ticket (3 to 16 years): £76
Student ticket (with valid ID): £78
Senior ticket (60+ years): £78
Family ticket (2 adults & 2 children): £304
How to reach St Paul’s Cathedral
St Paul’s Cathedral sits on Ludgate Hill, the highest point of London city.
Ludgate Hill is one of the three ancient hills in London.
Since St Paul’s Cathedral is far away from the hustle and bustle of West End London, it seems like a spot trapped in time.
We recommend public transport to get to St Paul’s because parking slots are hard to come by, especially during peak hours.
Since it is a highly rated attraction, it draws a lot of tourists.
Metro is the most convenient way to get to St Paul’s Cathedral because St Paul’s station is only 2-minutes’ walk from the cathedral.
The other London Underground stations within 1 km (less than half a mile) of the Cathedral are – Mansion House, Blackfriars, and Bank.
If you plan to take the train, the nearest is the City Thameslink station.
From City Thameslink, a brisk 3-minute walk can get you to St Paul’s Cathedral.
If a bus is your preferred mode of transport, we recommend route numbers 4, 11, 15, 23, 25, 26, 100, and 242.
St Paul’s Cathedral hours
From Monday to Saturday, St Paul’s Cathedral opens at 7.30 am with a prayer, which goes on till 8.30 am.
Visitors who want to explore the cathedral can enter from 8.30 am onwards, and the last entry is at 4 pm.
At 4.30 pm, all sightseeing visitors must exit the cathedral.
On Sunday, prayers start at 8 am and go on till 7 pm. Tourists aren’t allowed inside to look around.
When do St Paul’s Cathedral galleries open?
The St Paul’s Cathedral has two galleries – the Stone Gallery and the Golden Gallery.
Both these galleries open at 9.30 am.
For a more detailed program schedule, click here.
Image: Stpauls.co.uk
Best time to visit St Paul Cathedral
The best time to visit St Paul’s Cathedral is before noon, on a weekday – preferably Monday to Thursday.
For a peaceful visit, it is best to be at the cathedral as soon as the morning prayer ends at 8.30 am.
The cathedral is most crowded between 12 noon to 5 pm on Fridays and Saturdays.
Since the Cathedral opens for sightseeing much before the other London attractions, some tourists plan this visit as their first activity.
How long does St Paul Cathedral take
Visitors who want to explore St Paul Cathedral’s main floor, crypt, and climb the dome, will need around two and a half hours.
If you only want to see the cathedral’s floor, your tour will last an hour.
Since it is a highly rated attraction, it draws a lot of tourists and can get crowded.
To save time and avoid the queue you must book your tickets in advance.
Save money & time! For a flat fee gain free ‘skip the line’ access to 60 London attractions. Buy The London Pass
St Paul Cathedral free entry
It is possible to enter St Paul’s Cathedral for free.
On Sundays, the service begins at 8 am and on other days at 7.30 am.
If you want to attend the service, you can enter the Cathedral for free.
You won’t be allowed inside after the prayer begins – so it is best to land up 15 minutes earlier.
However, it will only be a limited experience because you will be sitting down for the service.
When you enter the Cathedral for prayers, you can’t walk around and explore.
Besides, all the other areas are blocked off during the service.
Free with London Passes
Yet another way to enter St Paul’s Cathedral for free (well, almost) is by buying one of the London discount Passes.
These passes help you save money and time because you can skip the line at most places.
Our two favorites are London iVenture Pass and London Explorer Pass.
Mass timings
At St Paul’s Cathedral, from Monday to Saturday, the morning prayer starts at 7.30 am, followed by Eucharist at 8 am and 12.30 pm.
Music is an integral part of the prayer, and everybody can join in for free.
At 5 pm, there is a Choral Evensong, and around this time, there is an occasional evening prayer as well.
On Sundays, the day begins with holy communion at 8 am, followed by a Mattins at 10.15 am, and a sung Eucharist at 11.30 am.
A Choral Evensong is conducted at 3.15 pm and finally Eucharist at 6 pm.
You can find the full schedule of the St Paul’s mass here.
Dress code for St Paul’s Cathedral
There is no obligatory dress code for St Paul’s Cathedral in London.
However, since it is a religious place, visitors are expected to dress moderately.
Even though nobody will stop you from entering the Cathedral, low t-shirts with cleavage isn’t advised for women.
It is a common practice for visitors in doubt to throw a scarf over their shoulders.
St Paul’s Cathedral FAQs
Visitors to this London Cathedral have lots of questions.
Here are some frequently asked questions –
Who built St Paul’s Cathedral?
The present St Paul’s Cathedral is a masterpiece designed and conceptualized by Britain’s most famous architect, Sir Christopher Wren.When was St Paul’s Cathedral built?
The current St Paul’s Cathedral building is the fourth Cathedral to be standing on the site.
After the Great Fire of London destroyed the earlier cathedral, the current structure got built between 1675 and 1710.What is St Paul Cathedral's height?
St Paul’s Cathedral is 111.2 meters (365 feet) tall – it was the tallest building in London from 1710 to 1967.
The dome of the cathedral is among the highest in the world.
St Paul’s is the second biggest church building in the United Kingdom after Liverpool Cathedral.What is St Paul’s Cathedral Whispering Gallery?
The Whispering Gallery at the St. Paul’s Cathedral is considered one of London’s most visited accidental man-made attractions.
The whispering gallery sits 30 meters (98.5 feet) above the crossing of the nave.
It is a circular walkway that hugs the base of the dome structure at St Paul’s.
If you whisper something on one end of the wall, another person can hear it at the other end, which is why it is known as Whispering Gallery.
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