Full Royal Tour: Royal London & Buckingham Palace Tour

Royal London rewards a good pair of shoes. This five-hour experience combines a guided walk through London’s grandest royal sights with entry to Buckingham Palace, making it a strong first-day introduction for history fans. I especially like the small walking group, capped at 15 people, and the chance to see the Changing of the Guard from a guide-selected viewing spot on certain dates. The main drawback is the long walk, which one visitor measured at nearly 19,000 steps, followed by a palace visit that may be shared with a much larger crowd.

The tour is also practical: it starts at The Ritz London at 10 a.m., uses central streets rather than buses or taxis, and ends at Buckingham Palace. Guides including Will, Greg, Ari, Kris, and Brandon have been praised for lively storytelling and good crowd positioning, though palace timing and group arrangements can require close attention.

Key points to know before booking

• Buckingham Palace access is the main prize: You enter 19 State Rooms, see royal furnishings and art, walk through the gardens, and visit the Queen Victoria’s Palace exhibition.
• The small walking group has a 15-person limit: This makes it easier to hear the guide and ask questions during the outdoor portion.
• The route covers London’s royal core: Green Park, Trafalgar Square, Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall, Parliament Square, Westminster Abbey, and Buckingham Palace are all included.
• The walk is physically demanding: Plan on roughly three hours on foot, with limited places to sit and a possible total of about 19,000 steps.
• The Changing of the Guard is not guaranteed: It takes place only on certain days, but the guide will help you find a useful viewing position when it is scheduled.
• The palace portion is self-guided: Your walking guide gives you tickets and directions, then you continue inside with a multilingual audio guide.

What you are really getting for $103.07

At $103.07 per person, this is not a cheap walking tour. The value depends on how much you want two different experiences in one morning and afternoon: a live guide for the outdoor royal sights, followed by independent access to Buckingham Palace.

A standard sightseeing walk can show you the palace gates, Westminster, and Big Ben. This tour adds entry to the palace itself, which changes the calculation. You are not only looking at the King’s official London home from the pavement. You get inside 19 State Rooms, see objects from the Royal Collection, enter the gardens, and visit the Queen Victoria’s Palace exhibition.

I think the price is fair for a first visit if Buckingham Palace is high on your list. It is less appealing if you prefer to explore slowly, dislike group walks, or only want exterior views. The palace admission carries much of the value, while the walking portion saves you the work of planning a logical route through central London.

The tour is also useful for people who want context. The guide connects the buildings and ceremonies rather than treating each sight as an isolated photo stop. Guides Will, Greg, Ari, Kris, and Brandon have all been praised for clear explanations, humor, and an ability to keep people involved. That personal touch is most useful around the Changing of the Guard, where simply arriving at the palace gates does not guarantee a good view.

Starting at The Ritz and crossing Green Park

Meet at The Ritz London, 150 Piccadilly, at 10 a.m. From there, the walk begins through Green Park toward Buckingham Palace. This opening stretch gives you a calmer start before the crowds around the palace, and the guide uses it to set up the royal story.

The first Buckingham Palace stop is listed as about an hour and includes the walk through Green Park, exterior views, and an explanation of the building’s place in British royal life. On scheduled ceremony days, the guide will position the group for the Changing of the Guard.

Keep your expectations sensible. The ceremony is dependent on the day, and even a well-chosen spot cannot remove the crowds. Still, having someone who knows where to stand is useful. Ari and Kris were specifically praised for finding good positions during crowded events, while Will was credited with explaining the difference between the Queen’s Clock Tower and Big Ben, a confusion that catches many first-time visitors.

After the palace, you walk along The Mall. This broad ceremonial avenue links the palace area with Trafalgar Square and gives the route a clear sense of direction. It is also one reason the experience feels like a proper city introduction rather than a collection of unrelated stops.

Trafalgar Square in a compact 20 minutes

Trafalgar Square is the next major stop, with about 20 minutes to take in Nelson’s Column, the fountains, and the National Gallery. This is enough time for photographs and a short explanation, but not enough for a museum visit.

That limit is sensible. The National Gallery alone deserves hours, and trying to add it to this tour would turn the day into a race. I like this stop as a visual pause between the palace area and Westminster. You get one of London’s best-known public spaces without losing the route’s focus on royal and political landmarks.

A guide also helps you read the square. Nelson’s Column, the surrounding buildings, and the fountains are easy to photograph, but a short explanation gives the setting more meaning. If you want to enter the National Gallery, plan a separate visit rather than hoping to squeeze it in here.

Horse Guards Parade and St. James’s Park

The walk continues to Horse Guards Parade, on the edge of St. James’s Park. The stop lasts about 20 minutes and centers on the famous arch and clock.

This is a good photo break, but it is also a reminder that Britain’s royal identity is tied to ceremony and military tradition. The parade ground gives you a different feel from the palace forecourt. Instead of a formal residence, you see a working ceremonial setting with guards, horses, and official architecture nearby.

The schedule is brisk, so you will not have time to linger. That is fine for most people, especially if this is your first London visit and you want to cover the major sights. If you prefer long pauses and detailed photography, the fixed timetable may feel restrictive.

Whitehall, Downing Street, and the heart of government

Whitehall follows, with another 20-minute stop. The street is lined with major government buildings and monuments, and the route includes views toward Downing Street, where British prime ministers have lived and worked since 1735.

This section adds political context to the royal theme. London’s monarchy, government, military tradition, and public ceremonies sit close together, and the walk makes that relationship visible. You are not simply moving from one famous landmark to the next. You are following the center of national power.

The tour does not include entry to Downing Street or government buildings. You should think of Whitehall as an exterior orientation stop, with time for photographs and explanation rather than an inside visit.

Big Ben and Parliament Square

Parliament Square receives about 40 minutes, making it one of the longer outdoor stops. Here you see the Palace of Westminster, home to the Houses of Parliament, and Big Ben up close. The square also offers views toward the London Eye and the Churchill Statue.

This is one of the strongest parts of the walking route because several major London images come together in one place. You can frame Big Ben, Parliament, and the river-side cityscape in a single stretch, while the guide explains what you are seeing.

The Big Ben detail is worth hearing carefully. The name refers to the great bell, not the entire clock tower. One guide used this distinction to clear up the common confusion between Big Ben and the Queen’s Clock Tower.

The 40-minute timing gives you enough room for pictures and a proper look at the buildings. It also gives your feet a short break, though this is still a walking tour, not a seated sightseeing experience.

Westminster Abbey from the outside

The route then reaches Westminster Abbey for about 20 minutes. The abbey has more than 1,000 years of history and is the traditional setting for the coronation of British kings and queens.

The tour includes an exterior visit rather than entry. That distinction matters. You will see the architecture and hear why the building matters, but you will not tour the interior as part of this package. If you want to see the coronation chair, tombs, chapels, and interior memorials, you need separate admission.

Even from outside, Westminster Abbey gives the route a strong finish before the palace visit. The walk has moved from royal ceremony to government, Parliament, and coronation tradition. By now, the guide’s storytelling has done much of the work of connecting those places.

Entering Buckingham Palace’s 19 State Rooms

At the end of the walking tour, you receive your Buckingham Palace ticket and directions. Your walking guide does not continue inside. Instead, you use the palace’s multilingual audio guide as you tour the State Rooms at your own pace.

This handoff is important to understand before booking. The experience is not one continuous guided tour with the same person leading you through every room. It is a guided outdoor walk followed by a self-guided palace visit.

Inside, you see 19 magnificent State Rooms furnished for official use and decorated with art from the Royal Collection. The palace portion lasts about two hours, so it gives you time to slow down after the fast-moving streets.

I like this arrangement in principle. A live guide is most useful outdoors, where timing, street crossings, crowds, and viewpoints matter. Inside a palace, an audio guide lets you stop when you want and listen at your own pace. The trade-off is that you must manage the transition yourself.

One point deserves extra care: the walking group may be small, but the palace entry group can be much larger. One booking party encountered a palace group of around 60 or more people and found it too crowded to enjoy. The exact arrangement may vary, but you should not assume that the 15-person walking limit applies inside Buckingham Palace.

The gardens and Queen Victoria’s Palace exhibition

The palace visit continues into the royal gardens and the Queen Victoria’s Palace exhibition. These additions make the admission more than a quick look at formal rooms.

The State Rooms show ceremony and public life. The gardens offer a change of pace, while the Queen Victoria exhibition gives the palace visit a more personal historical focus. Together, they help you see Buckingham Palace as a residence and working royal setting, not only as a famous façade.

Allow the full two hours if you can. Rushing through the rooms would undercut the point of paying for entry. The audio guide is available in multiple languages, which is helpful if you prefer not to rely on an English-speaking guide for detailed interpretation.

Walking demands, timing, and practical comfort

The tour lasts about five hours, but the walking portion can feel longer because it covers so many central sights. One person reported nearly 19,000 steps, and that is the clearest practical warning in the entire experience.

Wear supportive shoes. Bring water and a small snack because snacks are not included. Seating is limited along parts of the route, so anyone who needs frequent rests should think carefully before booking.

The start time is 10 a.m., and the tour ends at Buckingham Palace rather than returning to The Ritz. That is useful if you want to continue sightseeing nearby, but it means you should plan the rest of your day around the palace finish rather than expecting a ride back to your hotel.

No hotel pickup or drop-off is included. The meeting point is near public transportation, so reaching The Ritz by Tube or another central connection should be part of your plan. Service animals are allowed, and most people can take part, but the length of the walk remains the main physical issue.

How the guides shape the experience

The guide can make or break a city walk, and this one has received strong praise for its human side. Will is described as witty and well informed, with useful advice on viewing the guard ceremony. Greg has been praised for involving the whole group and bringing royal history to life. Ari, Kris, and Brandon were also singled out for friendly, engaging presentations.

That matters because much of the route involves exterior sights that you could technically visit alone. A guide earns the fee by helping you understand what you are seeing, finding workable viewpoints, and keeping the walk moving.

There is some unevenness in the practical delivery. One person found the Buckingham Palace time unclear and arrived at the palace before the ticket slot, then had to wait 45 minutes. Listen carefully when the guide explains your entry time, and keep the ticket and directions handy after the walking portion ends.

Who should book this royal London experience?

I would recommend it most strongly to a first-time London visitor who wants the major royal sights organized into one route. It suits history fans, palace enthusiasts, and anyone who likes learning from a live guide instead of piecing together facts alone.

It is also a good fit if you want to see the Changing of the Guard but would rather not work out the viewing position yourself. The guide’s crowd advice can save frustration.

I would hesitate if you want a relaxed day, dislike walking, or expect a small group throughout the palace visit. I would also choose a different plan if Westminster Abbey interior access is essential, since this tour only takes you outside.

Should you book the Full Royal Tour?

Book it if your London priorities include Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Westminster, and royal ceremony, and you can handle a long walk. At $103.07, the combination of a small guided route and palace admission offers reasonable value, especially for a first visit.

Skip it if you want deep time at each sight, guaranteed access to the Changing of the Guard, or a consistently small group inside the palace. Bring good shoes, check the palace timing carefully, and treat the outdoor walk and palace visit as two connected but separate parts of the day.

FAQ

Where does the tour start?

The tour starts at The Ritz London, 150 Piccadilly, London W1J 9BR, at 10 a.m.

Where does the tour end?

It ends at Buckingham Palace, London SW1A 1AA.

How long does the experience last?

The full experience lasts approximately five hours.

Is Buckingham Palace admission included?

Yes. The ticket includes entry to Buckingham Palace, including the 19 State Rooms, royal gardens, and Queen Victoria’s Palace exhibition.

Is the Buckingham Palace visit guided in person?

No. Your walking guide gives you the ticket and directions, but does not join you inside the palace. A multilingual audio guide is provided for the palace visit.

How large is the walking group?

The walking tour has a maximum group size of 15 people.

Is the Changing of the Guard guaranteed?

No. You can watch it on certain days when the ceremony is scheduled. The guide will help you find a viewing position on those days.

Are snacks included?

No. Snacks are not included, so you should bring your own if needed.

Is hotel pickup or drop-off provided?

No. Hotel pickup and drop-off are not included.

Can I cancel for a full refund?

Yes, if you cancel at least 24 hours before the experience start time. Cancellations or changes made less than 24 hours before the start time are not accepted for a refund.