Big Ben, the London Eye, the Tower and Tower Bridge all sit on the river: from the Thames you see London in one sweep. This guide compares every Thames river cruise in London (short loop, to Greenwich, evening, afternoon tea, speedboat), what it costs, the commuter Uber Boat, and hour-by-hour weather with wind.
Budget option → · London, United Kingdom
Weather at 1:00 PM. Boat trips start from 10:00.
| Tour | From | Duration | What you see | Languages | Cancellation | Departure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Our pickPanoramic boatTiqets | €18.54 | 40 min | Westminster, Big Ben, South Bank | Audio IT, ES, DE, FR + 4 | Free up to 24 h before | London Eye Pier |
| Sightseeing boatTiqets | €20.57 | 1 h (one way) | From Big Ben past Tower Bridge to Greenwich | Audio EN | Until 23:59 the day before | Westminster Pier |
| Sightseeing boatTiqets | €16.75 | 35 min | Big Ben, St Paul’s, the Tower, Tower Bridge | Live commentary, audio app EN | Until 23:59 the day before | Westminster Pier |
| Boat with saloonTiqets | €50.32 | 2 h | London lit up | Not listed | Not stated | Tower Bridge (Lower Thames Street) |
| Boat with saloonTiqets | €61.25 | 1 h 30 | Central London from the river | Commentary EN | Not stated | Tower Millennium Pier |
| SpeedboatTiqets | €66.94 | 50 min | The centre and the Thames heading east | Guide EN | Free up to 24 h before | London Eye Pier, Gate One |
Our pick: the London Eye River Cruise from €18.54. In 40 minutes you pass Parliament, Big Ben and the South Bank, with audio commentary in eight languages – handy if you’re travelling with family or friends from abroad. It leaves from the London Eye pier, with free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
Tiqets charges in euros; local prices are in pounds.
40 min · 4.4 from 228 Tiqets reviews
1 h one way · 4.4 from 472 Tiqets reviews
35 min · 4.2 from 187 Tiqets reviews
2 h · 4.3 from 25 Tiqets reviews
1 h 30 · 4.5 from 35 Tiqets reviews
50 min · guide in English · 5.0 from 39 Tiqets reviews
Indicative prices, checked on October 31, 2026: they may change: the final price is the one shown by the seller.
Uber Boat by Thames Clippers is the commuter river bus: fast, with outdoor seats at the back, and you pay with a contactless card just like on the Tube.
Note: these contactless fares apply until 31 October 2026; new fares follow from November. There’s no commentary, but the view is the same.
The best months are May to September: highs of 18 to 24 °C and long days.
| Month | Average high | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9° | 11.8 |
| Feb | 9° | 9.9 |
| Mar | 12° | 8.9 |
| Apr | 15° | 8.6 |
| May | 18° | 8.3 |
| JunBest | 21° | 8.5 |
| JulBest | 24° | 7.6 |
| AugBest | 23° | 8.4 |
| Sep | 20° | 8.4 |
| Oct | 16° | 10.9 |
| Nov | 12° | 11.3 |
| Dec | 9° | 11.2 |
1991–2020 averages for Kew Gardens: mean high and days with at least 1 mm of rain. Source: Met Office, table published on Wikipedia (“Climate of London”).
Fair
Fair: heavy rain, 9 to 10 °C, 4.1 mm, wind up to 18 km/h.
| Time | Sky | Temperature | Rain | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13:00 | Cloudy | 10° | – | 15 km/h |
| 14:00 | Cloudy | 10° | – | 16 km/h |
| 15:00 | Cloudy | 9° | – | 15 km/h |
| 16:00 | Light rain | 9° | 0.3 mm | 16 km/h |
| 17:00 | Rain | 9° | 0.8 mm | 16 km/h |
| 18:00 | Heavy rain | 9° | 1.1 mm | 18 km/h |
| 19:00 | Heavy rain | 9° | 1.2 mm | 17 km/h |
| 20:00 | Rain | 9° | 0.7 mm | 16 km/h |
Good
Good: cloudy, 9 to 10 °C, no rain, wind up to 13 km/h.
| Time | Sky | Temperature | Rain | Wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10:00 | Cloudy | 9° | – | 13 km/h |
| 11:00 | Cloudy | 9° | – | 13 km/h |
| 12:00 | Cloudy | 10° | – | 9 km/h |
| 13:00 | Cloudy | 10° | – | 11 km/h |
| 14:00 | Cloudy | 10° | – | 10 km/h |
| 15:00 | Cloudy | 10° | – | 9 km/h |
| 16:00 | Cloudy | 10° | – | 10 km/h |
| 17:00 | Cloudy | 9° | – | 10 km/h |
| 18:00 | Cloudy | 9° | – | 10 km/h |
| 19:00 | Cloudy | 9° | – | 9 km/h |
| 20:00 | Cloudy | 9° | – | 8 km/h |
Today and tomorrow are accurate hour by hour; up to day seven the trend is reliable; the last days give a rough idea. Above 30 km/h the water gets choppy and small boats may postpone departures. Updated every hour.
It rains a lot in London, but sightseeing boats and the Uber Boat have covered saloons with big windows.
By Tube: Westminster (Jubilee, District, Circle lines) for Westminster Pier and the London Eye; Tower Hill for the Tower.
From the airports: Elizabeth line or Piccadilly line from Heathrow; Gatwick Express or Thameslink from Gatwick.
The 40-minute London Eye loop costs from €18.54, Westminster–Tower from €16.75 and Westminster–Greenwich from €20.57. On the Uber Boat, Westminster to Greenwich is £11.40 off-peak.
Yes: the London Eye River Cruise has audio commentary in French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Italian, Russian, Japanese and Mandarin.
The Uber Boat is cheaper and faster but has no commentary. A sightseeing cruise tells you what you’re seeing and leaves from the most central piers.
Mainly from Westminster Pier, London Eye Pier and Tower Millennium Pier. The exact pier is on your ticket.
About an hour on the sightseeing cruise. The Uber Boat is usually quicker.
Yes: the evening cruise lasts two hours, with sparkling wine, canapés and live music, from €50.32.
Fair: heavy rain, 9 to 10 °C, 4.1 mm, wind up to 18 km/h.
Saturday, November 14: Good: cloudy, 5 to 6 °C, no rain, wind up to 6 km/h. Sunday, November 15: Good: cloudy, 5 to 7 °C, no rain, wind up to 1 km/h.
Reliable forecasts go about 10 days ahead: here you get the next 10, hour by hour (with wind) for today and tomorrow and as a trend after that. To choose the month, see the climate month by month.
Forecasts come from MET Norway, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, calculated for the tour area’s coordinates and updated every hour during the day and every 3 hours at night. Tour prices and conditions are checked on the sellers’ pages, with the date.
London Eye River Cruise · from €18.54
Forecast by MET Norway, the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, calculated for the tour area’s coordinates. Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0), updated every hour. Updated: October 31, 2026.