St. Paul's Cathedral

An ethereal work of art. Christopher Wren's masterpiece was breathtaking but also a place to feel peace. The staff were lovely, it was not crowded and the experience was enchanting. One of my favorite places in London.

Most beautiful view in London! Must visit if you are from out of town. Can't wait to visit again. A little pricey to get in but worth it.

This is a stunning cathedral in East London - definitely should be seen by all visitors to London. Sir Christopher Wren designed this cathedral with an amazing dome which builds on the Parthenon in Rome, and in turn, served as a model for the U.S. Capitol.

On a Sunday in early September 2023, I attended the 3pm evensong service (about 1 hour long) which is free. This provides an outstanding musical experience as the St. Paul's choir is top-notch in a space which has lovely acoustics. The service is focused on music - you'll have a chance to sing along a few hymns, but there is a brief sermon (maybe 5-10 minutes). The only downside of a Sunday visit is that many areas inside the cathedral are off-limits to visitors.

The basement has a cafe (for bottled water or coffee) and restrooms. Behind the cathedral, you'll find a lovely garden, reflecting pool, and shaded benches where you can rest for a moment. Overall, this a "must-see" experience for first-time visitors to London.

This iconic cathedral is the late-17th-century masterpiece of Christopher Wren. It is magnificent, opulent, and very large (though not the largest cathedral in England. That's in Liverpool.) The exterior is one of the most famous buildings in the world and the interior is grand with high, sublime space.

Two specific elements set this apart as well.

First, one can go all the way to the viewing gallery at the top of the dome. This provides great views from atop a famous building and the journey up is an interesting experience itself, as these often are. The beginning is gentle but the last stage, up metal, spiral staircases in between the inner and outer domes, is more physically demanding and, for some people, too unnerving.
When we first went there years ago, we were able to visit the famous Whispering Gallery part way up (there are others in the world, but this is one of the most famous). On our recent trip, however, that was closed.

Second, the crypt underneath has the tombs of numerous famous people, including Britain's two great figures of the Napoleonic Wars, the Duke of Wellington (who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo) and Admiral Horatio Nelson, among others.

Next to the crypt are toilets, a great gift shop, and a cafe.

One should book online ahead of time and this is one of those places which is so popular that even if you do,you may still have to wait in line at least a short time in order to get in.

Once inside, one may go to the top of the dome whenever one wishes, but this will be subject to whether there is a line (longer later in the day). The visit to the top of the dome is not a guided tour.

St. Paul's Cathedral is just as the title states - breathtaking. If you are in London, consider stopping here.

Whether you are religious or not, visiting this cathedral should be high on your list. Not only is it stunning, but full of history and learning. Make sure to buy your ticket in advance.

After several visits to London, Hubby and I have finally visited St. Paul's, and we wondered why it took us so long. What a beautiful cathedral. It is actually larger than Westminster Abbey. Hubby and I chose to climb the dome up to the The Stone Gallery and The Golden Gallery. The Whispering Gallery was closed on our visit. The 360 degree open air view of London is breath taking. Those who can climb the Dome should. Not recommended for those with physical limitations or young children.

The Cathedral floor - Take in the beauty of the architecture and the various chapels. Stop and read the memorials. Do not forget to look up, as it is breathtakingly beautiful on the ceilings as it is eye level.

The Crypt - It should be a solemn atmosphere. Parents, please mind your children, as screams are magnified in the Crypt environment.

The Stone Gallery - First section of the Dome climb is 376 steps on a large spiral two-way stairway. It is a challenging climb, but not difficult. The Stone Gallery is 52 meters (about 16 stories) above London with 360 degree views of the city. The stone wall is high and pictures need to be taken in between the stone columns.

The Golden Gallery - Another set of very narrow iron spiral stair cases from the Stone Gallery leads to the Golden Gallery. It is 528 difficult steps to the Golden Gallery, but the 85 meters (about 26 stories) views above London is special. The wall around the Golden Gallery is lower, so it will be scary to those of us who are afraid of heights. You have to circumvent the entire gallery to exit.

The tickets are pricy, but being able to take advantage of the Dome views is worth the price. Hubby and I had an epic visit and would recommend it, especially the Dome.

I was surprised that there was virtually no line here despite it being a historically significant and architecturally impressive church. I recommend buying tickets in advance to save a little money, and definitely try to visit if you can because it is impressive. It's actually a little shorter than the previous structure but once inside, it looks like the top of the dome reaches incredible heights.

The audio tour gives a really good amount of information as it takes you around the building. It's separated out by section of the church so it's really easy to follow along and move on when ready.

I think this makes a great contrast to Westminster. It replaces an older church that burned down during the Great Fire but instead of the medieval flying buttresses and gothic style of other churches, you really see the Baroque influence of Italian cathedral architecture like domes, mosaics, and painted scenes around every surface. It's also interesting to hear in the audio tour the dynamics between the architect Christopher Wren's influences from Catholic structures and the heads of the church wanting a Church of England structure to not appear too Catholic. There's a lot of thought that went into the imagery and some natural compromises were made.

Once I was done marveling the interior, I saw that you can actually climb to the top of the dome. If you have the mobility, definitely check this out, although it's a lot of spiral staircase up. Even when you reach the end of one staircase, there's another one. And then another one. And it's one way, so make sure you are committed. But once you get to the top you can some great views! And you feel so accomplished. Just don't look down when climbing the staircase.

The basement has the tombs of some important figures such as Lord Nelson and the Duke of Wellington and held the funeral for Winston Churchill (although he is not buried here). This is also worth seeing. I thought the gift shop had a lot of great souvenirs.

Only complaint: the bathroom was only available outside the "tour" area so take your ticket with you if you need to leave the tour zone. Otherwise, if you can wait to use the facilities until you are done touring, there is not problem. This is a beautiful church and really interesting to learn about, so it's worth visiting.

Kind of hard to not visit an iconic Cathedral is visiting one of the greatest cities on earth.

St. Paul's Cathedral is a great example of architectural design in a day where computers were not the norm way of designing such. I've been lucky enough to visit this cherished spot several times over my life and it honestly never gets old! Always clean, ample room to explore, and of course a ton of historical beings inside. If you are lucky and visit during the offseason, make sure to explore the crypts to catch some big names and appreciate the work put into this cathedral. If you are trying to plan a tourist day and need a rough time frame for how long to visit, I'd say one to two hours is more than sufficient, of course depending on the time of year. I cannot comment on parking as I've always taken public transportation. As for the fee, expect to pay 17 pounds to enter, but it is well worth it!

Our timing in England ended up being more profound than we expected with the passing of Queen Elizabeth III. We hopped in line for a visit to the famous St.Paul's cathedral and after a quick security check, found ourselves inside. Note that this cathedral is free and open to the public. It's much larger than I anticipated. We sat and soaked in the space while watching as visitors lined up to sign the condolences books for the Queen. It was a touching experience. Definitely recommend popping into this church for a visit and moment of solace, if you're able.

I really wanted to leave 5 stars. And I was close to doing so. But this morning we had a very embarrassing & hurtful experience here.

It was our last morning in London so we woke early to pack and be at morning prayer at 7:30AM. We went in at 7:20AM and lit a candle in front of the Mary shrine as we began quietly singing the Angelus. We were the first guests in the cathedral. The verger who distributes the prayer books walked over to us and as she approached I smiled; assuming she was going to join us or welcome us.

Instead, she interrupted our prayer at, "and the Word became flesh..." and told us, "we keep silent prayer in the morning. Thank you for your prayer offering, but we keep silent prayer in the morning." We were so embarrassed. But after looking around to confirm that we had not missed signs suggesting this, and confirming that we were, in fact, the only people there, we just became very hurt that our prayer would be interrupted like that. We would never have sung (quietly) if we knew there was a quiet stipulation or, even without a stipulation, if there were anyone present nearby.

As ministers ourselves, we would never disrupt a prayer if it was at all avoidable. Worst case scenario, we would wait till the prayer was over and let the people know that we are preserving quiet and then on.

Anyway, beautiful place and wonderful services. I doubt anyone will acknowledge this unfortunate situation and commit to educating their vergers better. But if they do, we will balance our review to honor their acknowledgment.