Westminster Abbey is at the top of many first-time visitors' lists, and we made sure to see it on our family trip to London last year. It's just as beautiful as I imagined it would be. It was an amazing feeling to walk through a place that has featured so prominently in British history. Westminster Abbey is one of the most important and beautiful buildings in England.
British monarchs have been crowned here for nearly 1, years. Seventeen of them are buried here. Centuries of history are housed in this magnificent house of worship. Westminster Abbey is open to visitors for a few hours each day, except Sundays and religious holidays. It is a working church, and visitors are welcome to attend services. Westminster Abbey welcomes more than a million visitors per year. We arrived in the late morning on a weekday in early June and experienced no wait at all.
However, the narrow spaces between the royal tombs still felt quite crowded. I didn't realize that Westminster Abbey is as much a cemetery as a house of worship. Most of the floor is covered with memorial markers, in addition to the above-ground royal tombs. Please enter with respect and help your children to do the same. Our top priorities were the Royal Tombs, Poet's Corner and Coronation Chair, plus to just soak up the atmosphere and architecture of this iconic structure.
Many well-known poets and authors are buried in Poet's Corner. Keep a lookout for the grave of the Unknown Soldier as well. Westminster Abbey welcomes children, but most children won't want to spend a long time inside.
Once we had seen the Royal Tombs and Poet's Corner in the main area, we limited our exploration of other chapels and rooms to a quick walk-through. A complimentary multimedia guide is available. You can download the app to your own mobile device before you arrive, or borrow a device and headphones when you arrive.
