The City & Tower Bridge

At Londonweekendbreaks.com, we can offer you a selection of hotels ideally positioned in the very centre of London.

We are able to cater for all requirements and budgets and are pleased to offer hotels ranging from comfortable budget-conscious 2 Star establishments, right up to the most luxurious and prestigious hotels offering 5 Star boutique levels of accommodation.

We are also able to help you plan your stay by offering packages that include travel arrangements and ticketing for shows or other major tourist attractions. This may not only work out to be more cost-effective for you but it may also help you avoid lengthy queues at major venues.

Our objective is to help you spend your time in London doing things that you want to do, having left the administration and arranging to us.

Some of our accommodation is at or close to The City & Tower Bridge areas of London.

You might be interested to know a little bit more about these two locations.

Tower Bridge

Some visitors on London weekend breaks believe that Tower Bridge is, in fact, London Bridge. Nothing could be further from the truth!

London Bridge is considerably further west and is relatively nondescript.
It represents the site where probably the first Roman bridge was built, although this is disputed amongst historians. London Bridge is certainly the part of London where the city began.

Ironically though, today it is Tower Bridge which is often considered to be one of the most iconic images of London and its people.

This bridge was built in the 19th century but in gothic style so as to match the architecture of the adjacent Tower of London.  When it was built, it was slightly controversial and unpopular in some circles, as some people believed that it did not blend in with the adjacent Tower but actually dwarfed it.

The lower pontoon level of the bridge is actually opened on hydraulics in order to allow tall ships to pass below. This was a relatively regular occurrence when the centre of London was an extremely busy port and continued to be so until the 1960s.

Today it is opened less frequently but it does do so on special or state occasions.
Once you’ve finished looking at it, you can stroll next door into The Tower and see the crown jewels or where two of Henry VIII’s wives were beheaded.

The City

This relatively small area in the very heart of London, occupies the original streets of the Roman, Saxon and medieval city.

Historically, it jealously guarded its degree of autonomy from the state and monarch. This is still reflected today in state ceremonies when the reigning King or Queen stops at Temple Bar prior when entering The City, in order to touch the ceremonial sword of London.

This is both a token of the city’s surrender to the monarch but also the monarch’s guarantee of the city’s rights and privileges.

The City encompasses some of London’s most famous attractions. These include The Tower of London, St. Paul’s, The Monument (a 17th century monument on the spot where the great fire of London started in 1666), The Mansion House, The Guildhall and Temple.

Even though it is perfectly possible to walk from one side of The City proper to another several times within one day, you may find that you need several days in order to do justice to its many sites and attractions.

Of course, you could give your feet a rest and hop on to a sightseeing bus!

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