Thames River Cruise London: Single Journey Ticket

★★★★★★★★★★ 3.99 (1,741 reviews) 65% rated it 5 stars

Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/17

Duration1h

GroupUp to 230

Mobile ticketAccepted

Board at any pier, hop off at any landmark

You board a climate-controlled Uber Boat at any pier between Battersea Power Station and Barking Riverside, travel past Tower Bridge, Tower of London, Canary Wharf, the London Eye, and a dozen other landmarks, and get off wherever you choose. The ticket covers one journey on your selected day, with frequent departures and step-free access at most piers. No guide, no fixed stops—just you and the Thames.

Step-by-step itinerary

River Thames cruise with city sights

Board Uber Boat at Battersea Power Station
Pass by Lambeth Palace
See Houses of Parliament and Big Ben
View London Eye from river
Explore South Bank arts complex
Visit Shakespeare's Globe theatre
Cross Millennium Bridge
Visit Tate Modern gallery
See St. Paul's Cathedral dome
View The Shard skyscraper
Tour HMS Belfast warship
Explore Tower of London
Cross Tower Bridge
See Canary Wharf skyscrapers
Arrive at Up at The O2 dome

The Experience

The boat pulls away from Battersea Power Station and the Art Deco facade shrinks behind you. You're standing on the outdoor deck or settled into the air-conditioned cabin—your choice—and London starts to move past in a way the Tube never lets it. The Thames Clippers single journey ticket gets you from any pier between Battersea and Barking Riverside, which means you're not locked into a route or a schedule. You board when you want, get off when something catches your eye, and the whole central and east zone of the river is yours to navigate on your own terms.

The landmarks come in sequence but not in a tour-guide rhythm. Lambeth Palace slides by—800 years of history in red brick—then the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben appear exactly as they do in every photograph, except you're seeing them from the water, which changes the angle and somehow makes them feel less like a postcard. The London Eye rotates slowly ahead. South Bank's galleries and Shakespeare's Globe pass on the left. The Millennium Bridge frames St. Paul's Cathedral's dome in a way that makes you understand why it ended up in the Harry Potter films. Tate Modern's industrial bulk rises where a power station used to stand. The Shard cuts upward like a glass knife. Tower Bridge—the one everyone confuses with London Bridge—lifts its Victorian arms, and then you're past the Tower of London with its ravens and Crown Jewels locked behind stone walls that have held them for a thousand years. Canary Wharf's glass towers cluster like a separate city. If you stay on long enough, the O2 dome appears at the end, massive and white.

What makes this different from a guided river tour is the silence of it. There's no commentary, no scheduled stops for photos, no group waiting for stragglers. You move through the city at the boat's pace—frequent departures mean you're never waiting long—and you decide what matters. The cabin is warm if the weather turns, the outdoor deck is there if you want the wind and the sound of the water. Boarding is first come, first served, and children up to ten need an adult with them, but everyone else moves freely between decks. The boat is wheelchair accessible at most piers (Cadogan, London Bridge City, and Wandsworth Riverside Quarter can be steep depending on the tide, so check ahead if that's your stop), and prams and strollers fit fine. Service animals travel with you. You get a digital River Guide when you book, which tells you what you're looking at if you want to know, or you can just watch the city change.

The ticket is valid for one journey on the day you book it, and you can board or disembark anywhere between the two endpoints. It's not valid on the O2 express services, and you'll need to show your printed or e-ticket at the pier. Most people use this to get from one side of central London to the other without the Underground, or to spend an afternoon drifting east and watching the city shift from Westminster's stone to Canary Wharf's glass to the quieter industrial stretches near Barking. Some just ride it once to see what they've been missing.

What’s included

Your single journey ticket includes one-way travel on Uber Boat by Thames Clippers between any two piers in the Central and East zones (Battersea Power Station to Barking Riverside).
You get comfortable indoor seating in an air-conditioned cabin, access to covered outdoor areas, a free digital River Guide, and the freedom to board or disembark at any pier on your selected day.
The boat is wheelchair accessible at most piers, and infants in prams or strollers are welcome, as are service animals.

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller friendlyPets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Uber Boat by Thames Clippers

Is this one for you?Right for travelers who want to cross London by water without a guided tour, or who'd rather spend an afternoon drifting past landmarks at their own pace. Plan for a single journey on your chosen day—the ticket is valid for that day only, and boarding is first come, first served.