UK Attractions

A millennium ago Westminster Abbey was a monastery offering traditional Benedictine hospitality to its visitors. The first Benedictines came to Westminster around 960 AD. A century later their monastery was re-founded and richly endowed by St. Edward the Confessor. The great Romanesque abbey Edward built next to his royal palace, was completed in 1065 and became his own burial place less than a month later. Over the centuries many more kings and queens came to be buried there and it became a place where the great and famous in every generation have been commemorated. The Abbey has been the setting for nearly every Coronation since that of William the Conqueror in 1066 and for numerous other royal occasions. The present building, begun by Henry III in 1245 is one of the most visited churches in the world, and although there are no longer any monks here it remains primarily a place of christian worship and pilgrimage.

Westminster Abbey
Broad Sanctuary
London
SW1P 3PA
Map and Directions

+44 (0) 20 7222 5152

+44 (0) 20 7233 2072

Main Abbey Church
Monday to Friday 9.30am - 3.45pm (except Wednesdays)
Wednesday 9.30am - 6pm
Saturday 9.30am - 1.45pm
Sunday Worship only - No Tourist Visiting

Chapter House
Open Daily 10.30am - 4pm (natural light permitting)

Westminster Abbey Museum
Open Daily 10.30am - 4pm

Light Refreshments

Disabled Access

Credit Cards Accepted

Guide Dogs Allowed

Tube: Westminster/St James's Park