Tower - top things to see and do for families
Fit for a King
See five hundred years of spectacular royal armour, offering a fascinating insight into the personalities, power and physical size of England’s kings. Entrance to this spectacular new exhibition is included in your standard admission ticket to the Tower.
Click here to find out more >
The Crown Jewels - family trail
Packed with quizzes, activities and illustrations, our family trail on these priceless Crown Jewels is the perfect way to explore the Tower as a family. Pick up a trail at the Welcome Centre when you arrive or click below to download a sample trail.
Crowning glory: The Jewel House >
(PDF 343KB) Just how spectacular is the world's biggest cut diamond? Explore the Queen's Crown Jewels in the Tower's Jewel House and see for yourself.
Yeoman Warder tours
Join one of these famous tours where Yeoman Warders (popularly known at ‘Beefeaters’) will entertain you with tales of intrigue, imprisonment, execution, torture and much more. Tours start near the main entrance every 30 mins (last tour 15.30 in summer, 14.30 in winter) and last approximately 60 minutes. If this is too long or some of the stories are a bit too scary for younger members of your family, you can always leave the tour partway through. Click here for more information about Yeoman Warder tours.
The prisoners
Although there aren't any prisoners in the Tower today, there have been prisoners at the Tower almost since it was built. You can still find traces of them in the rooms where they were kept - especially the carvings on the walls; can you decipher them? Look out for the touchscreens about prisoners past down by the ravens' cages. Click here for more information about prisoners at the Tower.
What happened to the Princes?
In 1483, the young Princes Edward V and his brother Richard of York suddenly disappeared whilst being held in the Tower, never to be seen again. Nearly 200 years later, the skeletons of two young boys were found. Help us find the clues in the Bloody Tower to solve the mystery…
Spot the ravens
Kings and queens used to keep all sorts of wild animals at the Tower, even lions and elephants! Today, the only animals left are the famous ravens which are looked after by the Yeoman Ravenmaster. Legend says that the kingdom and the Tower will fall if the resident ravens ever leave the fortress. The ravens' lodgings are to be found next to the Wakefield Tower. Click here for more information and to download a ‘Guide to the Tower Ravens’ leaflet.
Half term activities
Royal Beasts: family fun
Sunday 23rd - Saturday 29th October
11.00 - 3.00
Recreate the drama of when the Tower was home to the Royal Menagerie, discover beastly tales and bring to life some of the exotic animals who used to live here. There will be a range of free drop-in art activities for families including badge making and mask making, so come and create your own souvenir to take home!
Animal Shadow Puppets Workshop
Thursday 27th and Friday 28th October
12.30 & 2.00, each workshop lasts approximately 40 minutes
Create your own fabulous shadow puppet of one of the ferocious wild animals who lived at the Tower in this artist lead workshop.
Please be aware that the workshops have a limited capacity and admission will operate on a first come first served basis.
