Houses of Parliament

Houses of Parliament

Highlights The entire Houses of Parliament complex covers an area of 30,000 square meters and stretches 300 meters in length. It comprises 1,100 rooms, with corridors totaling 3 kilometers in length. There are over 100 staircases and 11 inner courtyards. The building consists of the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Visitors can only walk along the passageways leading to the two chambers, but even this is enough to show that this is no ordinary building. Introduction The now world-famous Houses of Parliament was originally named the Palace of Westminster. In a great fire in 1834, the palace was almost completely destroyed, leaving only the Westminster Hall with its iconic hammerbeam roof. It then took several years to rebuild the structure to its current form. The overall architectural style is the well-known Gothic Revival, featuring needle-like spires, and was designed by Charles Barry. The famous Big Ben is also located here.

Entry for sightseeing is not permitted; visitors can only enter for the purpose of observing parliamentary debates, but they must wait for available seats in the public galleries, which can be very time-consuming during peak tourist seasons. Security checks on personal belongings are also very strict. Transportation Take the subway to Westminster Station, right by the Palace of Westminster. Tickets/Opening Hours Admission is free.

Opening Hours: Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 14:30–22:00; Wednesday from 10:00–14:30; Friday from 09:30–15:00.

London, United Kingdom