The Queen’s Walk follows the south bank of the River Thames from Lambeth Bridge in the west, to Tower Bridge in the east, opposite Victoria Embankment.

It was the 1951 Festival of Britain that prompted the first section of the walk, from Westminster Bridge, with a more extensive walkway being added as part of the Jubilee Walkway, to mark the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 1977.  The walk was completed with the opening of London Bridge City c.1990.  In 1996, the Queen’s Walk became part of the Thames Path national trail through London.

The walk passes some of London’s finest attractions, with stunning river views and plenty of places to pause over a pint of English bitter or a bite to eat.  The following photos will walk you along the route.

My preferred way to start the walk is to take one of the Golden Jubilee bridges that run either side of the older Hungerford Bridge, rather than starting further west at Lambeth Bridge.

This way you get to walk a new bridge and have the fun of watching the trains running along the middle bridge.

Entering this way cuts a little bit off the walk but brings you right into the heart of the South Bank. Jubilee Gardens and the London Eye are just to your right.

After the Eye, head back past the Jubilee Bridges, past the Southbank Book Market, towards the National Theatre.  The Theatre hasn’t aged well, and wasn’t hugely attractive even in its youth.  However, the theatre productions here are varied and excellent.  There are often free events in the foyers so worth checking if you have time to spare.

Pause a while to admire the statue of Laurence Olivier

Pass Gabriel’s Wharf and the Oxo Tower (both opportunities for a bit of retail therapy if you feel inclined).

Blackfriars Bridge is now ahead of you and there are views of St Paul’s Cathedral.

Next comes Tate Modern, the Millennium Bridge, giving easy access to St Paul’s Cathedral, and the Globe Theatre.

Here you move away from the river slightly to walk along Clink Street, passing the ruins of Westminster Palace, the Clink Museum arriving then at the beautiful Golden Hinde, a full sized reconstruction of Sir Francis Drake’s Tudor galleon.  If the weather is kind to you, the hinde will be sparkling in the sun and you can sit outside the cafe here and enjoy the sight, with views beyond across the river to the City skyline.

Next comes London Bridge, the penultimate bridge of the walk.

Just past the bridge, you come to Hay’s galleria, a converted wharf, with large and small shops plus a selection of eating places. Just beyond this, on your left, is the imposing HMS Belfast, part of the Imperial War Museum.   This attraction is well worth a visit, especially if you have children with you.

Just past the warship is City Hall, home to the Mayor of London and the London Assembly.  The unusual building was designed by Foster and Co and is a sort of stunted, tilted, glass sphere.

The last two attractions of note are Tower Bridge, which marks the end of this walk, and the Tower of London across the river.

That was something of a whistle stop tour, but will hopefully have given a flavour of the views and attractions on the south bank of the river.

Related posts: Rose Window of Winchester Palace

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Posted as part of Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Walks and Frizztext’s Tagged Q challenge.