Tower Bridge

1. Arrival
2. Nights
3. Guests
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The famous gothic bridge spanning the Thames in the East of London is a master piece of engineering and architecture.

Prior to the bridge, visitors to the Tower of London from East London had to make lengthy detours across the capital, crossing the Thames at London Bridge. But there was a big problem with building a bridge near the Tower: tall ships passed by into the Port of London, making the London Bridge design wholly impractical at the new site. Engineer Horace Jones immediately began drawing up plans for a magnificent double-leaf bascule bridge (i.e., a moveable bridge with platforms that can elevate). Tower Bridge was born, and was constructed between 1886 and 1894.

Two massive piers, 185 feet long and 70 feet wide, were driven into the river bed to support the construction. The bridge’s two central towers are 120 feet high and tied together by means of two robust horizontal walkways, whilst the smaller towers on the shore rise to 44 feet. A massive 11,000 tonnes of steel were used in the making of the bridge, all of which was clad in Cornish granite. Portland stone added a decorative touch and was used for the window mullions and dressings.

At the time of its completion, Tower Bridge was the most sophisticated – and the largest – hydraulically operated bascule bridge in the world. The mighty, electrically powered winding machinery used to lift the leaves of the bridge is housed in the base of the two main towers. If you tire of cooking as part of self catering (London has many fine restaurants) why not grab lunch in a nearby establishment, then go and visit this fabulous feat of engineering ingenuity. An Act of Parliament in 1885 had insisted that the public should have access to the bridge at all times, even when the bascules were raised (which they frequently were in the early days – up to 22 times a day, in fact). To achieve this, the bridge incorporated the two upper walkways mentioned earlier, poised a vertiginous 143 feet above the surface of the Thames. Today, they are glassed over and accessed through lifts in the central towers.

The nearest underground stations are Tower Hill and London Bridge, with London Bridge being the nearest mainline station. Admission to the Tower Bridge Experience Exhibition costs £7.00 for adults and £3.00 for under 15’s (under-3’s go free). If you enjoy self catering, London apartments are superb value for money; while in this wonderful city, enjoy Tower Bridge – the most famous bridge in the world.

One of the most popular vacation types for those who don’t want package holidays or scheduled activities, is always self-catering; London is one of the most popular destinations in Europe so why not merge the two and have a self-catered break in London? Anyone who likes the prospect of being spoilt for choice as far as holiday tourist attractions are concerned should consider London a top priority. If you’re going to go on a break and prefer self catering, London offers numerous incentives to visit, with numerous attractions, and spectacular sights such as the stunning Tower Bridge in Grange Road. And with the superb Tower Bridge Experience now running, you’ll be in for one of the most exciting and original historical exhibitions in the world.