Madame Tussauds, Kew Gardens and Westminster Abbey are among the famous London tourist attractions which have ramped up their prices over just 50 years. One even cost just 1p – can you guess which?
Researchers unveiled just how much cheaper London’s tourist hotspots were 50 years ago – and it’s completely stumped the internet.
From admiring the animals at London Zoo, to gazing at the lifelike statues of Madame Tussauds – London has plenty of attractions for tourists and locals alike. But anyone who’s been there will know the prices can be quite high – especially amid the cost of living crisis.
Though, you may be shocked to discover how inexpensive things really used to be, with a recent Which? study unveiling a dramatic shift between 1974 and 2024.
Take London Zoo for example. While today, weekend tickets can cost a staggering £33, the study claimed they once sold for just 80p – or £7.20 in today’s money. This is the equivalent of a whopping 358% increase in price – leaving countless Brits baffled.
Meanwhile, admission to Madame Tussauds, was once similarly priced at 75p – a value of £7 today. Now, it’ll set you back £33 if bought in advance, or even £42 if purchased on the day, with the latter reflecting a 500% surge in price.
These two attractions aren’t alone in this either, with the Tower of London and Kew Gardens perhaps experiencing some of the most heart-breaking changes of all. Back in the 1970’s, Tower of London entry was a mere 10p (equivalent to 90p today), while remarkably Kew Gardens would only cost 1p.
Today, the situation is wildly different. Entry to Kew Gardens can vary between £12 and £24, depending on the time of year, while the Tower of London has a fee of £34.80.
And if that wasn’t enough to put you in a bad mood, Westminster Abbey and St Paul’s Cathedral were also free of charge once upon a time. Now they take £29 and £25 from their entrants each.
Unsurprisingly, these price hikes have been quick to garner a lot of attention on social media, with many Brits voicing their sheer disbelief. One person on Instagram wrote: “I feel a bit sick,” as someone else chimed in: “This is very depressing actually.”
Another joked: “I won’t lie, I still probably wouldn’t go to Madame Tussauds even if tickets today were 75p.” A fourth also added: “Just a shame that wages aren’t inflating to that degree.”
A version of this was first published on March 15 2024
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