5 Pretty London Bridges

London’s bridges are some of its notable landmarks and I finally came up with my list of 5 pretty London bridges. These 5 are, in my opinion, the prettiest bridges in London that run over the Thames. The River Thames flows through southern England, through 9 counties and is the second longest river in England after River Severn. So as you can imagine, it is a very special river. In London, there are 35 bridges over the River Thames and they all serve different purposes. Some are rail, some are pedestrian and others accommodate cars.

The 35 London bridges run from Tower Bridge all the way to Hampton Court Bridge. On each one, there is a skyline view of a different part of London. I have walked and watched some epic sunsets on some of these bridges, which will stay in my sweet memory forever.

1. Albert Bridge

With pastel pinks, greens and blues, Albert Bridge is stunning AF! It connects central London to Chelsea and sits between Battersea Bridge and Chelsea Bridge. Albert Bridge is a grade II listed structure and although it was opened in 1873, it is one of two bridges that has never been replaced. The other is Tower Bridge. It has been strengthened from time to time but never totally replaced. Another fun fact is that it was not always this pretty. Due to poor visibility, it was rewired and repainted in 1992 to avoid being damaged when ships pass through. Thank goodness for that foresight as it now sits as a beauty to behold.

It is even more striking at night when it is fully illuminated and sparkles, making it stand out on bleak winter nights. Albert Bridge has a very romantic vibe to it and I imagine skipping across with the person you fancy.

There are a lot of fun spots around the bridge like Battersea Park. A few streets not too far away, is Ivy Chelsea Garden, ifall that bridge walking makes you hungry for brunch.

Related Post: The Best Brunch Spots in London

2. Millennium Bridge

Now this one is simply an architectural beauty. It is not one that I would usually call “pretty” tbh; however, it is one of those ones you see and stare at its intricate details. Its architectural beauty is the main reason it has made it to my top 5 pretty London bridges. Situated between the Tate Modern and St Paul’s Cathedral, Millennium Bridge has views for days. It links the City of London and Bankside. Of all the bridges, it is the most recently completed. It was initially opened in 2000 but looked so wobbly that it was nicknamed “Wobbly Bridge” by Londoners. It was subsequently closed and reopened in 2002.

On the Millennium Bridge, there is a stunning 360 view of the London skyline. The Shard, Walkie Talkie, St Paul’s Cathedral and in a distance, Southwark Bridge and Tower Bridge are in view. It is definitely my favourite bridge to watch the sunset as it feels like the bridge in the middle of London.

Millennium Bridge has been featured in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This makes it quite popular with followers of these cult-like franchises.

The closest train stations are St Paul’s from the City of London side and London Bridge from Bankside.

3. Southwark Bridge

Southwark Bridge opened in 1921 and is a Grade II listed structure. It is one of the prettiest London bridges and is pastel blue-ish green with massive gold rings. It is another short bridge which accommodates cars and pedestrians. Southwark Bridge links the city of London and the district of Southwark. It is in between the Millennium Bridge and Cannon Street Railway Bridge.

The first time I saw Southwark Bridge was during a taxi ride to Westminster. The roads were blocked and my driver decided to go through a different route, which involved driving on Southwark Bridge. I could not stop staring out of the window and wondered why it was not as popular as the other bridges. Or maybe it is?

It is even more stunning at night when its arches light up in a bright orange, purple and pink. The colours radiate over the water to form a very magical sight.

Southwark Bridge is notably featured in the 1964 version of Mary Poppins and the 2007 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. In recent times, it features in the season 3 finale of BBC’s Luther.

Closest train station is Canon Street, which is about 3 minutes away; or Bank, which is 10 minutes away.

4. Tower Bridge

Is this the most popular bridge in London? I would say yes. Remember the nursery rhymne, “London Bridge is falling down”? I legit thought the rhyme referred to Tower Bridge the whole time. Imagine my shock when I found out that there was an actual London Bridge which was different from Tower Bridge, I welped!

Tower Bridge is beautiful and runs from Tower Hamlets on the north side to Southwark on the south side. It was built between 1886 and 1894; a bascule bridge and is also Grade 1 listed. The extra glorious thing about this bridge is all the fun stuff in its surrounding areas. Of all the Thames bridges, Tower Bridge is the one I must have spent the most time around. It sits next to the Tower of London, HMS Belfast, Shad Thames and St Katherine’s Docks. Tower Bridge also opens up to allow ships through at different times.

The nearest train stations are Tower Gateway on the DLR and Tower Hill on the Circle and District lines.

5. Westminster Bridge

Westminster Bridge is Grade II listed and links Lambeth on the east side to Westminster on the west side. It is painted green to mirror the seats of the House of Lords, which is located nearby. It opened originally in 1750 but closed for refurbishments and opened again in 1862. Westminster Bridge is one of the most remarkable bridges and an easy addition to my list of 5 pretty London bridges.

I especially love the street lamps on the bridge, they give me a gothic and mysterious vibe. Aside from its own beauty, one thing the Westminster Bridge will give you is views. It sits with the stunning backdrop of London Eye and House of Parliament.

Not far from the bridge is Downing Street, Parliament Square and New Scotland Yard. There is so much to see in Westminster so this is a good bridge to explore from.

The closest underground stations are Westminster and Embankment.

What about London Bridge?

So yes, there is THE London Bridge. An actual bridge named “London Bridge“. Why has it not made it to my list of 5 Pretty London Bridges? Well, that’s because it really is far from pretty. I mean, it is a bridge and it is functional and it is THE London Bridge. Other than all that, it is pretty basic.

5 Pretty London Bridges: My favourite

Tower Bridge might be the most famous of all the bridges but my fave is actually Albert Bridge. I think it is very underrated and I find it so romantic especially when the lights sparkle at night. Southwark Bridge is stunning as well especially when it sparkles at night but there is just something that constantly draws me to Albert Bridge. It might be the pastel pink or the fact that it is much further away from the other 4. However, I always look forward to crossing the bridge when we go to visit our friends in Battersea.

Ask me another day and I might claim my favourite to be Tower Bridge though haha! Ultimately, it is a strong tie – Albert Bridge, Tower Bridge or Southwark Bridge.

I really did not think bridges were my thing which is so funny because I always visit them on my travels. Some of my faves are Pont Alexandre III in Paris, Brooklyn Bridge in New York, Szechenyi Bridge in Budapest and St Charles in Prague. Having walked those 4, I knew my London picks had to be up there with them too.

We can’t have London lagging behind, can we?

Until my next wander around a bridge…

…Bisous, ‘Bugo x