Be Dazzled by the Crown Jewels

The Tower of London is a fascinating place to visit and generally appears on most people's "must see" list, and now the Crown Jewels have been re-presented you have another excuse to plan a trip.

I visited on a weekday afternoon and was pleasantly surprised as there was no queue to enter the Jewel House whereas at the weekend the wait can be over an hour long. Before even reaching the gems I was pleased to see the newly restored footage of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation from 2 June 1953 in the introductory exhibition in the Jewel House.

When you reach the crowns and the most stunning pieces in the collection, there are two conveyor belts as they, quite rightly, know we would all stop and gasp in awe. But there's nothing to stop you going onto the higher static platform and taking a longer look, or going round on the conveyor belt again. I'll be honest, the sparkles wowed me and I went round again and again smiling broadly. I stopped to read the information on the platform and then went on the conveyor belt again!

Seriously, who wouldn't be impressed by the Crown Jewel. This is where you can see the largest top quality cut diamond in the world and probably the most famous diamond in the world, the Koh-i-Nûr. And remember, these items are still used regularly at many State occasions.

Find out all you need to know to plan a trip to see the Crown Jewels in the Tower of London Visitor Guide.

Image: © Laura Porter | London Travel Blog