In this guide
Three things run on the Thames and share the same piers: Uber Boat by Thames Clippers is scheduled transit you pay for by tapping a card, narrated sightseeing cruises are pre-booked tours, and the Thames Rockets speedboats are a ride.
💡 River Boat Snapshot:
- Transit vs Cruise: Uber Boat by Thames Clippers (River Bus) is the scheduled service. Narrated cruises and dining boats are pre-booked tours.
- How to Pay: Tap in and touch out at the pier readers with contactless or Oyster.
- No TfL Capping: River fares do not count towards daily Underground and bus fare caps.
- Travelcard Savings: TfL-issued Travelcard holders get 1/3 off standard fares.
River Bus, Sightseeing Cruise or Experience?
| Option Type | Best For | Oyster / Contactless Accepted? | Key Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uber Boat (River Bus) | Scenic point-to-point transit (e.g. Westminster to Greenwich) | Yes (Touch in & out at pier) | Scheduled transit boats; climate-controlled indoor cabins & open back decks |
| Hop-on Hop-off River Pass | Making 3+ boat journeys in one day | Buy in app or pier | Unlimited River Bus travel for 24 or 48 hours |
| Sightseeing Cruise (City Cruises) | Narrated tours with live commentary | No (Pre-booked ticket) | Focuses on history & commentary; calls at major central piers |
| Thames Rockets (Speedboat) | High-speed thrill ride & entertainment | No (Pre-booked ticket) | 35-knot speedboat ride with music & guide |
| Dining & Afternoon Tea Cruises | Lunch, dinner, or tea with river views | No (Pre-booked ticket) | Timed 90–120 minute dining experience on the water |
4 Golden rules of Thames river travel
🌟 Golden Rules of River Boats:
- Touch In AND Touch Out: Unlike London buses, you must tap your contactless or Oyster card on the reader beside the boarding ramp when boarding and when leaving.
- Use the Same Device: Tapping in with a physical bank card and out with Apple Pay results in two maximum fare charges.
- Check Pier Step-Free Access: Every pier is step-free except Cadogan, London Bridge City and Wandsworth Riverside Quarter, where the boarding brow gets too steep on some tides. See our step-free London guide for the alternatives and the 50% disabled fare.
- Check Boat Direction: Double-check whether the approaching boat is heading Eastbound (towards Greenwich/Barking) or Westbound (towards Westminster/Battersea).
Uber Boat by Thames Clippers: Fares & Zones
Uber Boat operates across three distinct fare zones: West Zone (Putney to Battersea), Central Zone (Battersea to Canary Wharf), and East Zone (Canary Wharf to Barking Riverside).
🗺️ Thames River Bus Pier Route by Zone
Putney ➔ Wandsworth Riverside ➔ Battersea Power Station Pier
Westminster ➔ London Eye ➔ Embankment ➔ Bankside ➔ London Bridge City ➔ Tower Pier
Canary Wharf ➔ Greenwich ➔ North Greenwich (The O2) ➔ Woolwich ➔ Barking Riverside
🗺️ Official Thames River Maps:
- 📄 Download Official TfL River Services Map (PDF) — Full Transport for London schematic map showing all river bus piers, Tube interchanges, and landmark connections.
- 🌐 View Interactive Uber Boat Route Map & Timetables — Live interactive pier map with real-time boat tracking and departure schedules.
2026 Pay-As-You-Go Fares
Fares drop on Sunday 1 November 2026. Peak contactless and Oyster fares and walk-in pier singles fall; off-peak fares stay where they are. Off-peak is Monday to Friday 06:35 to 09:27. Everything else, including all weekend and bank holidays, is peak.
From 1 November 2026
| Zones Travelled | Contactless / Oyster (Off-Peak: Mon–Fri 06:35–09:27) | Contactless / Oyster (Peak: all other times, and all weekend) | Online / App Single | Pier Gate Single |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Zone Only | £9.90 | £10.80 | £10.60 | £14.80 |
| Central & East | £11.40 | £12.40 | £12.20 | £16.00 |
| Central & West | £11.40 | £12.40 | £12.20 | £16.00 |
| All Zones (West + Central + East) | £19.30 | £22.90 | £20.50 | £23.50 |
Until 31 October the peak fares are £11.90 (Central), £13.70 (Central & East or West) and £22.90 (All Zones), the online singles £11.70, £13.50 and £22.70, and the pier singles £16.40, £17.70 and £24.70.
A Hop-on Hop-off ticket is £29.30 online for one day and £48.80 for two, or £32.60 for one day at the pier. Booking a single, return or one-day Hop-on Hop-off online at least three days ahead takes a further 15% off. Children aged 5 to 15 and Freedom Pass holders pay half; under-5s are free.
💳 Smart Tip: Tapping Oyster or contactless is almost always cheaper than buying at the pier ticket office, and TfL-issued Travelcard holders save a further third. For one long journey, the Uber Boat single river ticket on GetYourGuide covers one trip between any two piers from Battersea Power Station to Barking Riverside. It doesn’t cover Putney or Wandsworth.
--- | ---: | ---: | ---: | ---: | | Central Zone Only | £9.90 | £11.90 | £11.70 | £16.40 | | Central & East | £11.40 | £13.70 | £13.50 | £17.70 | | Central & West | £11.40 | £13.70 | £13.50 | £17.70 | | All Zones (West + Central + East) | £19.30 | £22.90 | £22.70 | £24.70 |
💳 Smart Tip: Tapping Oyster or contactless is almost always cheaper than buying paper tickets at the pier ticket office! Valid Travelcard holders save an extra 33%. For one long journey, the Uber Boat single river ticket on GetYourGuide is cheaper still: from £9.80 in September 2026 for one trip between any two piers from Battersea Power Station to Barking Riverside, rated 4.0 from 1,116 reviews. It doesn’t cover Putney or Wandsworth.
Top 3 scenic river boat routes for visitors
1. Westminster / London Eye ➔ Greenwich
A sightseeing cruise, not a river bus. Board at Westminster Pier or London Eye Pier and sail past the Houses of Parliament, South Bank, St Paul’s, and the skyscrapers of the City, before passing directly beneath Tower Bridge to reach Greenwich (Cutty Sark; the Royal Observatory closes for refurbishment on 2 November 2026).
- Zones: Central & East Zone (£11.40 off-peak PAYG).
- With commentary: City Cruises sails Westminster, London Eye, Tower and Greenwich piers with the captain talking. Its one-day unlimited river pass is on GetYourGuide.
Passing beneath Tower Bridge.
2. Battersea Power Station ➔ Tower Hill
Board at Battersea Power Station Pier and pass Westminster, Big Ben and the South Bank to land at Tower Pier beside the Tower of London and Tower Bridge.
- Zones: Central Zone Only (£9.90 off-peak PAYG).
3. Canary Wharf ➔ Greenwich Shortcut
A 10-minute river hop from Docklands to Greenwich.
- Zones: Central & East Zone.
Key piers and nearby London landmarks
| Pier Name | Nearest Underground / Rail Station | Top Nearby Landmarks |
|---|---|---|
| Westminster Pier | Westminster (District, Circle, Jubilee) | Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Churchill War Rooms |
| London Eye Pier | Waterloo (Jubilee, Northern, Bakerloo) | London Eye, South Bank, Sea Life Aquarium |
| Bankside Pier | Blackfriars / Southwark | Tate Modern, Shakespeare’s Globe, Millennium Bridge |
| London Bridge City | London Bridge (Northern, Jubilee) | Borough Market, The Shard, HMS Belfast |
| Tower Pier | Tower Hill (District, Circle) | Tower of London, Tower Bridge |
| Canary Wharf Pier | Canary Wharf (Elizabeth Line, Jubilee, DLR) | Docklands, Financial District, Museum of London Docklands |
| Greenwich Pier | Cutty Sark (DLR) | Cutty Sark, Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich Market |
| North Greenwich Pier | North Greenwich (Jubilee) | The O2 Arena, IFS Cloud Cable Car |
| Battersea Power Station Pier | Battersea Power Station (Northern) | Battersea Power Station, Lift 109, Riverside Dining |
Piers are signed from the riverside walkway rather than the road above, so it is easy to walk past one.
Festival Pier, by the Royal Festival Hall.
Speedboats and dining cruises
Thames Rockets speedboats and the lunch, afternoon tea and dinner boats are pre-booked tours, not River Bus services, so Oyster and contactless do not work on them. Prices, piers and which one to book are in our guide to Thames river cruises.
The River Bus Comedy Night
The River Bus Comedy Night is a live stand-up show aboard an Uber Boat by Thames Clippers vessel:
- Format: A 100-minute stand-up comedy show with UK comedians, cruising the Thames.
- Departure: Round trip from Embankment Pier (doors 18:30, sailing 19:00 to 21:00). The boat leaves on time and does not wait for latecomers.
- Tickets: £20, pre-booked online for the date. Adults 18+ only.
- Onboard: A licensed café bar serves alcohol, soft drinks and snacks.
🎟️ Booking Tip: Regular River Bus tickets, Oyster cards and day passes are not valid on the comedy night.
7 Common river boat mistakes to avoid
- Assuming river fares count towards daily Tube caps: they are billed separately.
- Forgetting to touch out: touching in without touching out charges an incomplete maximum fare.
- Buying at the pier: a Central Zone single at the pier is £14.80 from 1 November (£16.40 until then), against £9.90 off-peak by contactless.
- Buying a Day Pass for one trip: singles are cheaper unless you make three or more long journeys in a day.
- Confusing Uber Boat with sightseeing cruises: Uber Boat is a transit ferry without commentary; City Cruises runs live narrated tours.
- Missing the Travelcard discount: show or tap your Travelcard for 1/3 off river fares.
- Missing the last boat back from Greenwich: night sailings end earlier than Tube trains, so check final departure times.
Related London Transport Guides
- 🌇 The Best Rooftop and Riverside Restaurants in London — the riverside rooms worth getting off the boat for
- 🚊 Getting Around London: Complete Transport Overview
- 💷 London Transport Fares & Costs 2026
- 🚇 How to Use the London Underground
- 🚌 How to Use London Buses and Trams
- 💳 Oyster Card vs. Contactless Guide
- ♿ Step-Free London – Accessible piers, stations and attractions
Live sailing timetables are on Transport for London and Uber Boat by Thames Clippers.
