Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey has made it into the UK’s top ten most-visited attractions for the first time thanks to the 'Royal Wedding effect'.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s marriage ceremony in April was watched by billions of people around the world and led to a huge increase in visitor numbers to the Abbey in 2011.
Nearly 1.9 million people visited the 700-year-old building last year, an increase of 36 per cent on the 2010 figure, according to the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (Alva).
As well as Royal Wedding link, the Abbey is also where royalty, poets and leaders are buried or have their work recognised in memorial plaques. It is also the resting place of the Unknown Soldier.
In contrast to Westminster's success, the Occupy London anti-capitalism camp at St Paul’s Cathedral appears to have deterred visitors, where numbers dipped by four per cent to just under 1.82 million.
The iconic Tower of London welcomed nearly six per cent more visitors last year - up to 2.55 million - while the National Portrait Gallery numbers rose 3 per cent to 1.88 million.