The Garden at 120 asks nothing of you. No ticket, no booking, no time slot, which is not true of either of the other free platforms at this height. You walk in off Fenchurch Street, go through security, take a lift to the 15th floor, and that is the whole procedure.
There is one catch and almost nobody prints it. It closes at 5pm at weekends, in both seasons. On a July Saturday that is four hours earlier than the Tuesday before it. The weekend is the worst time to come and it is when most people try.
Opening hours, and the weekend trap
The hours change twice a year and again at the weekend, which is two moving parts more than most people expect.
Summer, 1 April to 30 September: open daily 10am to 9pm, weekends until 5pm. Winter, 1 October to 31 March: open daily 10am to 6.30pm, weekends until 5pm. The winter hours came into force on 1 October 2026 and the building is advertising them at the top of its own site.
The Garden is closed on bank holidays. That is the other one that catches people, because a bank holiday Monday is exactly when somebody decides to go and look at a view.
The 14 Stories bar and restaurant on the floor below keeps longer hours: open daily 12pm to midnight, and Sundays until 10pm.
The live footfall counter
The building publishes a live footfall counter on its own website showing how full the garden is right now, as a percentage. It is the single most useful thing the building publishes, and it is not on the lists that recommend the place.
The operator says the garden is busier on clear days, at weekends and in summer. Check the counter before you set off rather than after you have queued through security.
Getting in, and the security screening
Enter from Fenchurch Street or Fenchurch Avenue via Hogarth Court, then follow the signs to the lifts for the 15th floor. The address is 120 Fenchurch Street, London EC3M 5BA.
The screening is airport style and the building says so plainly. Bags are X-ray scanned, visitors walk through a metal detector, and laptops have to come out of bags to be scanned separately. A small suitcase is admitted if it fits through the X-ray machine. The building asks that you do not film the security process in the search room, and says it works with the City of London Police, including a counter terrorism security adviser and Project Servator patrols.
Travel light and leave the laptop at the office, and the whole thing takes a minute.
What you can take up
You can bring your own food and soft drinks and use the seating. Glass bottles and alcohol are not allowed. That is an unusually generous rule for a rooftop with a bar on the floor below, and it makes this the cheapest good lunch spot in the City: buy a sandwich at street level, eat it fifteen floors up looking at Tower Bridge.
The building names Ravello on the ground floor for coffee and sweet things, Cibus on Fenchurch Avenue for Mediterranean salads and sandwiches, and a 14 Stories pop up bar selling a takeaway Gardeners’ cocktail.
What is actually up there
The garden runs across the rooftop with wisteria, roses, hydrangeas and a long water feature, looking out to the Thames, Tower Bridge and the City towers. The wisteria is the thing people come back for, and it lasts a few weeks each May. In October the Virginia creeper turns red.
It has been tended since it opened by the same gardener, Phoebe Hay, who won a BALI Special Award for Horticultural Excellence for the work.
Access, groups and bad weather
Access is step free: dedicated lifts and step free routes around the rooftop. Families are welcome, under 18s must be with an adult.
Groups of up to 40 can visit on weekdays, booked at least two weeks ahead, with slots at 10am, 11am, 3pm and 4pm. The building does not hire the Garden out for private events at all.
In extreme heat, storms, snow, ice or high winds the garden may close for safety, and the building tells visitors to check on the day, especially in winter. On a rooftop fifteen floors up in January, treat that as likely rather than theoretical.
How it compares
Sky Garden is free but requires a booked ticket released on a schedule, and it is taller. Horizon 22 is free, higher still, and also needs booking. The Garden at 120 is the one you can decide to visit on the walk there, which on a clear lunchtime is worth more than the extra height.
The best views in London ranks all of them by what you have to arrange rather than what you have to pay.
The Garden at 120
- Address
- 120 Fenchurch Street, London EC3M 5BA
- Nearest
- Fenchurch Street, Monument or Aldgate
- Hours
- Summer, 1 April to 30 September, daily 10am to 9pm and weekends until 5pm. Winter, 1 October to 31 March, daily 10am to 6.30pm and weekends until 5pm. Closed on bank holidays
- Booking
- None needed. Groups of up to 40 book at least two weeks ahead for weekday slots at 10am, 11am, 3pm and 4pm
- Price
- Free
- Standing
- A public rooftop garden on the 15th floor, free all year
How to get in
Airport style security screening with X-ray and a metal detector. Own food and soft drinks allowed, no glass or alcohol. May close in extreme weather.
Where to go next
Sky Garden and Horizon 22 are the other free high viewpoints, and both need a booked ticket.
The best views in London ranks every platform by what it costs you in arrangement, and The Shard is the paid comparison.
Questions we get asked
Is the Garden at 120 free?
Yes, and no booking is needed. It is free to visit all year round. You enter from Fenchurch Street or Fenchurch Avenue via Hogarth Court and take the lifts to the 15th floor, after a short security check.
What are the Garden at 120 opening times?
In summer, 1 April to 30 September, it is open daily 10am to 9pm, and at weekends until 5pm. In winter, 1 October to 31 March, it is open daily 10am to 6.30pm, and at weekends until 5pm. It is closed on bank holidays.
Why does the Garden at 120 close early at weekends?
The published hours close at 5pm at weekends in both seasons, which in summer is four hours earlier than a weekday. The operator does not give a reason, but it means a weekday evening is the longest window of the year.
Is there security at the Garden at 120?
Yes, and it is airport style. Bags are X-ray scanned, visitors go through a walkthrough metal detector, and laptops must be removed from bags to be scanned separately. A small suitcase is admitted if it fits through the machine.
Can you take food and drink to the Garden at 120?
You can bring your own food and soft drinks and use the seating. Glass bottles and alcohol are not allowed. There is a bar and restaurant, 14 Stories, on the 14th floor, open daily 12pm to midnight and Sundays until 10pm.
How busy is the Garden at 120?
The building publishes a live footfall counter on its own website showing how full the garden is at that moment. It says the garden is busier on clear days, at weekends and in summer.
Does the Garden at 120 close in bad weather?
It can. In extreme heat, storms, snow, ice or high winds it may close for safety, and the building asks visitors to check on the day, especially in winter.
Written by Robert J Wills, no. 191 in the guide.
Last checked 3 October 2026 against the venues' own published information. Nobody pays to appear here and we take no bookings.
