Sky Garden Walkie Talkie Logo

Sky Garden Walkie Talkie  - walk london sightseeing tour

eleventh city walklondon attraction visitSky Garden

The Sky Garden is situated on top of the Walkie-Talkie building at 20 Fenchurch Street and offers spectacular views of the City of London. Over 3 floors it is London’s highest public garden with walkways through beds of full height ferns, succulents, herbs and flowers. There is an open-air terrace and internal cafe, bars and a restaurant for visitors to enjoy.

The Sky Garden has a 360° panoramic view across London.city of london walk

The Walkie Talkie

The current building at 20 Fenchurch Street was constructed in 2014 and quickly given the nick-name Walkie-Talkie due to its resemblance of a ‘handheld 2-way radio’. At 160m tall there are 34 office floors below the 3 floor viewing deck. Wider at the top than the bottom, it makes maximum use of the building's relatively small land footprint.

20 Fenchurch Street London, know as The Walkie-Talkie.sky garden building walklondon

Designed by Uruguayan architect Rafael Vinoly it initially came under criticism and was awarded the 2015 Carbuncle Cup as the ugliest building of the year. However, with the City of London now having many more taller skyscrapers, it is a much admired feature on the London skyline, a top tourist attraction and one of London's most iconic buildings.

Sky Garden, incorporated into the public viewing platform.the walkie talkie building walklondon

Sky Garden, designed by award-winning landscape architects, contains a variety of drought-resistant Mediterranean and South African species giving vibrant colour throughout the year. With the 360 degree backdrop view over London it has become a popular venue for a variety of events from live bands and DJ nights to marriage proposals and morning Yoga sessions.

Cleaning The Walkie Talkie windows at 150m.20 Fenchurch Street walklondon

Soon after completion the building design caused some issues. The wider top than bottom caused a wind tunnel effect giving rise to a strong breeze at street level. More significantly, the concaved shape of the south facing façade could, on sunny days, focus the sun’s rays to the extent that an egg could be fried on the pavement below! The offending windows have since been covered with a non-reflective film.

Visitor Infomation

Access to the Sky Garden is free of charge, but spaces are limited. Visits must be booked in advance, see below;

Further information:

Sky Garden