Visited in the summer and decided to take a punt on the tower tour - at £20/person, it felt like it might be a little bit expensive but it turned out to be worth every penny!

Firstly, £20 gets you access to the main Cathedral, Chapter House and Magna Carta, and the tower tour and there's easily enough to see to fill an afternoon (or longer).

The Cathedral is an awe inspiring piece of medieval architecture on its own but the tower tour helps to bring its enormous scale back down to something a bit more human. Being able to see the marks left by masons both medieval and modern helped connect us to a rich history. The guide was knowledgeable, entertaining and patient and, before any of us knew it, 2 hours had passed by!

The view from the spire on a fine day is probably worth the entrance fee alone but the journey up through ancient winding staircases (with plenty of stops on the way) made it all the more interesting. Be prepared for a seriously sore neck by the end of the day - you spend so much time looking up in awe and wonder that you simply can't avoid it!

My one regret is that we didn't spend more time at ground level before embarking on the tour - by the time we were back on terra firma, the cathedral was closing.