The London Showboat menu and entertainment

Is the London Showboat an actual show?

No: it is a dinner cruise with a live singer and a dance floor, not a staged musical or theatre performance.

The singer performs in the dining saloon while you eat, mixing show tunes, musical favourites and chart classics, and then the evening turns into a party with dancing until you dock. Guests rate the entertainment highly: one called the singer's voice "amazing", another said the music was "outstanding". If you were hoping for a West End-style production on the water, this is not it.

What is on the menu?

A 3-course dinner of classic British dishes, plus tea or coffee; City Cruises counts that as four courses.

The menu changes, so we do not list dishes that may not be served on your night. Guests mention chicken mains ("best chicken dinner I've had in a while", wrote one), and reviews of the food range from "better than usual for a dinner cruise" to "ok" and one complaint about undercooked vegetables. Come for the river and the atmosphere, and treat the meal as a good bonus rather than the main event.

Can they cater for vegetarian or gluten-free diets?

Yes: there is a vegetarian option, and vegan, gluten-free and other special diets should be booked at least 72 hours ahead.

The kitchen cannot guarantee food free from nuts or traces of nuts. If you choose dishes when booking, keep your confirmation: one VIP couple reports they were never asked for their choice on board and were simply served one option. On the sister jazz cruise, guests who had not ordered ahead found little choice beyond the set main.

Are drinks included?

Only the welcome glass of sparkling wine or a soft drink, and tea or coffee with dessert; everything else is paid for at the bar.

This catches people out more than anything else. One guest who paid for two complained that "you still need to pay for any drink", including water. Budget for wine with dinner, and if you want champagne on arrival, that is part of the VIP upgrade.

What music does the singer perform?

Show tunes, musical favourites and chart classics through dinner, then more upbeat songs for dancing.

It is a solo singer working the room rather than a band on a stage, and the volume rises as the evening goes on. If you would rather have jazz with your dinner, the Thames Jazz Dinner Cruise uses the same pier with a live quintet. See Thames dinner cruises compared.

Is there a dance floor?

Yes: the listing promises a live performer and dancing until late, and once dinner is cleared the floor fills up.

You do not have to dance. Many guests take their drinks up to the open deck instead, and the views are best from there in the last part of the cruise.

Fancy a dance under Tower Bridge? The evening ends with music until you dock.

★ 4.1 2,022 reviews · 3 hours · from $109

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What route does the Showboat take?

From Westminster past the London Eye, St Paul's, Shakespeare's Globe, the Tower of London and the Shard, under Tower Bridge, past Canary Wharf and the O2 to the Thames Barrier, tide permitting, and back.

In summer you can catch the sunset on the way out; the rest of the year most of the trip is after dark, with the landmarks lit up. The boat is City Cruises' flagship, the Millennium Diamond.

Is there any commentary on the sights?

No: the dinner cruise has music, not a guide, and that is the most common complaint in reviews.

Guests wish someone had pointed out what they were passing. A good workaround: spend the last 45 minutes or so on the top deck, as one guest did, "to see all of the sights without the windows and light reflection". If commentary matters, the lunch cruise and afternoon tea cruise have it. Compare them in lunch vs afternoon tea cruise.

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