The Tower of London, one of the six venues cared for by independent charity Historic Royal Palaces, welcomed industry press to the Secrets of the Tower tour on 28 June.

With the Tower holding a history of nearly 1000 years, the tours celebrate the secrets and are designed to offer an intimate, exclusive and immersive experience for small groups.

The private tour allowed guests to visit hidden areas brought to life by the beauty and harshness of life in the Tower. Visitors were fortunate enough to see sites including the Queens House, St Thomas More Crypt, Chapel Royal and even the cells of the famous prisoners who were kept at the tower.

“We are delighted to be launching this fantastic tour,” said Laura Roser, events coordinator at the Tower of London. “It provides us with an amazing opportunity to showcase the palace, show some shocking secrets and most importantly highlight to guests how booking private tours help preserve the palaces for the generations of the future.”

Guests were also treated to a private viewing of the Crown jewels before the tour begun.

Milan Thakrar, business development manager, commercial events at Historic Royal Palaces commented: “We were very excited to sell this tour as part of the commercial events offering. Our palaces are steeped in history, but this behind the scenes glimpse quite literally takes things one-step further!  The tour brings to light some of the most closely guarded secrets that have been passed through generations, and we can’t wait to reveal them to our clients.”