Welcome to the City of London, an area also nicknamed the ‘square mile’, in the UK’s capital City. This area, known in Roman times as Londinium, was where London started and grew from. Pin the city down on a map, and you’ll see Blackfriars Bridge, Tower Bridge, Aldgate, Liverpool Street, Fleet Street, and of course, many impressive tourist attractions, within its boundaries.
When you consider that the City of London was born around AD50, after the Roman invasion of Britain, it will come as no surprise, that the ‘square mile’ can take you on a trip through thousands of years of trade, industry, architecture and social history. Some of this can be seen first-hand through trips to various preserved monuments and buildings, while there is much to see and learn at the City of London’s various museums and exhibitions.
If you’re on a day trip or short break, and time is at a premium, then booking a guided walk is one way to ensure you don’t miss any of the areas key attractions. Official City tour guides run a range of themed walks that start and finish at convenient locations. Knowledgeable guides can really help bring the City alive, though there are other options if you don’t feel like a walking tour, all of which are accessible for most of the year. If you book a walk or tour during a special event, you’ll get two experiences for the price of one, and plenty to interest the whole family.
The guided walks page explains more about the different options available to you, but there’s much more to the ‘square mile’ than set walking routes, so you can read up on all the other sites and attractions on offer as well.
Markets and luxury shopping malls, traditional pubs, historic trade centres and places of worship, and a few urban legends. But don’t be scared by stories of Jack The Ripper and Sweeney Todd, or the executions that used to happen at the Tower of London. Embrace the horror, relish the enterprise and invention, and fill your minds with all that the City of London has to offer its visitors.
Along with information on the guided walks and tours that are regularly available, this site also runs through some of the tourist hotspots, that you might find en-route, or off the beaten track. There are details about markets, churches, museums, open spaces, and more. With so much to see and do in the City of London, if you’re planning a visit, it might be time to start doing some research, and building an itinerary.