London’s Secret Village
St. Paul's underground station, London (exit 2)
Guided by Aaron or Peter G. or Philip or Sue
Walk Times
| Day | Walk Type | Start Time | End Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Weekly | 2.30 pm | 4.30 pm | Winter Summer | Reserve Online |
N.B. this walk will not take place on the following dates:
25-12-2023 01-01-2024The ancient, hidden village of Clerkenwell clings to a hillside barely a stone’s throw away from St. Paul’s Cathedral. Its very name – the clerks’ or students’ spring – is redolent of antiquity. And this tiny hamlet serves up brimming draughts from the deep well of its history.
Mystery plays and plague pits; riots and rookeries; bodysnatching and bombing; jousting and jesters; bloodshed and burnings; monks, murder, and medicine: Clerkenwell has a tale or two to tell.
Tracing its narrow alleyways and ancient squares, we take in here a Norman church; there a magnificent Tudor gateway; round that corner venerable Charterhouse, London’s only surviving mediaeval monastic complex; let alone Hercule Poirot’s London flat and the trendiest house in town. Guided by Peter or Aaron or Philip
LONDON’S SECRET VILLAGE – THE PRACTICALS
London’s Secret Village takes place at 2.30 pm every Monday.
The meeting point is just outside exit 2 of St. Paul’s Tube. N.B. the walk ends at Farringdon Station (giving you the Circle and Metropolitan Lines on the Tube and a mainline RR station).
LONDON WALKS REVIEWS
“London Walks was acknowledged as the premier walking tour company in the entire world” Convention of American Tour Guides
“London’s best bargain….The highly respected London Walks organisation is famous for offering both general-interest walking tours of London as well as tours focused on specific neighbourhoods. The London’s Secret Village tour really reveals Clerkenwell’s character…it also covers many of the attractions featured in this article…[it is] one of the best deals in town.” Vanessa Chiasson, TravelAwaits (Feb. 24, 2020)
“What a great company…this is the company to use if you want a walking tour.” Claire1017 Wake Forest, North Carolina
“London Walks was perfect for us. We did 2 of the walks–Jewish London on one day and London’s Secret Village on another. Both were led by Steve, a charming, knowledgeable and entertaining guide. He did a great job of connecting with each person on the tour, speaking loudly enough for all of us to hear and with enough vocal color to engage us all. We learned a lot about London, saw fascinating sights, and had a great time.” JCT Annapolis, Maryland
“You haven’t seen London unless you do London Walks…Peter was my favourite guide” Bunny7475 Montreal, Canada
LONDON WALKS PRIVATE WALKS
If you can’t make the regularly scheduled, just-turn-up, public Secret Village walk do think about booking one as a private tour. If you go private you can have London’s Secret Village – or any other London Walk – on a day and at a time that suits your convenience. We’ll tailor it to your requirements. And – always with private London Walks and tours – we go to great lengths to make sure the guide-walker(s) “fit” is well-nigh perfect. Ring Fiona or Niamh or Peter or Mary on 020 7624 3978 or email us at [email protected] and we’ll set it up and make it happen for you. A private London Walk – they’re good value for an individual or couple and sensational value for a group – makes an ideal group or educational or birthday party or office (team-building) or club outing.
GIVE THE GIFT OF LONDON WALKS
A private London Walk makes a very special (and unusual) gift – be it a birthday or anniversary or get-to-know-your-new neighbourhood gift or Christmas present or whatever. Merchandise schmerchandise (gift wrapped or not) – but giving someone an experience, now that’s special. Memories make us rich.
IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THE GUIDING
“If this were a golf tournament every name on the Leader Board would be a London Walks guide”
Anne Harden –
I joined a London Walk today around Piccadilly, lead by Clare – enjoyed the Walk immensely- Clare was interesting, thorough and entertaining – many thanks
Sarah Robbins –
We had an in-depth Clerkenwell “Secret Village” walking tour with Jonathan Wober. He is an amazing storyteller and has entertained us with weaving stories from London past to present time. The most important was his talent to insert humour to many of his stories. We had a great time. Thank you Jonathan:)
Brenton & Kaaren Watts –
Walk 8th May 2023. Aaron was extremely knowledgeable, very personable, passionate about his subject and brought the past to life. Would recommend this walk, and Aaron, to anyone.
Jill McLoughlin –
Excellent walk led by Peter who was interesting and very engaging. A fascinating couple of hours. Certainly recommend this walk.
Steven Brown –
What a great time. Interesting walk with Peter who was a great guide. Plenty of great tales, but willing to listen to other people’s anecdotes. Definitely recommend these walks to others.
Christy –
Peter is a fantastic guide. His tour is fascinating with so many interesting stories about an area of London I had not known anything about despite having lived here for years! We were shown some incredible buildings and learnt so much history – definitely one of my favourites of the walks I’ve done.
Sarah –
We thoroughly enjoyed the Clerkenwell “Secret Village” walking tour with Peter. He was so knowledgeable about this fascinating corner of London. So much history over the centuries! This was a great experience.
Sarah Carter –
An interesting and entertaining couple of hours. Peter was knowledgeable and not phased by questions. He was happy to expand where prompted or to say he didn’t know the answer. Would use these again on another trip
Tourist extraordinaire –
Peter shared his knowledge and wit in a most agreeably entertaining way. This walk rates 6 stars.