The Famous Square Mile
Monument Underground station, London (Fish Street Hill exit)
Guided by Delianne or Fiona or Judy or Simon or Tom
Walk Times
| Day | Walk Type | Start Time | End Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | Weekly | 10.30 am | 12.30 pm | Winter Summer | Reserve Online |
| Thursday | Weekly | 11 am | 1 pm | Winter Summer | Reserve Online |
N.B. this walk will not take place on the following dates:
24-12-2023
HEAR TOM MBE HERE
Here’s barrister and superstar guide Tom Hooper MBE talking about this walk. This is Part I of a two-part interview in which Tom enlightens and entertains us about what this walk covers, what you get, where it goes, etc.
Short read: 2,000 Years of History (brought to you by brilliant guides*)
A dream team of nonpareil guides
Long read: The great classic London Walk, the London Walk of Walks! It explores the very heart of the City – the most historic part of the capital. Threading his way through an intricate network of narrow alleys and cobblestone lanes, Simon chronicles the 2,000 years of London’s rich and tumultuous history. And illustrates it by drawing upon everything from street names to ancient customs to the frozen music of London’s great buildings, among which are the ruins of the Roman Temple of Mithras, the Bank of England, the Lord Mayor’s Mansion House, and ancient Guildhall. Guided by Tom MBE, Judy, Fiona or Simon.
*”If this were a golf tournament every name on the Leader Board would be a London Walks guide”
FAMOUS SQUARE MILE TOUR PRACTICALS
The meeting point is just outside the Fish Street Hill exit of Monument Tube. N.B. the walk ends very near St. Paul’s Tube Station.
LONDON WALKS SOUPÇON
The gold stored at the Bank of England cannot be stacked more than 5 feet high and has to be continuously moved around. Why? Because the London clay does not provide a solid enough foundation. Gold is so dense and thus heavy, it would start to sack the foundation of the vaults. In Manhattan, in contrast, the vaults are laid right on top of schist bedrock which is very strong. There is virtually is no limit to how high the stacks can be. (Perhaps just as well because there is more gold in the vaults of the Federal Reserve Bank in Manhattan than there is in Fort Knox. More than 36 countries store their gold there – more than 1/4 of the world’s gold is in those vaults. And well might you ask – how much is in the Bank of England?)
LONDON WALKS REVIEWS
“London’s best city tours” The Telegraph
“Even jaded Londoners find these London Walks a source of astonishing gems of information about the city in which they live.” Daily Mail, Top London Treats
“London Walks was the first – and is the best – of the walking tour firms” Fodor’s Great Britain
“The Famous Square Mile with guide Simon this morning was excellent. I didn’t want it to end even though it had begun raining. The wealth of knowledge of Simon and his exuberant passion for the history of this famous city was reflected in how he brought it to life for our group. I’ve been on numerous of the London Walks and all are the highest calibre. Take as many of these walks as you can!!” P. Fuselli Banff, Canada Feb. 2020
LONDON WALKS PRIVATE WALKS
If you can’t make one of the regularly scheduled, just-turn-up, public Famous Square Mile walks do think about booking one as a private tour. If you go private you can have the Famous Square Mile walk – or any other London Walk – on a day and at a time that suits your convenience. We’ll tailor it to your requirements. Ring Fiona or Peter or Niamh 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, thoughtful and unusual gift. Be it a birthday or anniversary or Christmas present or whatever. Merchandise schmerchandise (gift wrapped or not) – but giving someone an experience, now that’s special. Memories make us rich.
Laurence DAGNAUD –
Fiona was an excellent, very clever and knowledgeable guide, open to questions . I highly recommend her We had a great time discovering the square mile
Tom McCracken –
My wife and I took this walk with Simon on Aug 27th. Simon’s knowledge and humor combined to make this a wonderful experience. Would highly recommend.
Jimmy –
27 August 2023 – Simon was highly entertaining and deeply knowledgeable. As a Londoner who knows these area well, it was a real eye opener to new discoveries and encounters. Didn’t want the tour to stop. Will be back for more!
Uzma Haque –
What a fantastic and instructive 2 hours (plus) journey through the medieval alleys and modern streets of the City of London! It was highly educational and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The time just flew, as Simon is a perfect guide – very knowledgeable, vivacious, witty, personable. I look forward to joining you on another tour on my next trip to London.
Reshma and Fouzia –
We did the square mile walk this morning with Simon. Simon was not only very knowledgeable but great fun too. I used to work in this part of the city many many years ago and always wondered about the area. Simon was a wealth of information! It was one of those times when you don’t want something to end!
Will deffo be booking another walk soon!
Penny nestel –
Simon’s tour of the square mile was excellent and most enjoyable.
Derek Jones (Liverpool) –
I did the Square Mile walk yesterday with Simon and it was absolutely brilliant.. Simon was so knowledgeable about the history, the buildings, the boroughs and the pubs! I would thoroughly recommend this tour, there were 7 of my family on the walk of various ages and we all enjoyed it. Thanks Simon for a very informative and entertaining morning.
Tom Simons –
Really enjoyed the walk today around the square mile. Simon provided entrainment and also insight into the historical events and buildings.
Joan and Tom –
We had a really enjoyable tour by Simon today – he brought the square mile to life for us with his evocative story telling and real passion. We have done many London Walks and this was one of the best! Thank you Simon 🙂
Rhonda & David Edmonds –
Ann was pleasant and knowledgeable. Really enjoyed the walk. Great contrast between old and new architecture. Particularly enjoyed journeying down back alleyways.
Sam Marshall –
We we’re extremely lucky with the weather, our guide Ann, and our companions.
In the past we’ve only done West End shows and the major tourist hot spots. However this tour took our knowledge, imagination and senses to a time gone by, to the current money of wealth of the City of London.
The architecture, the history, the anecdotal stories all beautifully delivered over the 2 hours.
Nicola Bradley –
Simon was a great guide. Covered several millennia of London’s history in a highly entertaining way. Learnt loads of nuggets from which side started the Blitz to who St Botolph was and how Romans communicated in wax. Loved seeing St Dunstans in the East, Leadenhall Market and the Bank of England. Sunday is a great day for the walk as the City is fairly quiet.
Andrada –
Great walk led by Simon. Look forward to another one!
Geoff Calman –
Excellent tour. Very informative, entertaining. Disappointed that it had to end.
Matt H –
Simon was great, two hours well spent.
Brian –
Fantastic walk through the city today with Fiona. Clear, knowledgeable and made the facts very interesting. Certainly knows a lot about ‘old London Town’ and answered every question asked of her. Will be back for more walks soon.
Colleen –
Richard (the Third) was kind and engaging. Highly recommended!
Apanda B –
Fascinating tour of old and new London.
Simon explained history well and had lots of entertaining anecdotes.
Very worthwhile
Mike –
Excellent tour that provided a fascinating history of the area, as well as London in general. Isabelle was a superb guide.
Anthony Parker (Wales) –
Absolutely brilliant…..Simon made it, very knowledgeable and his knowledge was delivered with enthusiasm. I’ve been on walks before where the guide had knowledge but couldn’t deliver it if they were a postie. Simon had it all. Thank you very much.
Mark Lansdell –
A wonderful tour and a wonderful guide! Simon was extremely knowledgeable, charismatic and engaging. We really enjoyed him and learned a lot. Fantastic tour, thank you!
Peck –
I went on a London Walk at Famous Square Mile on the 1st April 2023 with Delianne. My first London Walk ever, and I was left with so much interest to find out more about this wonderful city at the end of the tour, as Delianne was so informative and entertaining. I went on to join 2 other walking tours: Westminster Abbey and Old Westminster Walking Tour.
Yvonne Scotton –
A very informative walk through areas of London we have never seen before. Thank you to Fiona who is so knowledgeable, we would definitely recommend, & choose this company to go on other walks around the city .
Paul Swift –
We enjoyed the Famous Square Mile walk yesterday with Fiona as our guide. Great to hear anecdotes and learn about the City through its long history, not just as a centre of trade and finance but also its social and cultural development. Not heavy but chatty, lighthearted and fun, weaving expertly through the alleys and old streets we were given a real sense of how the area has become what it is. Highly recommended.
Alison Jones –
Fascinating, informative, relaxed. Fiona has whetted my appetite for more of these tours. Very good value.
joelle –
We had a very enjoyable and informative tour with Delianne. She made it so much fun and lively that we would definitely like to book another tour with her . I would highly recommend this tour . Thank you Delianne
Neil –
Sue led an informative and engaging walking tour of London City, providing a comprehensive overview of the area’s rich history. From Roman Coliseums to the origins of coffee shops, the tour offered a diverse range of historical highlights. Sue’s expertise and passion for the subject made for a memorable experience. Highly recommend to anyone interested in learning more about London City’s past.
Mike and Lindy –
We went on this incredible walk with JUDY on the last week of December. Enriching in ways we did not expect and exceeded all of our expectations! It was our first London Walks…walk…and we knew more walks would be in the offing if they were as good as this. Judy was a consummate professional with all the in-depth knowledge and experience needed to make us feel comfortable, entertained, and educated. We came away enormously grateful! Loved it!
Judy –
Absolutely fabulous. Fiona was so knowledgeable – I can’t rate her highly enough. The City of London is so fascinating and absolutely buzzing! I bought this walk as a birthday present for my sister and we’ll definitely be doing more walks. Thank you Fiona.
Diane Gregg –
Ann was the perfect guide being informative interesting & amusing. Highly recommend it.
Thomas Smith –
We really enjoyed this tour. Simon made the city come to life, and his knowledge was amazing. Definitely recommend.
Jane –
Just did the City Walk with Simon. Fantastic experience. He is very knowledgable and funny.We will be doing more walks for sure. Thanks Simon!
Ralf –
places you’d never find yourself, nor understand their relevance.
Ingrid –
Wonderful, funny, interesting, unique! Glad I didn’t miss this one.
Pamela Fuselli –
Love this walk. Second time enjoying it and I’d do it again. Simon makes this walk! His depth of knowledge is amazing. He draws you into the story and the time flies by. Don’t miss it!
Dana Van Steenbergen –
Went on this Sunday walk with Simon. What an interesting, entertaining, witty, and knowledgeable guide! We would have never noticed or found the places he took us. Definitely a must do whenever you’re in London.
Ian –
Took this walk with Simon on 2022-09-04 and he was so funny and engaging. He knows the stories of the area so well and points out lots of other details along the way, would absolutely recommend to someone in London for the first time like I was.
Ruth Hicks –
I thoroughly enjoyed this walk led by our guide, Fiona. The walk managed to cover a great deal of old London and new London over a relatively small area (‘the square mile’) and short time frame without feeling at all rushed. The walk gave me a good sense of how the city has evolved over time and the events that have shaped it. Fiona is extremely knowledgeable and knows a lot about the city of the past and present, and brought it to life with entertaining stories and interesting facts. This was my first time to London and I highly recommend this walk to newbies to get a sense of the city over time (in tandem with seeing major tourist attractions, etc). Thank you Fiona and London Walks, I am looking forward to another walk next time I visit!
mai phan –
My first time in London, Simon was very informative, the tour took to interesting places and histories. No tour books mention the places that I was shown, Please, do take the tour, it is the best walking tour I ever had
Russ & Melanie Pollard –
What a fantastic guided walk!
Simon our guide was very knowledgeable and very entertaining. If you get the chance to go on one of their guided walks go for it! We saw little pockets of the City city we never knew existed.
It’s 5 Stars from us *****
Jeff from Canada –
We did this walk with Simon and very much enjoyed his informative and amusing stories
Belinda Smith –
A fascinating walk with lots of information and interesting anecdotes from Simon
Cathy –
Nous avons beaucoup apprécié notre visite dans la City avec Simon qui regorge de connaissance, d’énergie et d’humour. We highly recommend!
sharon –
Simon is incredible. Knowledgeable, engaging, energetic. A real treat!
James Kowszun –
I thought I knew London and The City pretty well…. until spending a couple of hours in Simon’s company walking the back streets of the square mile. What a fantastic experience – and Simon, you are truly excellent. Thank you.
His detailed knowledge, coupled with brilliant communication and topped off with just a touch of English eccentricity – excellent and illuminating.
We very much intend to do another of his walks in the future. Bravo!
Mus –
Simon is an amazing storyteller. Loved all the fun anencedots. Will do another tour.
Mus –
Simon is an amazing story teller. He gave a lot of interesting insights and information about the Square Mile. Love it and will do it again.
James Kowszun –
I thought I knew London and The City in particular, until we spent a couple of hours in Simon’s unique company. He was extraordinary. Highly knowledgeable, genuinely engaging and just a little bit bonkers. His detail and ability to point out something exceptional that we would have just walked passed was brilliant. We were walking in the hottest weather London has seen – and none of us wanted the tour to finish.
Thank you – from the prop forward.
Sarah S –
I really enjoyed the walk with Fiona, you get such a historically and thematically varied selection of information and anecdotes, it’s so interesting and she is really pleasant and knowledgeable and conveys enthusiasm about the City. I recommend this walk, but then I haven’t yet done a London Walk that I wouldn’t.
Christopher Bromage –
Simon took us on a superb walk around the City of London – he delivered so many historical facts and stories in a brilliant, engaging way, and opened our eyes to a fascinating area of London. Highly recommend this guide and walk – memorable souvenir of our visit to London.
Diane Long –
Simon was a superb guide, so knowledgeable and humorous, giving us all a fantastic and entertaining walk through time in the City from Roman days all through the centuries up until and including present day. Roman emperors, Henry V, Shakespeare, Christopher Wren, Charles Dickens, and modern City bankers all made an appearance. London Walks have always given the best urban tours and I’m delighted that post COVID they continue to set the standard. Highly recommended!
Alison H. –
Everything about this tour was excellent including the weather! We had a great lunch at Simpson’s Tavern and so the day could not have been better.
Judy did a great job – not too much information to be overwhelming but enough to hold our interest. I worked in the City for 40 years and am a Liveryman of the W C of Shipwrights – i thought that I knew everything about the City. Seemingly I did not! Many thanks from both of us. Alison & Roger
A German bloke –
Sir, when a man is tired of London, help is at hand – for there is in London all and Simon will show you around.
Incredible funny and witty raconteur- he’s the the dog’s bollocks! 6 Star review (1 is for the other lad 😉)
Gareth Collier –
Simon was excellent. Informative and entertaining. Really enjoyed the walk and highly recommended.
kate houghton –
A really interesting walk brought to life by larger than life Simon. Fascinating facts about the sqaure mile and it’s history. Highly recommended
Katherine –
Thank you 😊 to Simon for a very interesting and entertaining walk this morning. Lots of fascinating historical facts about our famous capital and really good value for money!
Nick Inkster –
Simon was engaging, knowledgable, friendly and made our walk very interesting. Even though it was freezing cold, he made the two hours pass in a very entertaining way.
Cammi Bennetton –
Wonderful walk. Simon was brilliant. Engaging for all ages, my grandad (82) and I (17), highlight of my year so far!
Peter & Jenny Ketteringham –
Excellent. Simon Law is, in addition to being an informative and knowledgeable guide, entertaining company. He has the knack of involving everyone in the group so that you are always anticipating his next factual ‘gem’. We strongly recommend this guide and this company.
Irina –
What an amazing walk I had yesterday with Simon! Simon is a perfect guide -full of knowledge, fascinating facts and great presentation. I will definitely be going on more walks with Simon.
Andrei Dubrovin –
In a chilly and windy November Sunday I walked around with Simon over the famous square mile. What a brilliant guide, knowledge and humor and and taste all came together in these 2 hours (actually little more as we saw a lot!). Going through a little corners and passages that I will probably never could have find by myself organized in the history walk through centuries of London’s history. We were rather large group (almost 30, I suppose tourist are back to London?) and still I could hear Simon perfectly and follow him with a good pace so the walk was intellectually intense, the sights beautiful, the air fresh and crisp. See you on the next tour, Simon!
Alison –
The two hours we spent with Fiona walking around the City of London Square Mile yesterday just flew by. She has a tremendous depth of knowledge about so many aspects of this area, past and present, and she put it across in such an entertaining way. We hung on her every word and learnt such a lot. Thank you so much!
Ira Miller –
The walk today with Fiona was wonderful, entertaining and informative. One of the best walking tours I have done by a ( square ) mile
Gill –
Very much enjoyed the walk with Fiona today, really interesting and entertaining
Jackie Roberts –
I have just done the Square Mile walk with Fiona and have to say it was one of the best I’ve done. Fiona was extremely personable and told and showed us parts of London I never knew about. She threw in a mini ‘quiz’ which was good fun and you didn’t need to be a historian to take part :-). Definitely recommend.
Saley –
Last Sunday (10 October 2021) I and my wife were part of a group of six who went on this walk with our guide Peter G. From the time we met he put us all at ease with his witty (sharp as a splinter, nay, razor sharp), sociable and gregarious personality. We found him to be exceedingly friendly, convivial and knowledgeable, open to dialogue on various subjects and a perfect person for the job. An extrovert (must be his thespian training) and a people person who brought out the best in the dynamics of the group. I cannot recommend him more highly. In future, we shall – without hesitation – join him on another one of his walks. Regards, Fiona and Saley
patricia sheehan –
Ann was a great guide , she knew a lot of the history of the square mile but also had contemporary updates to share and was very personable. the walk was really interesting and I learned a lot about the City of London. would highly recommend this walk
Tonya Wilson –
A wonderful walk back through time and today to understand the change and growth in the city! Educational and entertaining!