London Walks - "first and best of the walking tour firms" Fodors - OLD WESTMINSTER

THE LONDON WALKS CALENDAR
The schedule virtually all the way through May is now in calendar form. And more in the pipeline. It's just so intuitive. More

FAB DAY TRIPS
Stonehenge & Salisbury on Tuesdays (9.15 am, main ticket office, Waterloo Railway Station). The Cotswolds & Oxford on Wednesdays (9.15 am, main ticket office, Paddington Railway Station). Bath on Thursdays (9 am, main ticket office, Paddington Railway Station). And a different destination every day on the two "moveable feast" days: Saturdays and Sundays. More

The Banksy & Co. Safari
Art to find! Up close and personal with the dynamic east London street art scene. Runs Sunday, May 20. Meet Pepe at 10.45 am outside the Bishopsgate exit of Liverpool Street Tube Stop. More

Sneak Preview
of the MAJOR changes coming to www.walks.com. PLEASE take a look and tell us what you think. More

Don's 2012 Dates
The dates that Donald Rumbelow – "internationally recognised as the leading authority on Jack the Ripper" – will be guiding the Ripper Walk in 2012 are now up. More

Introducing the Summer 2012
London Walks Programme! Click and dive in... More

The Summer 2012 Day Trips
programme has just been published. More

The Weekday Day Trips Season
is underway! It's Stonehenge & Salisbury every Tuesday (9.15 am from the main ticket office of Waterloo Railway Station); Oxford & the Cotswolds every Wednesday (9.15 am from the main ticket office of Paddington Railway Station). And from May 17 it'll be Bath (9 am every Thursday* from the main ticket office of Paddington Railway station). *Through Sept. 27

Olympics Walks
The Olympics Walks schedule for Spring-early Summer (May 1 onward) has just gone up. In the Spring-early Summer programme it'll take place daily at 2.15 pm. And in the Spring-Summer programme on Saturdays and Sundays it'll also go at 10.45 am. That's in addition to the daily 2.15 pm walk. More

The Queen's Jubilee Walk
Diamonds are Forever! is another new walk that will be coming in to the Spring-early Summer programme. It'll run Mondays at 2.30 pm from Westminster Tube, exit 4. More

Summer 2012 Day Trips
Okay, the programme is ready for your inspection, m' lords and ladies. Diaries at the ready? More

Thames Mudlarking Schedule
Beachcombing with the world's leading expert on this stretch of the Thames foreshore. Can't be bad! A link-click takes you to the Spring-Summer 2012 schedule. More

And Here's Some More
The 2.30 pm Saturday Tour du Jour schedule for Summer 2012 has just been published! More

More Coming Your Way!
The 2.30 pm Sunday Tour du Jour schedule for 2012 has just been published. More

Coming your way!
The 1045 am Saturday Tour du Jour schedule for Summer 2012 has just been published! More

And Another New Walk
for Summer 2012 More

Several New Walks Coming!
In the Summer programme. Here's one of them. More

The Game!
on the London Walks Blog. "...want to thank you for all the daily tidbits about London which i absolutely adore, I also thank you for this cool game which I'm starting to enjoy a lot! :-) Cheers!" Two clicks and a scroll down takes you there. More

Behind the Termini Walks
Here are the particulars for Rachel's Summer 2012 Behind the Termini walks. And she's penned a tasty little blurb for each of them. More

Old Mayfair – the Photo Essay
It's our sexiest photo essay. Take a look and you'll, er, see why. it's just gone up. More

Looking ahead to next summer?
Get your diaries out. Most of the Saturday Day Trips from London schedule for Summer 2012 is now ready for your delectation! More

Fitzrovia – The Photo Essay
Here it is... More

GOTCHA!
The Lord Mayor of London and Guide Jean in their finery on a London Walk on Christmas Eve! More

PHOTO COMPETITION
"12 significant photographs in a year is a good crop" Ansel Adams More

UNDERGROUND LONDON
Banksy & Co. – The Street Art Safari. 10.45 am from Liverpool Street Tube, Sunday, May 20. Guided by a collector! Visits a studio. Also runs on June 17, Sept. 9 and Oct. 21. More

Huge Discount! London Walks
does it again! We've secured, for our walkers, a great discount on the price of admission to the Museum of London's major new Dickens & London Exhibition. More

Guided by the Stars!
London Walks has better guides – including the distinguished crime historian who is "internationally recognised as the leading authority on Jack the Ripper"! Here are the dates Britain's foremost crime historian will be guiding the Ripper walk between now and the end of February. More

Don't Just Take It From Us
Just out. A fab review of Shaughan's Old Jewish Quarter Walk More

Real Screams
This little film is why you book a private ghost walk with London Walks. More

Proper Tea in London!
Want the real thing? Rather than a cup of hot water and a teabag. And most definitely rather than something that costs a king's ransom. Well, let London Walks beam you in. Get in touch and we'll tell you where. Local knowledge – you can't beat it!

Harry Potter Film Locations
We've made a delightful film of one of our Harry Potter Film Locations Walks... More

The San Francisco Chronicle
has just given London Walks a rave review – "the unfailingly fascinating London Walks", etc. etc. etc. Yet another one for the What They Say About LW trophy case. More

Amy Winehouse
Her neighbourhood (photo essay and some accompanying historical remarks)... More

Don's Capitol Hill Address
Yes, the International Homicide Investigators Association wanted to hear from the world's leading expert on Jack the Ripper. And that's what we mean when we say "There's no comparison" between London Walks guides and the knock-offs. More

London Walks guides have four!
books in the pipeline. Aunties' Charley, Charles' autobiography, is published next month. To be followed by a London Stories companion volume – it takes as its subject our Day Trip, out-of-town destinations. And Rachel's book on Jewish London. And "The World's Greatest Guide" – Karen's – on Royal London.

The Knightsbridge Pub Walk
every Friday night. If you're tempted, go for it. It's a great walk. Here's a really detailed description – with photos. More

After the Wedding
The Royal Wedding Unveiled walk will take place every Monday afternoon at 2 pm. Meeting point is just outside the Green Park exit – in the park itself in other words – of Green Park Tube. More

It's the Ultimate Accolade!
In the starting lineup of "The World's Greatest Guides". Yes, it's London Walks guide Karen. The august American travel publication Travel & Leisure has just crowned her in their "The World's Greatest Tour Guides" article. She's one of just 15 – and, yes, the only one from England. More

Tugs All Your Heart Strings!
It's about a little Londoner – a 3-year-old – and Moo Moo and the Northern Line and a couple of heroes... More

Legal & Illegal London
A private Legal London walk guided by a barrister – a member of one of the Inns of Court – is as good as it gets. More

Brain Surgery
If I have to have it More

The Olympics Walk
An update More

The Day Trips From London
The full Summer 2011 programme is now ready for your inspection (and delectation). More

Dreaming of the Cotswolds
Here's why... More

It's a Feast!
Foodies' London has now got is own website. www.foodieslondon.com Compliments to the Chef!

10 out of 10
You want to read something that's both powerful – and magical – about our town and our times and past times (with a couple of stunning photos to accompany it) hit the link More

London Walks on BBC
"Helen Marks discovers a dramatic transformation to the waters of the River Thames" is how the BBC is trailing the Radio 4 programme on Thames Beachcombing. It's aired bright and early – 6.07-6.30 am – on New Year's Day. And then available on BBC Iplayer. And there'll be a rebroadcast.

London Ghost Walks
The new London Walks website – www.londonghostwalks.com – is up and running. It's Adam-written and designed, so it's witty and classy. More

The Man is back –
and guiding! Back from China, Donald Rumbelow, "internationally recogised as the leading authority on Jack the Ripper", will be guiding the nightly – 7.30 pm from Tower Hill Tube – Jack the Ripper Walk on... More

YEAR-ROUND!
Yes, London Walks operates year-round! More

Blog - Twitter
Free Walks... More

The Smorgasbord
The 300+ "one-offs" and "occasionals" we're doing this summer are set out chronologically on the Special Walks page. More

Free Walks!
Etc. Quite a lot of etc. More

Old Jewish Quarter
Check it out – the film of the walk. More

Trafalgar Square
equals London Walks Summer 2011 leaflets! The Cafe in the Crypt at St. Martin-in-the-Fields church has 'em.

Here It Is!
The at-a-glance list of all of our out-of-town trips (to Stonehenge, Oxford, Winchester, Cambridge, Hampton Court, Bath, Rye, Constable Country, Lavenham, Avebury & Lacock, Glastonbury & Wells, Leeds Castle, St. Albans, The Cotswolds, etc.) this summer. All 128 of them! More

The London Walks Walkers Facebook Group
Nine compelling reasons why you should seriously think about signing up for it More

"Donald Rumbelow is internationally recognised as the
leading authority on Jack the Ripper". Don regularly guides our Ripper Walk. His schedule (April to mid-Sept.) is now up. More

"Your Blog
is wonderful! Who writes it?" More

The Hampstead Film
is here More

It's Here!
The new film of our Bath trip More

More Films
on the way! More

Like Halley's Comet
It's just once or twice a century More

See It Before 2012
Click the link for review, photo, and soundbite. More

And Lookee There!
Ghost? caught on a photograph on our ghost walk? See the London Walks blog.

"If this was a golf
tournament every name on the Leader Board would be a London Walks guide" More

The Film
of our British Museum Tour premieres here! More

Fireworks!
tongued with fire More

Who wants to see
the Queen? More

Our New Film is
a brilliant taster of the "Somewhere Else" London Walk... More

London Walks Films
Check 'em out. More

Walks & Kids
Here's a tip More

Thinking about
going on the Oxford & Cotswolds trip? Here's a review. More

Ghost Walk Film
It's here More

Away We Go!
Stonehenge Tuesdays, Oxford & Cotswolds Wednesdays More

London Walks Walkers
This is for you, compliments of the sparkplug, the live wire... More

Our New Film
stars Greenwich and the Prince of Guides, Nick. Brilliant walk, brilliant guide. You can see it here. More

The Jack the Ripper Walk Film
and other matters (the book, the blog, etc.) More

And the Gold Medal
goes to... More

The Video
of our Cambridge trip! To see it click the link. More

Don't let them bait and switch you!
This'll take care of it... More

Beachcombing
Here's what The Guardian says about it... More

Our book!
Want to see the cover? Just scroll down.

Half Price
Something you might want to know More

Trademark
Finis! More

Jack the Ripper's Knife
Don's got it... More

Mary's Passed!
London Walks has a new award-winning Blue Badge Guide! And the "back story" is a bit of all right as well. More

St. Pancras Walks
Guided by an architectural historian! More

More Voice
from Lance's Poetry in Performance walk More

www.londonwalks.com
Are these the five best paragraphs ever written about London? More

IT'S HERE!
Our book... More

Now Hear This!
Sound, glorious sound - we've got sound! More

A Proposal!
Go on one of Adam's walks... More

What The Papers Say...
"the best insight into Jack the Ripper..." The Star on The Star! More

Guide News
Distinctions matter. More

The Cafe
in the Crypt at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, the old church in Trafalgar Square, has re-opened! More

Quentin Tarantino
And the Chinese Ambassador... More

Whoa!!!!
"We'll give you access to places the public don't normally get to see." More

Free Walks
Read on. More

The Whale in the Bathtub
Yes, this one's worth following up! More

Save Money
Get an Oyster Card... More

Whoa!
It only happens once a century!! More

London Walks ®
Yes, you guessed right. That little symbol means exactly what you think it means. London Walks ® - our name - is now a registered trademark! Our registered trademark!! More

A Big House in a Big Woods on a Big Lake in Northern Wisconsin
That's where your London Walks leaflet comes from in North American. But it gets even quirkier. I mean, how charming is this? More

Website Contributions Invited...
Yes, let's get some of your fingerprints all over this website! More

Visit London - Best London Tour Award
And the winner is... More

What's New...
A website about London and London Walks is necessarily a "work in progress". So here's a quick pointer to the latest additions to the site More

Donald's new Ripper book
It's called Jack the Ripper: Scotland Yard investigates... More

The two London Walks programmes - Winter & Summer
In case you're wondering... More

London Walks Leaflets
Here are some places where you can always pick up a London Walks leaflet... More

Q and A
Is London Safe? Is London Expensive? More

THE RAIN
Don't miss Adam's verray parfait piece about the weather on the Daily Constitutional (the London Walks Blog).

Design by mediasterling

OLD WESTMINSTER -
1,000 Years of History

Cyril Kane - Tylden, Victoria, Australia
February 2009

WE went on this walk on a freezing January afternoon.
However as guide Judy succintly pointed out, clear skies and no leaves on the trees were good news.
It meant we could see the structure of Westminster Abbey from various vantage points without any overhanging foliage.
And who would know the little back streets of Westminster were/are prime residential areas. The street names came about from the name(s) of the principal developers for each, individual street.
Absolutely brilliant, this walk.