walk/tour
City dragon sculpture at London Bridge, SE1 2FP
A walking tour in the City of London revealing its unique status among other boroughs of London. It gives an opportunity to learn about the City – a tiny area, covering just over one square mile packed with history, exclusive rights and peculiar customs. It’s not just a walking tour, it’s also an adventure packed with activities, which unveil a piece of the City you never knew about.
Tower Hill, Monument
Fenchurch Street, Cannon Street, Liverpool Street, London Bridge
15, 100, 343, 42, 78
Tour ends at St. Paul's Cathedral, nearby tube stations: St. Paul's. Nearby train stations: City Thameslink
Please book 1 ticket per person attending the tour.
A map and pencil for taking part in activities, solving puzzles, riddles and drawings, and a mobile app for viewing images are provided.
Walking tour
11:00–13:00
How to book
Please create a free visitor account to book your festival tickets.
The City of London is full of secrets. It is a tiny area, but it is hiding lots of amazing places with surprising stories, unusual rights and roles, and ancient traditions. This family-friendly walking tour will show you what the City is hiding but you will have to work for it!
Together with your City guide you will go on a quest to find The Key to the City. On your way, you will look for big sculptures, old buildings, legendary bridges and a mysterious garden. You will search for Romans, golden cats, mythical dragons and mysterious signs. You will seek out the home of the most important person in the City and the only medieval stone structure still standing in the Square Mile. When you find them, you will hear their stories, discover their meaning and importance to the City and the whole of London.
Would you like to discover secrets of the City of London and get the Key? Then prepare yourself for revealing these secrets while taking part in activities, solving puzzles and riddles at every stop and you will be rewarded at the end of the tour.
Comfortable walking shoes and your desire to look, listen, learn and play, too!
Families with kids aged 10+ ready to have a fun walking tour across the City of London are welcome.
Please book 1 ticket per person attending the tour.
This tour is led by an alumnus of Open City’s Golden Key Academy - an eight-month course designed to train insightful and engaging guides who bring London’s rich stories to life.
Learn more about the Golden Key Academy here: open-city.org.uk/golden-key-academy
The tour is as accessible as possible for all the families with buggies and wheelchair users. However, bare in mind that there are narrow pavements going up and down the hill, narrow cobbled streets and you can't access some areas without walking up a few old steps. This means that it may take up to 2 hours as we would like to take time and make sure we all cross roads safely and have uninterrupted entry to all the stops planned for the tour.
Also, most of the stops have available seating, however, as they are public spaces, I can't guarantee that they will all free as we go along.
Drop in
institution/profession, historical house
A very good example of Georgian/Adam architecture. Restoration 2012 of Great Room (James Barry paintings), Benjamin Franklin room. 2019, restoration and installation of 1754-2018 mural in the Long Gallery.
Adam Brothers, 1774
