ORIENTATION TO LONDON - London 2015 - page 47

but not all, scheduled walks. Check with the various tour companies by phone or online to
get their full picture.
To take a walking tour, simply show up at the announced location and pay the guide.
Then enjoy two chatty hours of Dickens, Harry Potter, the Plague, Shakespeare, Legal
London, the Beatles, Jack the Ripper, or whatever is on the agenda.
London Walks
This leading company lists its extensive and creative daily schedule on their amusing web-
site, as well as in a beefy, plain London Walks brochure (available at St. Martin-in-the-
Fields' Café in the Crypt on Trafalgar Square and at the City of London TI). Just perus-
ing their fascinating lineup of tours inspires me to stay longer in London. Their two-hour
walks, led by top-quality professional guides (ranging from archaeologists to actors), cost
£ 9 (cash only, walks offered year-round, private tours for groups- £ 130, tel. [phone]
for a live person, tel. [phone] for a recording of today's or tomorrow's walks and
the Tube station they depart from, www.walks.com ) .
London Walks also offers day trips into the countryside, a good option for those with
limited time and transportation ( £ 16 plus £ 10-50 for transportation and any admission
costs, cash only: Stonehenge/Salisbury, Oxford/Cotswolds, Cambridge, Bath, and so on).
These are economical in part because everyone gets group discounts for transportation and
admissions.
Sandemans New London “Free Royal London Tour”
This company employs students (rather than licensed guides) who recite three-hour spiels
covering the basic London sights. While the fast-moving, youthful tours are light and ir-
reverent, and can be both entertaining and fun, it's misleading to call the tours “free,” as
tips are expected (the guides actually pay the company for the privilege of asking for tips).
Given that London Walks offers daily tours at a reasonable price, taking this “free” tour
makes no sense to me (daily at 11:00 and 13:00, meet at Covent Garden Piazza by the
Apple Store, Tube: Covent Garden). Sandemans also has other guided tours for a charge,
including a Pub Crawl ( £ 18, nightly at 19:30, meet at Belushi's Bar in Covent Garden,
Tube: Leicester Square, www.newlondon-tours.com ).
Beatles Walks
Fans of the still-Fab Four can take one of three Beatles walks (London Walks has two that
run 6 days/week; for more on Beatles sights, see here ) .