London Guide
Covent Garden
Covent Garden has come full circle: what started out in the seventeenth century as London's first luxury neighbourhood is once more an aspirational place to live, work and shop. Based around Inigo Jones' piazza – London's oldest planned square – the area had for years been a market for fruit, flowers and vegetables. When the market closed in 1974, only public protests averted yet another office development and ensured that the elegant Victorian market hall and its environs were restored to house shops, restaurants and arts-and-crafts stalls.
Boosted by buskers and street entertainers, Covent Garden is now one of London's major tourist attractions, and the streets to the north – in particular, Long Acre, Neal Street and Floral Street – are home to fashionable clothes shops, cafés and restaurants. Alongside them, a few tiny pockets of 1970s "alternative" culture survive, left over from the days of squats and cheap rentals. London's tourism revenues owe them a considerable debt – it was only their demonstrations, and mass protests, that saved the area.
Most visitors are happy enough simply to wander around watching the street life, having a coffee and doing a bit of shopping, but there are a couple of specific sights worth picking out. One of the old market buildings houses the enjoyable London Transport Museum, while another serves as the public foyer for the Royal Opera House and boasts a great roof terrace overlooking the piazza.