If you happen to stop by Victoria Park, keep an eye out for the pedestrian alcoves made from the old medieval London Bridge that was demolished in 1831.
Explore some of London’s most iconic buildings, markets, theatres, and fabulous views on this private walking tour in the London Borough of Southwark along the south bank of the River Thames and discover the London Bridge, Southbank, Borough Market, and more!
On your private walking tour, you will:
Begin at London Bridge, where the small trading town built by the Romans stood upon the river Thames. Hear the stories of how the Thames helped Britain take command of the oceans - from Sir Francis Drake and his journey on the Golden Hind to the HMS Belfast, the most significant surviving Royal Navy warship from the Second World War.
London has stood at the centre of the world’s commerce for centuries, adapting to the shifting tides of power and technology. A former dockland and industrial slum, and now an icon of successful regeneration, London Bridge is one of London’s most historic and storied districts.
Move west along the river and into the time of Shakespeare, as you pass by one of the world's most famous theatres, known for the timeless words penned by arguably the greatest playwright of all time.
A few blocks east and several centuries later, step into the world of Southwark, which was built on industrial, smoky origins. Grand Victorian wharves, granaries, and shipyards once spanned its shores, amassing the trade and treasures of Her Majesty's Empire.
Now, the area has evolved into one of London's most trendy and exciting districts. The neighbourhood has arguably the best vistas across the city, its finest riverside walk, and London's most beloved food and fresh produce at Borough Market.
Explore the heart of the city of London, St Paul’s Cathedral, and Pudding Lane where a small fire in a bakery led to what became known as "the Great Fire of London" in September 1666. It was one of the capital's most historically significant and devastating events, leaving destruction and despair in its wake. The fire led to the modernisation of housing and infrastructure in London, forcing huge attitude changes toward the safety and poverty of the people.
On your private half-day walking tour, you will:
In the early hours of September 2nd, 1666, a small fire broke out at a bakery on Pudding Lane. The conditions were optimal for disaster – the timber and thatch houses were situated in extremely close proximity to one other, one witness reported that you could wake up in the morning, open the window and shake hands with your neighbour.
The city had also been plagued by drought for about 6 months, meaning that the timber was particularly dry. The fire escalated rapidly, burning down around 13,000 homes and 87 churches over four days and severely damaging St Paul’s Cathedral. What happened and how did the fire wreak so much havoc?
On this private walking tour, you will learn about how the fire began and how it spread. Debate some of the key issues surrounding the topic with your expert guide. If not for Baker Thomas Farriner’s carelessness with a few dying embers, would London have remained a medieval city? Or was this a tragedy waiting to happen?
Did the fire paradoxically cause more good than bad, or do we underestimate the scale of the fire’s damage? What about the people who lost their homes, livelihoods, and even their lives? Hear some historic eyewitness accounts.
You and your guide will trace the key sites of the Great Fire with a walk around the City of London: from Pudding Lane, Monument, and old local churches to alleyways and pre-1666 taverns. See how the area has been transformed, and what remains of it and explore some archival materials to build up an accurate picture of London at the time, and the events that would reshape the city forever.
End with a fascinating hour-long guided tour of the majestic St Paul's Cathedral - rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren and Hawksmoor after the Great Fire largely destroyed it. Inspired by Michelangelo's Dome for St Peter's Basilica in Rome, it was for many years the tallest building in London.
It has been the backdrop to numerous royal occasions including the wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana. Admire its magnificent architecture, and hear about the process of rebuilding.
Explore the best of London by the hand of a well-informed cabbie and professional driver guide, who knows the city like the back of his hand, including the most popular attractions and many hidden gems on this panoramic sightseeing tour of London.
On your private driving tour, you will:
Please note: that the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace happens on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, but can be subject to change and weather conditions. On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays you will see the changing of the Horseguards at Horse Guards Parade on Whitehall. You can check the schedule here: https://changing-guard.com/dates-buckingham-palace.html
Your guide will meet and greet you at your central London hotel (or preferred pickup location) and after your 4-hour tour, you can be dropped off at your hotel or any central location of your choice.
On this half-day tour, your guide will stop at a minimum of 6 popular locations to tell you about the fascinating history of these iconic attractions.
This is less of a whistle-stop tour than most of the London highlights tours and invites you to slow down, while those around you hop on and off of buses without enough time to truly appreciate the layers of history and wild stories that surround so many London icons.
There will be plenty of opportunities throughout your tour to take those treasured photos – and if you want to take time out, your London guide knows all the best places to grab a coffee.
At Black Cab Heritage Tours, we have a wide range of privat tours and day trips from London, but our priority is to make sure you have a memorable experience, and that every detail of your tour is taken care of.
This “Build Your Own Tour” will allow you to work with one of our staff members to create the perfect customised tour according to your requests.These tours have been designed to be delivered within the city of London. If you want to do a day trip out of town or to a different area, please reach out directly so we can reconfirm the duration and the itinerary for the day.
We look forward to welcoming you to London soon!
Please note
At Black Cab Heritage Tours, we have a wide range of private tours and day trips from London, but our priority is to make sure you have a memorable experience, and that every detail of your tour is taken care of.
This “Build Your Own Tour” will allow you to work with one of our staff members to create the perfect customised tour according to your requests.
We look forward to welcoming you to London soon!
Please note
Explore the 800-year history of the City of London, the global financial heart of Britain, with its melee of medieval streets, iconic skyscrapers, and historic buildings, and hear tales of the most notorious financial fraudsters through the ages.
On your private tour, you will:
With its eccentric mix of historic buildings and iconic skyscrapers, the City of London is a unique district in the heart of London with a history dating back over 800 years. Learn about the financial institutions that drive the City and hear the dramatic stories of fortunes made and lost through fair means and foul.
Learn of the rise and fall of the East India Company, forged banknotes by American fraudsters, the Lloyd's of London insurance scandal of the 1990s, the Poyais scam of 1825, and the South Sea Bubble implosion. Hear about charming thieves and audaciously dodgy investors through the ages.
Discover the origins of the East India Trading Company – a mercantile powerhouse that made a fortune on the back of the slave trade. Learn about the illegal sales of opium in China and the endemic corruption that led to its demise.
Entering Change Alley, your guide will describe the street as it stood 300 years ago - a crowded alley, filled with traders, rumour, and wild financial speculation: the collapse of the South Sea Bubble, a slave-trading business that shook Britain to its core.
Learn about the rise of Lloyd’s coffee house on Lombard Street – a popular place for sailors, merchants, and shipowners to gain their shipping news and discuss business and trade. It then became its own insurance business: Lloyd’s of London. It is now infamous for the huge scandal of the 1990s in which many lost millions.
End back at the elegant Threadneedles Hotel, where you'll hear the story of the scandal of the thieves of Threadneedle street - an attempted heist by American robbers that would have ruined the City had it not been spectacularly foiled. Perhaps enjoy a well-earned G&T at the Wheeler's Bar afterwards!
Discover the many filming locations of the Harry Potter movies in muggle London on a private walking tour of the most famous landmarks of the city. Unlike other cities, London was used in many of the scenes, so you will have the opportunity to visit the actual sites that made it on the big screen!
On your Harry Potter private walking tour you will:
Explore the literary and cinematic landmarks inspired by Harry Potter’s world on this magical tour of London with a private guide, who is also a Potter fanatic.
Prepare for your own sorting ceremony and be sure you know which magical creature you want to bring with you to Hogwarts. On this half-day tour, you'll traverse many of London's hidden passageways and filming locations for the iconic 8 films.
Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for Ernie Prang and Stan Shunpike on the Knight Bus!
See Diagon Alley, the Leaky cauldron, and other spellbinding places - both obvious and hidden from muggle eyes. Enjoy fascinating trivia on the series and gain a lesser-known insight into the characters, author and actors.
Hear tales that even the most dedicated fans and Potterheads will not have heard before! With wands, quizzes and prizes, you will enjoy a unique wizarding experience.
Note: If you would like to visit Platform 9¾ after the tour to hop aboard the Hogwarts Express, your guide will be happy to direct you to King's Cross Station, a short tube ride away.
DISCLAIMER: This tour is an unlicensed and unauthorised tour of sites featured in the film series 'Harry Potter' based on the eponymous novels by author J. K. Rowling, produced and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. Travel Curious Ltd. and this tour does not have any association with, or connection to, the film series 'Harry Potter', the author J. K. Rowling, and Warner Bros. Pictures.
Delve into the macabre history of Jack the Ripper and the underbelly of London’s notorious East End on this unique driving and walking tour with a professional guide and passionate ‘Ripperologist’!
On your private tour, you will:
The urban legend of Jack the Ripper - his barbaric crimes and the mystery of his identity have exercised a morbid fascination over the police and public alike, ever since his horrific crimes were discovered in 1888. On this unique tour, you will be able to listen to one of the foremost experts in Ripperology who is also a licensed London Cabbie, as he takes you around the locations associated with the Ripper and his victims— all young women working in London's East End.
After meeting your driver-guide, you’ll begin your tour in Whitechapel, the infamous district of East London that made headlines in the year 1888 with the brutal murders of five working girls by an unknown assassin, known for over a century as Jack the Ripper.
You’ll visit the notorious pubs, like the Ten Bells, where the women were last seen and walk down the very streets where their bodies were first seen and caused such widespread shock, fear and horror.
You’ll see Buck’s Row, where Mary Ann Nichols was discovered; Hanbury Street, the site of Annie Chapman’s body; Berners Row where Elizabeth Stride was found; Mitre Square scene of Catherine Eddowe’s murder, and Miller’s Court where Mary Jane Kelly was brutally attacked.
Your guide will tell you their tragic stories and the clues found by the police, the police arrests and the many hundreds of theories put forward over the intervening years. The tour also covers many other notorious areas of the East End and sites of historic crimes and punishments from the traitors of the Middle Ages at the Tower of London to the more recent gangland criminals, the legendary Kray Twins.
You’ll visit the underbelly of the East End: The Blind Beggar Public House, the scene of a notorious gangland murder; The Highway – famous for the Ratcliffe Highway murderer, and Wapping’s Execution Dock!
You’ll also pass by some iconic London landmarks and monuments – including the Whitehall Bell Foundry at Spitalfields where Big Ben was made, Tower Bridge and the Tower of London, St Paul’s Cathedral, London Bridge and The Royal Hospital – former residence of the unfortunate ‘Elephant Man’ - made famous in the Hollywood blockbuster and Oscar-winning movie, which starred John Hurt and Anthony Hopkins.
And finally, you’ll head toward central London and Fleet Street, known for the infamous Demon Barber of Fleet Street Sweeney Todd, the Knights Templar, and now for West End pubs and theatres! Your fascinating tour of the lesser-known underbelly of London ends here or at a location of your choice.
Experience all that London has to offer in a day on this whistle-stop driving and walking tour of the most famous landmarks and sites that London is world-famous for, and see more of London in a day than most visitors will see in a week!
On your private full-day tour, you will:
Please note: that the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace happens on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, but can be subject to change and weather conditions. On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays you will see the changing of the Horseguards at Horse Guards Parade on Whitehall. You can check the schedule here: https://changing-guard.com/dates-buckingham-palace.html
London is a modern capital with an ancient past as for centuries it has occupied a central place in the rich fabric of British life and history. Your expert driver-guide will introduce you to one of the world's most multi-faceted and fascinating cities, home to the King, and aeons of Royal history, not to mention Shakespeare's Globe and a thrumming West End theatre scene.
On your private, full-day tour in a Classic Black Cab, you'll stop along the way for many photo opportunities and hear the stories of many of the most famous buildings of Britain's Capital city as well as take the opportunity to stroll and explore some of the Victorian alleys and markets such as Covent Garden in the West End and Leadenhall market in the East End (featured in Harry Potter movies).
This comprehensive tour will include stops all over the city, including Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral, Kensington Palace, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, and many more.
At each place, you'll be able to capture your memories and share your amazing day on Instagram, before being dropped off at a location of your choice.
IMPORTANT: This tour does not enter any attractions and no tickets are included
The Premier Classic London Experience is the perfect way to discover the marvellous city of London for first-time visitors and for those who have a short time in the city.
On your private driving tour, you will:
Please note: that the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace happens on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, but can be subject to change and weather conditions. On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays you will see the changing of the Horseguards at Horse Guards Parade on Whitehall. You can check the schedule here: https://changing-guard.com/dates-buckingham-palace.html
During the Premier Classic London Tour, your knowledgeable guide will warmly greet you at your central London hotel or chosen location.
Throughout the 4-hour tour, you will have the opportunity to discover the history behind at least 6 popular London landmarks, all while comfortably riding in an iconic London Taxi.
This tour has been designed for those who want to take their time to appreciate the rich and fascinating stories that surround these iconic attractions, without feeling rushed or overwhelmed, and our fully customisable to suit your needs and interests.
Your guide will ensure that you have plenty of chances to snap memorable photos and can even recommend the best spots for dining, shopping, or any other of your interests for the rest of your trip.
It's important to note that this tour doesn't include entry to any attractions or requires tickets.
At the end of the tour, you'll have the option to be dropped off at your hotel or any other central location of your choice.
If you are looking to visit all of London’s iconic landmarks in a full day, then The Extended Ultimate London Tour is the perfect option for you!
On your private 8-hour tour, you will:
Please note: that the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace happens on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, but can be subject to change and weather conditions. On Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays you will see the changing of the Horseguards at Horse Guards Parade on Whitehall.
You can check the schedule here: https://changing-guard.com/dates-buckingham-palace.html
With a rich history spanning centuries, this tour offers you the opportunity to explore London's most iconic landmarks, from the grandeur of the world-known Westminster Abbey and St Paul's Cathedral to the ancient Tower of London and the iconic Tower Bridge.
In addition to the well-known attractions, your driver-guide will show you some of the hidden gems of the city, including charming Victorian alleys and bustling markets such as Covent Garden in the West End and Leadenhall Market in the East End, famously featured in the Harry Potter movies.
Throughout the tour, there will be many photo opportunities and plenty of time to soak up the history and culture of the city.
After a full day of exploration, you'll be dropped off at a location of your choice in Central London.
Don't miss this chance to experience London's wonders, finest landmarks and hidden treasures and create memories that will last a lifetime!
IMPORTANT: This tour does not enter any attractions and no tickets are included
As the sun sets, the city of London transforms into an enchanting display of lights with London's spectacular Illuminated River, a long-term art installation transforming that span nine bridges in the heart of London.
On your evening journey through the illuminated heart of the city, you will:
Experience the captivating allure of London by night on our Black Cab Heritage Tours Night Tour in a classic black cab.
Showcasing the Illuminated River Project, this tour will take you through the city's magnificent landmarks for a mesmerising spectacle you won't want to miss.
From the iconic Tower Bridge to Westminster Bridge, the River Thames and its bridges become the stars of the show as our knowledgeable cabbies share fascinating insights into the architectural marvels and social history along the riverbank.
With your camera in hand, you’ll capture the brilliance of the city as it shines in the darkness, ensuring that this private tour remains etched in your heart and photographs for years to come.
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