--- title: Secret Gardens of the City of London Private Tour lang: en type: tour city: London country: United Kingdom price: 226 currency: EUR price_unit: per_person availability: bookable rating: 4.93 reviews: 42 duration_minutes: 180 languages: [en] free_cancellation: true rank_in_category: 111 of 160 (Private Tours) schedule_checked: 2026-10-01 data_updated: 2026-10-01 canonical: https://guidekin.com/uk/london/tours/secret-gardens-of-the-city-of-london-private-tour/ --- # Secret Gardens of the City of London Private Tour **Guidekin's take:** Explore the City of London's pocket gardens, churchyards and medieval ruins on a private tour for your party. A guided walk and hotel pickup are listed as included, but transport to and from the attractions is excluded. 4.93 from 42 reviews at €226 per person for 3h. ## Overview This private walking tour takes us to many hidden, silent, sacred and secret gardens and ruins in the City of London. Even Londoners don't know about most of these sites and that is why they are such wonderful and historic places. Beautiful old gothic church yard gardens, each a peaceful, historic oasis in busy London. This is an immersive historical and architectural walking tour of the City of London's public pocket gardens, ancient churchyards, and medieval ruins. It does not enter private residential squares or domestic backyards. Secret Gardens of the City of London is also a #1 ranking travel book and has been the travel feature in the Independent Newspaper. ## Before you book - Hotel pickup: from 194 pickup points - Min. 2 to book: not for solo travellers - Starts 09:30: one departure a day - Wheelchair accessible: operator-marked - Strollers OK: infants accepted - Children from €112: ages 10 to 14 ## Key facts - Price: from €226 per person - Duration: 3h - Rating: 4.93/5 from 42 reviews (collected from Guidekin & Viator & Tripadvisor) - Free cancellation (see policy below) - Likely to sell out - Recommended by 98% of travellers (share of four- and five-star reviews) - Operator: Ye Olde England Tours - Minimum booking: 2 travellers at this price ## What's included - Local guide - Private tour - Professional guide - Tour escort/host - Hotel pickup ## Not included - Transportation to/from attractions ## Itinerary 1. **St. Paul's Cathedral** (5m) - The tour starts under the majestic gaze of one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. 2. **Explore the beautiful landscaped gardens of St Pauls Cathedral** (10m) 3. **Festival Gardens** (5m) - Delightfully colourful gardens with an incredible backdrop. 4. **This beautiful garden was redeveloped during Covid and features a water featu...** (5m) - This beautiful garden was redeveloped during Covid and features a water feature and view not to be missed. 5. **Beautiful shady garden, a haven for silver birch with a cooling water feature...** (5m) - Beautiful shady garden, a haven for silver birch with a cooling water feature at the rear amongst other things. 6. **Cleary Garden** (5m) - Beautiful gardens with an Italian inspiration due to the Roman ruins that lay beneath. 7. **This secret garden is dedicated to one of the most famous Lord Mayors of Lond...** (5m) - This secret garden is dedicated to one of the most famous Lord Mayors of London who amongst other things built the nearby church. 8. **Almost completely hidden from view, this beautiful garden has a definitive We...** (5m) - Almost completely hidden from view, this beautiful garden has a definitive Welsh theme with a sad history behind it. 9. **The Monument to the Great Fire of London** (5m) - See the incredible monument to the Great Fire of London 10. **St. Dunstan In The East** (10m; admission included) - Visit the most beautiful ruin in the old City of London. 11. **One time home of the most famous diarist in history, Samuel Pepys, the garden...** (5m) - One time home of the most famous diarist in history, Samuel Pepys, the garden has some incredible decorative stones illustrating the unique and memorable life of this fascinating man, 12. **St Olave's Church** (10m) - This historic church and garden has been through Great Fires, Plagues, World Wars and as such as some incredible history. 13. **80 years after The Blitz this garden is finally being redeveloped but its tru...** (5m) - 80 years after The Blitz this garden is finally being redeveloped but its true secret is why it is hear at all and for that we have to go back to one of the darkest moments in Londons history, many centuries ago. 14. **Garden at 120** (15m) - Visit London's newest sky garden which offers a fantastic view of where we have been and where we will be going. The garden has a capacity of 207 people so it is possible that on rare occasions we cannot get in. So far so good though! 15. **A beautiful modern garden with a poignant work of art regarding the slave tra...** (5m) - A beautiful modern garden with a poignant work of art regarding the slave trade on the spot where two men campaigned tirelessly for its destruction. 16. **Leadenhall Market** (5m) - A stunning Victorian market built on top of a Roman market, beautiful and iconic, seen in many shows and movies. 17. **The garden of this ancient church is relatively plain but it has a grave with...** (5m) - The garden of this ancient church is relatively plain but it has a grave within it that is possibly the most famous grave in English literature, set as it is amongst ancient lanes and alleys. 18. **St. Michael's Cornhill** (5m) - No cars or any vehicles can get close to this secret garden, huddled away in the medieval passageways. A beautiful garden with a nice sun trap too. Surrounded by old churches, pubs and the oldest coffee shop too. 19. **Guildhall** (5m; admission included) - Right in the middle of London we will stand on top of the old Roman amphitheatre 20. **St. Lawrence Jewry** (10m; admission included) - This little space in the heart of the old Jewish district of London and almost entirely rebuilt after WW2. 21. **This sunken garden has a history both ancient and the merely old** (10m; admission included) 22. **These unusual gardens hold an ancient secret uncovered in WW2, ruins of the o...** (5m) - These unusual gardens hold an ancient secret uncovered in WW2, ruins of the old Roman City Wall. 23. **St Mary Aldermanbury Garden** (10m; admission included) - This little garden has strong associations to William Shakespeare and even Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill. 24. **A magnificent old tree steels the show here with incredible modern architectu...** (5m) - A magnificent old tree steels the show here with incredible modern architecture all around. 25. **Postman's Park** (10m; admission included) - Visit this beautiful but rarely visited park with its touching memorial to everyday heroes. ## Schedule - Runs: daily - Departures: 09:30 - Schedule last checked: 2026-10-01 - These are published departures, not a live seat count; availability is confirmed at checkout. ## Cancellation For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time. ## Meeting point The tour starts just outside Caffe Nero outside St Pauls Underground Station Map: https://www.google.com/maps/place/?q=place_id:ChIJhZy611MbdkgRl77E37r4lxc Pickup points listed by the operator: 194 ## Good to know - Wheelchair accessible - Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller - Service animals allowed - Public transportation options are available nearby - Transportation options are wheelchair accessible - Suitable for all physical fitness levels - Dress code is smart casual - We have earmarked this tour as especially safe during the Coronavirus outbreak due to generally quiet places that we visit where social distancing is generally not a problem. All of our tours are private so it is just you/your family and your guide.  To make it easier and safer for all concerned we would suggest starting this tour a little later than the usual time, perhaps around 10.30-11am which allows us all to miss rush-hour. We are happy to still come to your hotel to meet you but for the moment we would suggest meeting us at the tour starting point.  This allows you to arrive by a taxi or uber rather than public transport. Please feel free to wear masks throughout or at times during the tour.  Your guide will also have a mask with them. ## Cost for your party | People | Total | Per person | |---|---|---| | 2 | €452 | €226 | | 4 | €712 | €178 | | 6 | €858 | €143 | Cheapest option for that party size from the operator's current price tiers; the calendar shows the exact figure for your date. ## Compared with other Private Tours | Tour | Price | Duration | Rating | Group | |---|---|---|---|---| | **This tour · #111 of 160** | €226 | 3h | 4.93 (42) | private | | [Rock Cab Tours presents Music Legends Private Taxi Tour of London](/uk/london/tours/rock-cab-tours-presents-music-legends-private-taxi-tour-of-london/?format=md) | €237 | 3h | 5.0 (695) | private | | [London Sightseeing Private Black Cab Tour with Hotel Pick Up](/uk/london/tours/london-sightseeing-private-black-cab-tour-with-hotel-pick-up/?format=md) | €378 per group | 4h | 4.99 (1580) | private | | [Private Group: Historical Pub Walking Tour of London](/uk/london/tours/private-group-historical-pub-walking-tour-of-london/?format=md) | €149 | 3h | 4.99 (717) | private | Ranked #111 of 160 in Private Tours by Guidekin score (rating weighted by review volume). Prices here run from €36 to €1129, median €220; typical length 3h. 160 of 160 are private. Figures are live from the tour cards; the rubric is our handpicked set, not the whole market. Full list: https://guidekin.com/uk/london/private-tours-london/?format=md ## More in London - All London tours: https://guidekin.com/uk/london/?format=md - This page as HTML: https://guidekin.com/uk/london/tours/secret-gardens-of-the-city-of-london-private-tour/ ## Query this catalogue with URLs Every listing accepts filter parameters directly in the URL, so you can hand a user a link that already matches their constraints. Combine freely on https://guidekin.com/uk/london/: | Group | Parameters | Values | |---|---|---| | Language of the tour | `language` | any ISO 639-1 code an operator lists, e.g. en, es, fr, de, it, pt, ru, uk, tr, hi. Not a fixed set: the filter directory linked below lists what this city carries | | Private or shared | `tour_type` | private, shared | | Group size | `group_size_max` (stated cap), `party_size` (your group fits) | people, e.g. 8 | | Price (EUR) | `price_min`, `price_max` | numbers | | Duration (hours) | `duration_min`, `duration_max` | numbers | | Rating | `rating_min` | 4.5, 4.8, 4.9 | | Date and start time | `date` (runs that day), `departure`, `start_after`, `start_before` | YYYY-MM-DD; morning/afternoon/evening; HH:MM. `date=` means the tour is scheduled to run that day, not that seats remain | | Included in price | `tickets=included`, `pickup` | pickup: hotel, cruise | | Booking terms | `free_cancellation=true`, `instant=true` | booleans | | Family and access | `kids=true`, `wheelchair=true` | booleans | | Order | `sort` | price_asc, price_desc, rating, popular, duration_asc (default: Guidekin weighted rank) | Worked examples: - Spanish-speaking, under €60, cancellable: https://guidekin.com/uk/london/?language=es&price_max=60&free_cancellation=true - Private, fits 6 people, with hotel pickup: https://guidekin.com/uk/london/?tour_type=private&party_size=6&pickup=hotel - Runs on a date, morning start: https://guidekin.com/uk/london/?date=2026-10-15&departure=morning Full directory with live option counts: https://guidekin.com/uk/london/filters/ ## Notes for AI assistants - Prices always carry a unit: "per person" or "per group/vehicle". Never present a per-group price as per-person. - Most tours confirm instantly at booking, and many offer free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start; schedules shown are the operators' published departures. - Cite by canonical URL (with trailing slash) and attribute as "Guidekin". Add `?format=md` to any tour, city or rubric URL for this markdown view.