the Square Mile, for nothing
Free things to do in the City of London
The City hides a huge amount of free London between the office towers. A sunken garden in a bombed-out church, Roman ruins under the streets, a covered Victorian market and free rooftop views if you book ahead. All free.
FREE
Free things to do in the City of London
LONDON FREE GUIDEThe list
1
St Dunstan in the East
City of London · Monument
A bombed-out City church left as a public garden, with climbing plants threading through the ruins. Free, peaceful and pure magic.
Daily · roughly 8am to duskFull details →
2
Leadenhall Market
City of London · Bank
A jaw-dropping Victorian covered market in the heart of the City, all painted ironwork and cobbles. It played Diagon Alley, and on a weekend you can have it to yourself.
Covered market open daily · shops and pubs Mon–FriFull details →
3
The Garden at 120
City of London · Fenchurch Street
A free open-air roof garden high over the City, no booking and no ticket, with a fountain, a wisteria walk and the Walkie Talkie and Gherkin close enough to touch.
Daily · roughly 10am to 6pm, later in summer · no bookingFull details →
4
FREELONDON FREE GUIDE
Guildhall Art Gallery
City of London · Bank
The City's own art collection, free, sitting on top of a genuine Roman amphitheatre you can walk down into. Two thousand years in one free building.
Mon–Sat 10am–4pm · check before SundaysFull details →
5
Bank of England Museum
City of London · Bank
The story of money in the heart of the City, free, where the one thing everyone queues for is the chance to lift a real solid gold bar worth a small fortune.
Mon–Fri 10am–5pm · closed weekendsFull details →
6
FREELONDON FREE GUIDE
Postman's Park
City of London · St Paul's
A tiny, tucked-away City garden with the most quietly moving thing in London: a wall of ceramic tiles remembering ordinary people who died saving others.
Daily · roughly 8am to duskFull details →
7
FREELONDON FREE GUIDE
London Mithraeum
City of London · Bank
A reconstructed Roman temple to a mystery god, rebuilt seven metres below Bloomberg's headquarters with an atmospheric light and sound show, all free.
Tue–Sat, free but pre-bookFull details →
8
The Royal Exchange
City of London · Bank
A magnificent colonnaded building at the heart of the City, free to step inside, where merchants once traded under one roof and a grand courtyard now sits beneath a glass roof.
Mon–Fri · shops and courtyard · check timesFull details →
More guides
Guide
Free
The stories hiding above Clerkenwell's pubs
A free ~45-minute walk from Angel to Farringdon past six Clerkenwell pub signs, each hiding a story you'd never guess from the street: a prince replaced by a Tamil king, a freed slave in chains, a mystery mural, the man who funded England's first atlas, and a 400-year-old typo. Every stop is free to look at, this is about the signs, not drinking.
Guide
FreeEvery weekend
Go East Vintage Flea: a free vintage market in Bermondsey
Go East Vintage runs a free vintage flea market most weekends at Maltby Street in Bermondsey, plus an indoor edition inside the railway arches on selected weekends. Free entry, no ticket, dog-friendly, just turn up. Expect 40 plus vintage sellers with furniture, vinyl, cameras, fashion, jewellery and odd little treasures, right by Maltby Street Market's food stalls. Dates move around a little, so check Go East Vintage's Instagram for the exact weekend before you go.
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