Changing of the Guard

The lowdown

The Changing of the Guard is the full red-tunic, bearskin-hat, marching-band spectacle of British ceremony, and watching it costs absolutely nothing. The new guard marches to Buckingham Palace with a band, and through a long set-piece of orders and music takes over from the old.

The trick is knowing it does not happen every day, so you check the schedule first, and that the railings right at the palace get packed an hour before. Most people crush in there and see very little over the heads in front.

The smart move is to watch the soldiers and the band march to and from the palace along The Mall or from Wellington Barracks, where you get them up close and moving rather than a distant blur behind a fence. Same free spectacle, far better view.