Seven Dials
seven streets, one sundial
A charming star-shaped junction in Covent Garden where seven little streets meet at a Victorian sundial pillar, ringed by independent shops and a tangle of hidden alleys.
Free to visit · Covent Garden · Leicester Square · WC2H 9HA
Opening: Always open · shops have their own hours
Seven Dials is one of the most distinctive little pockets of central London, a junction where seven narrow streets radiate out from a single point like the spokes of a wheel. At the centre stands a column topped with sundials, laid out in the 1690s as a smart speculative development that long ago fell on hard times and has since been beautifully revived.
The pillar you see is a faithful 1980s recreation of the original, and standing under it you can look down all seven streets at once. Each one is lined with independent boutiques, cafes and theatres, a more characterful and human-scaled corner than the chain-store bustle of nearby Covent Garden.
It rewards a slow wander. The streets that spin off it lead into a web of courtyards and hidden alleys, and you are minutes from Neal's Yard, the theatres of Shaftesbury Avenue and the piazza of Covent Garden, all free to explore on foot.
Getting there: Between Covent Garden and Leicester Square, a couple of minutes from either, on the edge of the theatre district.
Best time to go: A weekday for the calm, or evening when the surrounding theatres and restaurants light up the little streets.
Insider tip: Stand right at the base of the central pillar and look down each of the seven streets in turn, the only spot where the whole clever geometry makes sense. Then dive into the side lanes towards the rainbow courtyard of Neal's Yard a minute away.
Official site: https://www.sevendials.co.uk
Free things to do in London · London Free Guide