The Royal Exchange
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.
The lowdown
Standing proudly at Bank junction, the very heart of the City, the Royal Exchange has been a centre of London commerce since Sir Thomas Gresham founded the first one here in 1565. The grand columned building you see today is the third on the site, opened in 1844, its huge portico one of the great set-pieces of the financial district.
For centuries merchants met under its roof to trade, and the building has housed everything from commerce to insurance. Today its central courtyard, once open to the sky, sits under an elegant glass roof and is ringed by luxury shops and a cafe, and you are free to walk in and look up.
Even if the boutiques are far beyond most budgets, the architecture is free to enjoy, and the steps outside, watched over by statues and the Duke of Wellington on his horse, are a grand free perch from which to take in the swirl of the City.
The insider tip
The bit we only tell the people on the list. Join free and every insider tip unlocks on this device.
Featured in these guides
More like this
Get it in your inbox
One email a week with the best free things to do in London this weekend. Before everyone else finds them.