London's great public square, free and always open, with Nelson on his column, Landseer's bronze lions, fountains and a fourth plinth that shows a new piece of contemporary art every couple of years.
The lowdown
Trafalgar Square is the symbolic centre of London, the point all the road distances are measured from, and it belongs to everyone. Laid out in the 1840s to mark Nelson's victory at Trafalgar, it is free, always open and almost always full of life.
Nelson stands on his fifty metre column guarded by four huge bronze lions, the fountains play, the National Gallery fills the north side and the steps are one of the great free places in London just to sit and watch the city pass.
Look to the empty plinth in the northwest corner. The Fourth Plinth was never given its planned statue, so since 1999 it has hosted a rotating run of bold contemporary artworks, a giant blue cockerel, a swirl of whipped cream, a ship in a bottle. It is the most talked-about free art commission in the country.
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