Holmon two

Verified Slow Way

Verified by 80.00% of reviewers

Walked this route from Holborn. A superb walk as far as the Old Bailey. Was prevented from getting any further by a security gate. I presume this must be open at other times but critically wasn't when I needed it to be.

Lovely route, passing London Bridge, St Paul's Cathedral and Paternoster Square. We ran this course as a group at night (Monday evening from 7pm). All well lit, but we did find that Warwick Passage and Lincoln's Inn Fields were both closed up. Alternative routes required to get back on course.

I walked this route from Holborn and really enjoyed it. As the other reviewers have noted, the architecture and lovely small spaces to discover along the way are quite joyful.

I also found, walking the route late at night, that the passage in the criminal courts building was closed. I simply took the detour round as the previous reviewer described and it worked no problem.

Some of the streets on the Monument end felt a bit unwelcoming (I kept thinking, “man, is this right?” and it doesn’t help that gps doesn’t always work when surrounded by tall buildings!) but lo and behold they were always right. The route is very well plotted and easy to follow.

This is a great little route which was mainly very quiet and peaceful even on a very busy saturday afternoon - apart from the very obvious points around Monument and St. Pauls. Lots of excellent architecture to enjoy from historic to modern and at both ends of the route plenty of places to find food and drink. It is route that offers intriguing glimpses and if you like exploring alleyways there are many tempting side streets.

The only problem I came across was that Warwick Passage, which is the route under the Old Bailey, was closed off with a locked gate and there was no sign to indicate what hours it is open. This just involved a small detour up to Newgate Street and then back down Old Bailey to rejoin the route.
If it wasn't for this and the flight of stairs this would definitely be a five star route.

Mostly my review is in the route description.
When I walked there was a certain amount of building work near Monument, and around Bride Street. I expect there will always be some building work on this route, London is quite fidgety.
Walking from Holborn to Monument, highlights for me were Lincoln's Inn Fields; the inside of the Seven Stars pub by Lincoln's Inn, with it's posters of old legal films; the rather surprising footpath right underneath the Old Bailey, and the sudden reveal of St Paul's Cathedral across Paternoster Square.

It's not really clear from the route map, but when walking direction Holborn ---> Monument, at Farringdon Street the route turns left up a flight of stairs to a higher level traffic free area.

This is definitely a route I'll walk again. Plenty of refreshment opportunities and loads of history. I think it's more interesting and a lot quieter than sticking with the main roads, but the accessibility is not as good.

Share your views about this route, give it a star rating, indicate whether it should be verified or not.

Include information that will be useful to others considering to walk or wheel it.

You can add up to 15 photos.