Oxfhol two

Verified Slow Way

Verified by 100.00% of reviewers

I walked from Oxford Street (tube) to Holborn (tube).
Wow, so much to see. Historic buildings, museums, squares, tiny quiet passages, a real slice of London, much of which without crowds.
I had trouble navigating in parts as the GPS is not very accurate in narrow streets surrounded by tall buildings, but it is difficult to go very wrong.
A quiet enclosure near the British museum was a delight and, despite knowing the area , new to me.
A rich experience.
Good for wheels, but crowds of tourists in Summer would make it a hassle.

I walked this route from Oxford Circus to Holborn on a Saturday evening (~9pm). The route was good, avoiding the louder and more polluted Oxford Street and instead favouring slightly less loud and polluted but still active and vibrant side streets. The route even manages to take in a couple lovely pocket green squares.

I've dinged it a star because I found the Pied Bull Yard, by the Holborn end, closed when I walked it, so the route isn't a 24 hour route! I simply walked down Bury Place and turned left on the A40 one block earlier. No biggie.

This route connects Oxford Circus to Holborn without going along Oxford Street. It goes through Soho and Bloomsbury and is a (mostly) less crowded and polluted option with more points of interest than Oxfhol One. I've made it according to how I would walk between these two places, although there are many choices!

The route starts by turning off Oxford Street into Soho, and eventually arrives at Soho Square, before turning back to Oxford Street which it immediately crosses over.

It uses Hanway Street to nip round the corner to Tottenham Court Road. Hanway Street is a useful back street to know if you want to stay away from the crowds at Tottenham Court Road station; given its proximity to the big retail area, it remains quiet and surprisingly ungentrified.

Into Bloomsbury. I've routed past the British Museum because I'm thinking some people may be interested in using this route to get there. It was really busy when I walked past for this review, there is a queue for security bag checks and it stretches along Great Russell Street. I've indicated on the route line which side of the road to walk on to avoid getting caught up in the crowd.

I turned off into a little courtyard which had some relaxed cafes and bars and was generally very pleasant, and then passed by Bloomsbury Square and along Sicilian Avenue to the finish at Holborn Station.

I really enjoyed this walk and am pleased to add it to the Slow Ways repertoire. I put a few photos up with the main route description.

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