10 Things to do in Covent Garden That You Shouldn't Miss

Although there have been various earlier entertainment buildings on the site the reconstructed Adelphi Theatre, with its art deco interiors, opened to the public in December 1930 with Jessie Matthews starring in Ever Green.The front-of-house areas of the Adelphi Theatre were restored to their original lustre and extravagance in 1993 when Andrew Lloyd Webber became co-owner and opened his musical production of Sunset Boulevard. Other famous productions at the Adelphi Theatre include Gertrude Lawrence in Cole Porter’s Nymph Errant, Ivor Novello’s The Dancing Years, Bless The Bride, Beatrice Lillie as Auntie Mame, Van Johnson in The Music Man, Lionel Bart’s Blitz! and Maggie May, Charlie Girl with Anna Neagle, a revival of Me and My Girl originally starring Robert Lindsay and Emma Thompson and in the Adelphi Theatre’s longest run (over nine years), the new Broadway production of Kander and Ebb’s Chicago. Revivals of Evita and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat have proved enormously popular. More recently, the theatre played host to the worldwide premiere of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical Love Never Dies.

Experience all the Royal Opera House has to offer – stunning performances from The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera, delicious food and drink, inspiring interactive events and a perfect place to relax in the heart of Covent Garden.

A 145-foot-high monument, bearing a statue of Lord Horatio Nelson guarded by lions, marks the spot considered the center of London.

Filled with restaurants, bars, markets and boutiques, London's premier tourist center offers fabulous shopping by day, and the destination of theatergoers and patrons of the Royal Opera House by night.

Freemasons’ Hall has been the centre of English Freemasonry for over 240 years. It is the meeting place for over 1,000 Masonic Lodges and the headquarters of the United Grand Lodge of England, the first Grand Lodge in the world. The building, which is Grade II* listed, dates from 1927-1933, and has a richly decorated interior. The architects were H V Ashley and F Winton Newman. When the Grand Temple is not in use there are up to five tours per day. These tours are free, and each starts in the Library and Museum. Visitors should bring photographic ID which may be required to be shown before the tour commences. Please note: Freemasons’ Hall is not open on Sundays, public holidays, the Saturday preceding a Monday public holiday, or over the Christmas / New Year period. It is also not possible to hold tours when there are major events happening, some of which are arranged at short notice. If you are making a special trip to visit Freemasons' Hall then please contact us first.

Welcome to Seven Dials, the intriguing network of seven atmospheric streets that link Covent Garden to Soho. Always buzzy, packed with independent boutiques, international fashion labels, heritage brands, beauty salons, men’s grooming specialists, traditional pubs, cool cocktail bars, cafes, restaurants, theatres and smart hotels; historic Seven Dials is modern London’s most original shopping and lifestyle destination.

Since 1663 the Theatre Royal Drury Lane has provided entertainment for the masses and has been visited by every monarch since the Restoration.The theatre has not one, but two, royal boxes and it was here that the public first heard both the National Anthem and Rule Britannia. Previous buildings were managed by the great actor David Garrick and the famous playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan and he current, fourth, building was opened in 1812.The theatre was renowned for its spectacular Victorian melodramas and pantomimes but since the 1920s its history has mirrored the development of the modern musical. From the original London productions of American musicals Rose Marie, The Desert Song and Show Boat, through Ivor Novello’s romantic operettas and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s groundbreaking post-war shows to The Producers and The Lord of the Rings. My Fair Lady held the record as the theatres longest run for many years but Cameron Mackintosh’s record breaking production of Miss Saigon, at ten years, is the current record holder.