The Entertainment Zone's Central Highway (0.8 Km)

philip carey
Aug 22, 2022
6 min read

Updated: Aug 16, 2024

Start at Covent Garden Station

Finish at Piccadilly Circus Station

THE EXPERIENCE

The Entertainment Zone Central Highway is a short 0.7 km straight-line route that takes you through many of the entertainment areas within the West End of London. It begins east by Covent Garden Station and heads west down Long Acre into Leicester Square, brushing past Chinatown and the Haymarket before finishing off at the neon lights of Piccadilly Circus. It's a perfect route to get to know this fascinating area of London.

Great for bright lights, atmosphere, history, iconic sights, casinos, entertainment venues, crowds, transport links, cinemas, shopping, theatres, and lots of places to eat, drink and be merry.

MUST SEE PLACES

What to See List

1. Royal Opera House

2. Covent Garden Piazza

3. Along Floral Street & King Street

4. St Martin’s Lane

5. The Hippodrome & Charing Cross Road

6. Leicester Square and Cinemas

7. Chinatown

8. Coventry Street & the Haymarket

9. The National & Portrait Galleries

10. Piccadilly Circus

PLACES TO EAT, DRINK AND BE MERRY

Areas to Eat, Drink and Be Merry List

1. Around Covent Garden Piazza

2. Along Maiden Lane

3. Around Henrietta and King Street

4. Around St Martin’s Lane

5. Around Chinatown

6. Around Seven Dials

7. Around Leicester Square

8. Along Shaftesbury Avenue

9. Around Coventry Street & the Haymarket

10. North side of Piccadilly Circus

Links to nearby Eat, Drink and Be Merry Routes.

Covent Garden – Start at Covent Garden and finish at Leicester Square

https://www.photoruns.com/post/covent-garden-shopping-eat-drink-and-be-merry-photorun

Leicester Square – Start at Piccadilly Circus and finish at Leicester Square

https://www.photoruns.com/post/leicester-square-entertainment-area-eat-drink-and-be-merry-photorun

Chinatown – Start and End at Leicester Square

https://www.photoruns.com/post/chinatown-entertainment-area-eat-drink-and-be-merry-photorun

St Giles - Start at Leicester Square and end at Covent Garden

https://www.photoruns.com/post/st-giles-entertainment-area-eat-drink-and-be-merry-photorun

BEST TIME

Morning - The best time to do this route is on weekends in the early morning when it is quiet and free from crowds and heavy traffic.

Day - Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus will be busy during the day.

Evenings - Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus will be busy during the evening.

ROUTE OVERVIEW

This short 0.7 Km straight-line route starts outside Covent Garden Station and heads west down Long Acre into Leicester Square. It brushes past Chinatown and the Haymarket before finishing off at the neon lights of Piccadilly Circus.

Route at a Glance Video.

These links open in a new tab

Strava Link

My Google Map Link

DESCRIPTIVE PHOTO GALLERY

This gallery provides a descriptive and visual reference to many sights along this route. Use the Google Map above to find their location. Double-click to see its full size.

INTERESTING FACTS

Long Acre Facts

Covent Garden Station is at the corner of Long Acre and James Street and is one of the principal meeting points to start exploring Covent Garden. The station dates from 1906 and sits between Leicester Square and Holborn on the Piccadilly Line. James Street leads directly into Covent Garden Market and the broader areas – where most eat, drink and be merry places are situated.

Originally Long Acre was a street that was famous for coach building and automobiles, but today those have been replaced by shops.

Long Acre was named in the early 1600s after the length of the first pathway constructed across the land.

A Long Acre is based on the old standard imperial measurement of an acre, which is 660 feet long, or one furlong or one eight furlongs of a mile. It shorter side equates to 66 feet, which is equivalent to one chain, 22 yards, or four rods, or a hundred links. So it's not that much of a surprise why we embraced metrics with open arms.

Leicester Square Facts

North West Leicester Square

Leicester Square was laid out in 1670 as Leicester Fields and was named after Leicester House and its owner, Robert Sidney, 2nd Earl of Leicester. The square was built for the rich and famous whose tenants included Frederick, Prince of Wales, and the artist William Hogarth. Leicester House was demolished in the late 18th century, and the area became more rundown as it became a centre for retail and entertainment. Several significant theatres were built in the 19th century and converted to cinemas towards the middle of the 20th century.

Leicester Square Gardens

The land where Leicester Square now lies once belonged to the Abbot and Convent of Westminster Abbey and was known as Leicester Field. This field was classed as common land, where people were allowed to let their livestock graze. The square has always had a park in its centre. However, its fortunes have varied over the centuries, reaching near dilapidation in the mid-19th century after changing ownership several times. It was restored in the 21st century, which included the construction of four new statues and a fountain of William Shakespeare. The square was extensively refurbished and re-modelled for the 2012 London Olympics

Wyndham Theatre – Leicester Square

Sir Charles Wyndham was an actor and theatre proprietor, and this was his first theatre – The Wyndham's Theatre – which opened on 16 November 1899 in the presence of the Prince of Wales – the future Edward VII. Charing Cross Road goes from Trafalgar Square northwards towards Tottenham Court Road and is known for its bookshops. There are several theatres in this location, as well as casinos and cinemas. Food and drink can be found nearby in Leicester Square, St Martin’s Lane, and towards Chinatown and Soho.

Coventry Street and Wardour Street

Coventry Street was constructed in 1681 for entertainment and retail purposes, and later acquired a shady reputation with its numerous gambling houses and a reputation for prostitution. This changed during the late 19th century with the establishment of several music hall outlets, including the London Pavilion and the Prince of Wales Theatre. In 1894, J. Lyons arrived at the Trocadero in Piccadilly and created a tea room, restaurant and dance hall for tea parties, and from 1909, J. Lyons developed into a chain of teashops in high streets across the UK.

Wardour Street runs between Leicester Square and Oxford Street through Chinatown and Shaftesbury Avenue. In the 20th century, it became a centre of the British film industry, with the big production and distribution companies having their headquarters in the street. It was also known for popular music venues and clubs such as The Flamingo and Marquee Club. Today, it has over 30 restaurants along its length and plenty of pubs and bars. This junction with Leicester Square has both the M&M’s World and Lego stores nearby, the iconic W hotel, and many famous cinemas and casinos

W Hotel, Lego and M&M’s World

They were designed by architects Jestico + Whiles for the Starwood W hotel in 2011 and were built on the site of the Swiss Centre. They have ten floors, with two stories of high-quality retail space, a spa, and ten penthouse apartments with views across Leicester Square. W Hotels are renowned for their hip interior design, and this one has 192 rooms and several WOW suits. M&M’s World is their largest shop, spread over four floors

The LEGO Store in Leicester Square opened in 2016 and is their biggest store, spanning two floors, with 914 square metres of LEGO fun. It features a giant LEGO model of London’s famous clocktower, Big Ben. The name ‘LEGO’ is an abbreviation of the two Danish words “leg godt”, meaning “play well”, and was created in 1932. The building was built in the 1920s and was formerly known as Communication House.

VIRTUAL TOUR OF THE AREA

Click on the picture below to take a 360-degree virtual tour of the area.

Use the purple route to explore this location by looking around in 360, taking in the sights and sounds, listening to an audio recording about the area and going on a virtual tour.

HISTORY & GUIDES VIDEO LIBRARY

Please note - These date from before 2018 and have been done in a variety of styles to determine which one works best. They all provide very useful information and we would welcome feedback to help create the new version

SIGHT GUIDES