Picadilly Circus, London (UK) » City Info

  • City Information
Piccadilly is a prominent area in London which engulfs the region from the Hyde Park in the west to the Piccadilly Circus in the east. Located within the boundaries of the Borough of City of Westminster, the area is a part of the A4 road, which is supposed to be the lifeline of London transport. The street of Piccadilly is surrounded by St.James’s in the south-eastern direction while the western direction gives a good overview of the famous Green Park. The renowned shopping area of Mayfair lies to the north of Piccadilly.
Piccadilly has always made heads turns with some of its most sought after attractions such as the Piccadilly Circus, The Ritz Hotel, Royal Academy, Hatchards book shop and Fortnum & Mason departmental store. The area is illustrious for being penned down by many authors in fiction novels such as Dracula, Albert Campion and the Lord Peter Wimsey series of novels. Films have been canned with the subject topic as “Piccadilly” by British directors, such as the one showcased in 1929.
Why such a small neighborhood in London achieved so much fame and prestige in the minds of tourists and travelers, is because today it is London’s premium shopping streets where most of the well-known celebrities come to splurge their green notes.
  • Transport

The street of Piccadilly is connected to all of the main streets and squares of London by the Piccadilly railway line of the London Underground. Major tube stations like Greek Park, Hyde Park Corner and Piccadilly Circus are coupled directly to Piccadilly. There are number of adjacent streets which can be explored while in Piccadilly like:

• Albemarle Street, Old Bond Street and Dover Street in Mayfair
• Hyde Park Corner
• Piccadilly Circus
• Regent Street and
• St James's Street

All of the above streets are mainly known for their shopping extravaganzas and fine quality restaurants, pubs and theatres are an added bonus that comes with them.

  • Adjoining areas

Piccadilly Circus

Piccadilly Circus is a square in London built in 1819 that connects Regent’s street with Piccadilly Street. The circle is major hot-spot among all tourists as it is an important network joint for shopping neighborhoods such as Haymarket, Coventry Street, Glasshouse Street, Shaftesbury Avenue, West End, and Piccadilly Street. The Circus is visited prominently for its brightly lit neon signs and boards that make up an interesting view during the night. The nearest transport junction is the Piccadilly Circus London Underground station.

Hyde Park Corner

Occupying the same position as Piccadilly Circus, Hyde Park Corner lies to the south east of Hyde Park. Neighborhoods and streets such as Park Lane, Knightsbridge, Piccadilly, Grosvenor Place and Constitution Hill converge at the intersection of Hyde Park Corner. The neighborhood is known for it memorial statuettes such as the Wellington Arch dedicated to the Duke of Wellington. Other important memorials include ‘The Australian War Memorial’, ‘Statue of David’, ‘The New Zealand War Memorial’, and ‘The Royal Artillery Memorial’. The nearest tube station is the Hyde Park Corner.

St. James’s

St. James’s is an area of London in the Borough of City of Westminster, bordered by Piccadilly at the north, Green Park at the west, The Mall and St.James’ Park at the south and The Haymarket at the east. St. James’s was formerly referred as the “Clubland’ because of the number of gentlemen clubs it encompassed. Today it is well known for its art galleries, theatres and cigar stores.


Green Park

The Green Park is one of Royal Parks of London. Joining are the Kensington Gardens and Buckingham Palace Gardens, the trio covers a wide stretch of open space ranging from Whitehall to Victoria Hall to Kensington to Notting Hill. Bordering areas include Constitution Hill on the south, Queen's Walk on the east, and Piccadilly on the north. The nearest tube station is the Green Park tube station.

Mayfair

MayFair is an area situated in the central London within the boundaries of the Borough of City of Westminster. The area was named after the May Fair until it was banned in 1764. The surrounding areas include Hyde Park to the west, Oxford Street to the north, Regent Street to the east and Piccadilly and Green Park to the south. Today it’s well known for being one of the most expensive real estate properties in England with major corporate headquarters, luxury houses located in the area. The nearest railway station is Victoria station.

Soho

Soho one of the major locations in the borough of Westminster was till recently known for its sex industry. For much part of the 20th century it had a reputation for strip clubs, sex shops along with the presence of theatre and film industry. But from the 1980’s the area revamped itself and become well known for upmarket restaurants and media industry. With police control and tightening of licensing controls the area has now been ‘cultured’ to a large portion, even if the small part of the prostitution industry still remains.