Walk the royal wedding procession route

Around half a million people lined the one-and-a-half-mile route from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey, to see Kate Middleton on her way to marry Prince William, so you couldn't have done this walk on this walk on Friday April 29 2011!

It’s a very scenic central London walk, with a mix of landscaped parkland and classical architecture, and passes lots of famous sights, so it’s a great stroll on any other day of the year.

Start at Buckingham Palace (Buckingham Palace). Peer through the railings at the balcony where royalty wave to the crowds at the gates on special occasions, like royal weddings. Opposite the palace, admire the newly renovated Victoria Memorial.

Walk down The Mall, and you’ll see the pale stucco facade of the Nash-designed Clarence House (open August to October) on your left, more recently the official residence of Prince Charles, the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince William and Prince Harry, and formerly the home of the late Queen Mother.

As you near the end of The Mall, you’ll see Admiralty Arch, which leads through to Trafalgar Square. Turn right on to Horse Guards Road, then left onto Horse Guards Parade, which is where the ceremony of Trooping the Colour, commemorating the Queen’s birthday. The beach volleyball Olympics competition will also be held here in 2012. Through the gate and out on to Whitehall, seat of many government departments, and turn right. Peer through the security gates at the end of Downing Street, installed after an IRA bombing in 1991, to see the famous black door of No.10.

In the middle of Whitehall you’ll see the war memorial, the Cenotaph, past which thousands of servicemen and women march on Remembrance Sunday.

As you come to the end of Whitehall, and Parliament Square, there’s the unmistakable face of Big Ben. Time it right to hear those world-famous Westminster Chimes live. Next to the clock tower is the Palace of Westminster, home of the UK Parliament since 1295, and made up of the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

And finally, we come to Westminster Abbey (open Monday to Saturday), where the wedding ceremony takes place. The Abbey enjoys close links with the monarchy. It’s a ‘Royal Peculiar’, which means that it comes under no ecclesiastical jurisdiction other than that of the reigning monarch. It has been the coronation church since 1066 but has seen only 15 royal weddings. The first was between King Henry I and Princess Matilda of Scotland in 1100. More recent happy couples to make their vows here include Prince William’s late great-grandmother, the Queen Mother, then Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, who married the Duke of York, later King George VI; the Queen and Prince Philip, in 1947; Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips, and Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson in 1986. The Abbey is also the final resting place of 17 monarchs. As the Abbey literature says: ‘Kings, queens, statesmen and soldiers; poets, priests, heroes and villains - the Abbey is a must-see living pageant of British history.’

If you want to finish the walk here, your nearest Tube is Westminster, across the square. To make it a circular route, adding another mile or so, walk up Storey’s Gate, across Victoria Street, and left into St James’s Park. Originally laid out in 1603 for James I, it took its current form in 1827, when it was remodelled by John Nash for George IV. Admire the population of swans, geese, ducks and pelicans, as well as the cheeky squirrels. Leave by Queen Anne’s Gate for St James’s Park Tube,or continue, walking parallel to Birdcage Walk past Wellington Barracks, home of the Foot Guards Battalions, and out of the park to Victoria station.

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