Context Travel London Portrait of a City Review

Not so much a walking tour as a "walking seminar", Context Travel offers tours for the "intellectually curious". The small groups are led by docents (scholars) who have that sort of incredible knowledge the rest of us dream about.

I tried the Portrait of a City walk which is a three-hour tour of the oldest area of London. I'd heard it might feel like returning to university but, as there was no coursework and it was simply the opportunity to learn more about my favorite subject (London) from a scholar while walking around the city, I had a wonderful time, even if it was a very cold day.

Context Travel are an international network of scholars and academics. They operate in some of the cultural capitals of the world, including London. Their docents/guides lead small group seminars focusing on different matters, ranging from architecture to art, history, and cuisine.

I heard about Context Travel from Martha Bakerjian, the About.com Italy Travel Guide. She has tried a few of their walks in Italy and told me she had found the docents to be true experts in their field.

This three-hour tour covers London's 2,000 years of history so is focused around the oldest area, the City of London. You get to see how London developed from a Roman town to the bustling financial center of an empire. Find out more...

Our docent/guide was very welcoming and it took seconds to realize quite how knowledgeable she was on the subject of London's history. This would be a great tour for academics and intellectuals as the opportunity to ask someone like this questions usually only happens at universities. I had been concerned when I'd heard the tour would be like going back to university but I do love to learn and was pleased how accessible I found the tour.

I did find there were lots of dates and facts coming at us but the people I shared the tour with were able to cope so I suspect it was being pitched with the understanding of the prior knowledge we all had.

The history was focused on Roman to Medieval times, and we started by the Tower of London and went over to All Hallow's by the Tower Church which has a crypt museum and where you can do brass rubbing.

I found out the Barbican is on the site of a Roman military settlement, and Farringdon Road runs along the line of the Fleet River, which has been covered over.

I walked down new streets and alleyways, found parts of the Roman wall I'd not seen before, and discovered lots of facts to make me want to return to the area.

Conclusion
Context Travel's London walking seminars would be ideal for those who want to know more than their guidebook can offer, and for those who really want to learn about an area.

As is common in the travel industry, the writer was provided with a complimentary tour for the purpose of reviewing those services. While it has not influenced this review, About.com believes in full disclosure of all potential conflicts of interest. For more information, see our Ethics Policy.