Covent Garden is on of those places I always visit.  If you’re looking for a way to kill some time (and do some shopping) then this is the place for you.

There are so many stores in this small block.  There are specialty stores (like Benjamin Pollock’s Toyshop), chain stores (like Octopus and Lush – their shampoo and condition bars make traveling so much easier), restaurants, and bakeries.  There are also stalls where people can sell their own items/art/etc.

And then there’s Jubilee Market Hall, which is full of tchotchkes.  Everything from mass-produced souvenirs, to garments with the London Underground map on them, to beautiful hand-made books, to belts, to purses, to …well, pretty much everything.

Covent Garden is also in Theatreland!

This is the main heart of West End Theatre, with about 40 theatres in the area.  It’s the location of the Royal Opera House (where I saw Giselle).

You can also usually find buskers in the area.  Some are subtle (the people who paint themselves as statues), and some are quite boisterous (magicians with microphones and speakers).

Sometimes you’ll also find art:

As I mentioned – it’s a good place to kill some time.

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Note: The Tube station for Covent Garden is really far underground, so if you’re super claustrophobic you might want to avoid that stop.  You get out of the train and then go to an area with 3 large elevators.  The stop has high volume, so you’ll usually crowd into the elevator with a LOT of other people.  There are stairs, but it’s not recommended for anyone to walk up them since there are 400 of them.  The Leicester Square stop’s not that far away.