The Goldfish Online

The Great Monopoly Pub Crawl

2nd December 2006

This is our take on the most famous of pub crawls. There are plenty of versions out there, but I couldn't find any recent routes.

Listed below is the route we followed. The timings are approximate and with the introduction of 24 hour licensing they could possibly be relaxed, although we found most pubs were still closing between 11pm and midnight. Realistically the faster you get through the first 15 or so pubs the better off you'll be later on in the day when people start to flag and general inebriation slows things down!
You will definitely need a pocket London A-Z, a Day Tube/bus pass covering zones 1, 2 and comfortable shoes - there's a lot of walking involved!
If you decide to meet at Elephant and Castle Tube make sure you leave plenty of time to get to Old Kent Road. You'll need to catch a bus as it's a long walk!
If you're still not convince that this is a good idea then check out the photos from the day.
1: Old Kent Road - The Lord Nelson
386 Old Kent Road, London, SE1 5AA
11.00 until 11:10

Sadly this pub was shut at 11am. A bad start to the day and with no other pubs insight we got a can of Tyskie lager from the off license next door and drank it from inside a black plastic bag like vagrants. Other Monopoly pub crawlers we met later in the day said the pub was open when they got there at 11:30am.
Take the 42 bus to Tower Hill and the next pub.

2: Fenchurch Street Station - The Fen
Fenchurch St. Station, London, EC3M 4AJ
Until 11:40

This is a nice little pub and where we found that there were several other groups of Monopoly pub crawlers.
Walk from here to the next pub.

3: Whitechapel Road - The Aldgate Exchange
133-137 Whitechapel High St., London, E1 7PT
Until 12:00

Not our first choice, but we were running slightly behind schedule because of tube delays and this pub is much closer to Fenchurch St. than The White Hart on White Chapel Road.
From here walk through to Liverpool St. Station.

4: Liverpool Street Station - The Wren
The Concourse, Liverpool St. Station, London, EC2M 7PD
Until 12:45

We couldn't find The Hamilton Hall our scheduled stop, but tucked away at the station is a little pub called The Wren.
Get the tube from here to Islington, turn right out of the Islington High Street exit and head to the next pub.

5: The Angel Islington - The Angel
3-5 Islington High St., London, N1 9LQ
Until 13:15

A classic J.D. Wetherspoons. My round of 5 half pints came in at under six quid - we like that!
Walk round the corner to the next stop.

6: Pentonville Road - The Castle
54 Pentonville Rd., London, N1 9HF
Until 13:35

A very pleasant and trendy little bar. The staff are clearly used to Monopoly Crawlers to as when we arrived another group was just leaving!

Continue walking up Pentonville Rd until the next pub.
7: Kings Cross Station - The Duke of York
Kings Cross Station, London, N1 9AP
Until 13:55

Not a bad pub for one at a station, but there's no time to ponder. This is a good place to grab a bite to eat at one of the fast food outlets nearby. What?! You want a healthy pub crawl? Seriously! That just isn't going to happen so just swallow your MacDs and think of England (or wherever)!
A short walk from here gets you to the next pub.

8: Euston Road - The Euston Flyer
83 Euston Rd, London, NW1 2QU
Until 14:30

Another pub not on our original list, but it occurred before the intended pub The Rocket, so we stopped here instead and gained a little time. Pretty crowed due to the football on the big screen, but there was no trouble in getting served pretty quickly.
Wander up to Euston Square and get the Tube to Baker St. It's a short walk from here to the next pub.

9: Marylebone Station - The Victoria and Albert
Marylebone Station, Melcombe Place, London, NW1 6JJ
Until 15:00

Don't be confused by the signs outside, you have to enter into the station to get to this pub. A classic station pub filled with old drawings and photos of the Victorian era.

Get the Tube to Embankment - the last Tube trip of the day. I hope you've got those comfy shoes on! From the Tube stop walk along the Thames to the next pub.
10: Fleet Street - Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese
145 Fleet St., London, EC4A 2BU
Until 15:45

This pub is ace! A complete rabbit warren of rooms and corridors, although this impression may have been blurred slightly by the ongoing consumption of beer. Sadly it's a brewery owned pub so despite its name you won't find any equivalently named real ales.
Wander up Fleet St. towards Aldwych and the next pub on the list.

11: The Strand - The George
213 The Strand, London, WC2R 1AP
Until 16:05

Another "lets go here instead" pub. The next stop was to have been The Wellington further up The Strand, after Bow St. This stop is a much better alternative, with fast service and good beer, plus its much closer to the Fleet St. pub.
Head to Bow Street via Aldwych.

12: Bow Street - The Marquess of Anglesey
39 Bow St., London, WC2E 7AU
Until 16:20

It's around here the scale of the mission starts to sink in. It's dark and we're not even halfway through! Don't give in though :-)
Walk through to the next stop across Trafalgar Square.

13: Northumberland Avenue - The Sherlock Holmes
10-11 Northumberland St., London, WC2N 5DA
Until 16:40

No actual pubs on Northumberland Avenue as far as we can tell, so the street is the next best and closest thing. The Sherlock Holmes is a great little pub too. I grabbed some food on the way to this pub, a cunning plan as later on there was no time to eat!
Skirt round Trafalgar Square and down Whitehall to the next pub

14: Whitehall - The Lord of the Mall
16-18 Whitehall, London, SW1A 2DY
Until 17:00

Another great pub name and being a Wetherspoons it's nice and cheap too!
Cross over Trafalgar Square to the next pub

15: Trafalgar Square - The Chandos
29 St. Martin's Lane, London, WC2N 4ER
Until 17:25

I must admit my memory of the pubs is getting a little sketchy now, but we got in, got served and headed out.
The next pub is nice and close on Pall Mall

16: Pall Mall - The Red Lion
23 Crown Passage, Pall Mall, London, SW1Y 6PP
Until 17:55

This is a nice little pub hidden away just off Pall Mall. Ok this pub is a complete SOD to find. We wandered up and down Pall Mall for what seemed an eternity. A couple of people on our crawl knew where this pub was, but annoyingly rushed off leaving us trying to find a place too small to be on the A-Z. We got there in the end and got our half in, so no harm done.
Now take the short walk to Vine Street.

17: Vine Street - Piccadilly or The City?
A Bar any bar will do ... please?
Until 18:25

Ok here's a problem. There are TWO Vine Streets that could be used on the Monopoly pub crawl. We chose the one listed on all the other crawl itineries, just off Piccadilly. I'm not sure if this is meant to be the one on the Monopoly board or not - either way there are no pubs on it and the near by Swallow St. Bar has long since GONE, as we found out. To worsen our dilemma none of the restaurants would have us for drinks only.
The other Vine Street is very near Fenchurch Street Station. So this is my suggestion - unfortunately we found out too late for our crawl. From Fenchurch St walk to Whitechapel, but via Vine Street in The City and take in the following pub: The Emperor, 35 Vine Street, London, EC3N 2PX. No guarantee it will be there or open, but it won't put very much time on to your schedule.
Walk on into Mayfair.

18: Mayfair - Ye Grapes
18 Shepherd Market, Mayfair, London, W1J 7QG
Until 18:45

A very nice pub as you might expect it to be in this neighbourhood! Just a shame we've only got 20 minutes to enjoy it! Around here we got separated from some of the others in the group so make sure your mobile phone is fully charged before you start the day!
Walk though to the next pub.

19: Park Lane - The Rose and Crown
2 Old Park Lane, London, W1K 1QN
Until 19:15

Let's face it none of us can afford to drink at any of the hotel bars on Park Lane - if we were let in. Luckily there's a good pub on Old Park Lane that caters for pub crawlers like us!
Next stop Bond Street - a short walk away.

20: Bond Street - The Duke of York
8 Dering Street, London, W1S 1AA
Until 19:45

Bond Street is a tiny stretch of road in the middle of Oxford Street, not to be confused with New Bond Street that joins the junction of the two. Dering Street is nestled between all three streets and we got to it off New Bond St. There are no pubs on the official Bond St. There may be on New Bond St, but we didn't walk down it.
Straight round the corner onto Oxford St.

21: Oxford Street - The Green Man
57 Berwick Street, London, W1F 8SR
Until 20:15

You know it's been a long day when Oxford Street is still crowded with shoppers and you're onto your 22nd pub. Given how busy it was, this pub was a great find. It's just off Oxford Street, between Oxford Circus and Tottenham Court Road
From here walk to the next pub.

22: Piccadilly - The Blue Posts
28 Rupert Street, London, W1D 6DJ
Until 20:45

I'm sure we could have found a pub actually on Piccadilly so look out for one when you're heading to Mayfair and Park Lane This was our choice and it's just off Shaftsbury Avenue. Quite nice inside, small, but cool from memory...
Another short walk to the next stop.

23: Marlborough Street - 22 Below
22 Great Marlborough Street, W1F 7HU
Until 21:15

Something went wrong here. We were meant to be going to O'Neills, but they either wouldn't let us in or were closed. Weird because I have a photo of people inside the pub taken from outside. Anyway we went across the road into a cellar bar called 22 Below. It's under Cafe Libre and has to be one of the best bars I've ever been to. It was full of Japanese or Chinese, have a great atmosphere and some nice tunes being spun from the decks. I would have love to have stayed here, but with only three pubs left ...
At least it's another short walk to the next pub.

24: Coventry Street - The Tom Crib
36 Panton St, London, SW1Y 4EA
Until 21:55

There are no pubs on Coventry Street so this is one of the closest alternatives. It's definately another cool pub to add to the list.
The penultimate walk.

25: Regent Street - The Callaghans
Glasshouse St, London, W1B 5DN
Until 22:20

We were meant to go into Cheers, but they wanted several pounds entry and it wasn't worth it for 15 minutes. Just round the at Regents Palace we found The Callaghans. This was actually a pretty nice bar with friendly staff, they even wrote the name of the pub on the list for me.
The last walk to the last pub!

26: Leicester Square - All Bar One
48 Leicester Square, London, WC2H 7LT
Until the end

We were meant to have gone into The Moon Under Water, but not all of us could get in so it was across the square into All Bar One. It was humming as you might expect and we finally had time to savour our half pint.