Desk openReel 04 · AreasEC3N · E1
Aldgate was the eastern gate in London's Roman wall, and it still feels like a threshold. West of it rise the towers of the Square Mile; east of it lie Whitechapel and the old East End. Over the past decade new hotels, apartment towers and a public square have filled the gaps between. What follows: the hotels and apartments, the three nearest stations, her likely arrival time and which companions come east.
The hotels, stations and postcodes behind a booking in Aldgate.
Named as landmarks only. No hotel is a partner of ours.
Aldgate lies within Zones 1 and 2, so her journey adds nothing to what you pay.
Hotel, name and room are checked once, then kept at the desk. See booking.
A shortlist for this side of the river, drawn differently on every district page. Any companion on the reel will make the trip; ask for the one you have in mind.
22 more companions travel here too · all 28 frames on one page: Models
Nothing remains of the gate itself, though a gate stood on this spot for well over a thousand years. Aldgate Square, laid out beside St Botolph's church in 2018, gave the district a centre it had long lacked, with a fountain, trees and a café. The Aldgate Pump still stands where Leadenhall Street meets Fenchurch Street, a small stone reminder of the old boundary where the City ended and the road east began.
The towers of the City lean over it from the west, and the Gherkin is five minutes' walk away. To the east, the Whitechapel Gallery and the market stalls of Brick Lane are within a short stroll. The district borrows from both sides, and in the evening it is calmer than either.
To the north, Petticoat Lane took its name from the clothes once sold along it. The Victorians renamed the street Middlesex Street, partly out of modesty, but the old name never left the market, and on a Sunday morning the stalls still stretch towards Liverpool Street. By evening it is gone, and the street is as quiet as the rest of the City.
Aldgate's hotels are newer, and usually better value, than those in the heart of the City, and the guests reflect it. Consultants on long projects in extended-stay apartments. Visitors who want the City and the East End within walking distance. Travellers who came in through Liverpool Street and prefer to stay close to it. Bookings here are practical, often on a weeknight, and arranged around an early start. Nobody wants a production; they want a pleasant evening that begins on time and ends on time.
Leonardo Royal Hotel London Tower Bridge is on Prescot Street, a large modern hotel that is, despite its name, closer to Aldgate than to the bridge. Leman Locke, on Leman Street, is an aparthotel with kitchens in the rooms, well suited to longer stays. citizenM Tower of London and Four Seasons at Ten Trinity Square sit a few minutes south at Tower Hill, and Pan Pacific London rises on the Bishopsgate side to the north west.
These are named because guests stay in them. None is a partner of ours, and we make no arrangements with hotels of any kind. Apartments in the new towers around Goodman's Fields are welcome on the same terms.
Aldgate station, on the Circle and Metropolitan lines, is a minute from the square, and it is where the Metropolitan line ends its long run in from the north west. Aldgate East, three minutes further on, serves the District and Hammersmith and City lines. Tower Hill, for the Circle and District, is six minutes south.
Companions come in by cab, usually along the Embankment and through the City. On most evenings that puts her at your door in a little under an hour from confirmation, and on a Sunday often sooner. Aldgate lies in Zone 1, so there is no charge for her travel.
The aparthotels and new apartment towers here each have their own way in: a concierge desk, an entry phone, a lift that needs a key card. Tell the desk how your building works when you book. She follows it exactly and messages when she is at your door, so you are never waiting in a corridor.
A consultant at Leman Locke, three weeks into a project, has an evening free at last. A message at seven asks for two hours from nine, at £500. She arrives on time. They walk five minutes to a small restaurant on Whitechapel High Street, then back to the apartment for a glass of wine and a conversation about anything other than the client. At eleven she leaves; the guest has an early start, and so does the City.
From Covent Garden, Nancy, Tina and Karolina reach Aldgate fastest, straight along the river and through the City. Soho is home to Jasmin and Molly, and Pimlico to Lucy. The full list is in the gallery.
The City of London is directly west. Tower Bridge and St Katharine Docks are a short walk south, Shoreditch is fifteen minutes north, and Liverpool Street and Bank and Monument are both within ten minutes.
Yes. Aparthotels such as Leman Locke and serviced apartments in the new towers are treated exactly like hotels. Your name and the address are verified one time, no more.
Yes. Whitechapel and the rest of E1 carry the same rates, and anywhere in Zones 1 and 2 her cab costs you nothing.
Usually within an hour of the desk confirming. The roads through this part of town are rarely heavy after eight.
Plenty. A hotel bar at Tower Hill, the rooftop at citizenM, or a restaurant on Whitechapel High Street. Name it and she will meet you there.
£500, and her cab is already inside that figure. One hour starts at £250, and every length is on the rates page.
Yes. Aldgate is eight minutes' walk from the station. Send the hotel and a start time from the train, and she reaches your hotel soon after you do.
Next door to Aldgate, on foot or a single stop away.
7 more districts on both banks: Areas
Name your hotel or street in Aldgate and the hour that suits you. The cab over costs you nothing extra.