Chinatown

Chinatown, in London

Chinatown is the Chinese quarter of London, a maze of lively and colourful streets in the heart of the West End. The London audio-guided tour stops here to evoke this exotic quarter, famous for its ornate gates, its red lanterns and its Asian gastronomy.

The Chinese quarter with the red lanterns

Chinatown is the Chinese quarter of London, nestled between Leicester Square and Soho, in the heart of the West End. This lively and exotic quarter was founded by the Chinese community that settled there during the twentieth century, making of these few streets a small piece of Asia in the heart of the British capital. You enter it by magnificent ornamental gates, the paifang, with curved roofs and bright colours, guarded by stone lions. The streets, largely pedestrian, are decorated with suspended red lanterns that create a festive atmosphere, especially at nightfall. Chinatown is above all a high place of gastronomy: Chinese and Asian restaurants, tea rooms, pastry shops and grocery stores delight the lovers of Far Eastern cuisine there. The quarter becomes particularly animated during the Chinese New Year, celebrated here with pomp, dragon parades and festivities. A lively and colourful quarter, a showcase of Chinese culture in London, Chinatown is a tasty stop of the discovery of the town.

What to see

Here you wander in the Chinese quarter of London, between Leicester Square and Soho, founded by the Chinese community in the twentieth century, where you enter by magnificent ornamental gates guarded by stone lions, in pedestrian streets decorated with red lanterns, a high place of Asian gastronomy that becomes animated during the Chinese New Year. Chinatown is an exotic quarter of London. It is a tasty stop, to be explored on foot.

Practical information

Chinatown lies between Leicester Square and Soho, in the heart of the West End, in London, reachable on foot and by public transport. It is a largely pedestrian public quarter, freely accessible; the restaurants and shops have their own hours. The quarter is particularly lively in the evening and during the Chinese New Year.

What is Chinatown in London?

The Chinese quarter of London, between Leicester Square and Soho, founded by the Chinese community in the twentieth century; you enter it by magnificent ornamental gates, its pedestrian streets are decorated with red lanterns, and it is a high place of Asian gastronomy that becomes animated during the Chinese New Year.

Where is Chinatown in London?

Between Leicester Square and Soho, in the heart of the West End, in London, in the United Kingdom.