The ceremony that takes place in the courtyard at the front of Buckingham Place sees the changing of the guards at the palace. It is a stirring half hour formal procedure during which bearskin-hatted soldiers, dressed in scarlet tunics march to foot stomping tunes played by a live military band above which sergeant majors bark their orders. However, there is much more to the ceremony than that which unfolds in front of Buckingham Palace, and by following the directions that those who have taken our London walks have tried and tested over many years of taking visitors to the Changing of the Guard, you will get to see much more of the ceremony as a whole.
The best way to enjoy the ceremony is to make your way to the traffic lights at the junction of The Mall and Marlborough Road at 11:05am. At a little after 11:10am, the Regimental Banner, escorted by the Old Guard's commanding officer and a detachment of the guards, will be marched straight past you en route for Buckingham Palace. The moment they've passed, cross over The Mall and make your way quickly through the gates of St. James's Park opposite, cross the bridge over the lake, turn right, and cut left diagonally across the grass to arrive at the Wellington Barracks on Birdcage Walk. Position yourself on the corner opposite the main gates, and at 11:25am the New Guard will march straight past you from their barracks and make their way to Buckingham Palace. Once they've gone by, follow them to the gates of the palace (or at least as close to the gates as you can get), and wallow in the smug satisfaction that you have probably seen more of and gotten closer to the guards than the majority of those now standing alongside you. Indeed at this point our London Walks guides normally lead the group away from Buckingham Palace and back to the junction of The Mall and Marlborough Road.
Once there walk along Marlborough Road, turn left at the end and a little way along you will encounter either one or two guards standing proudly to attention and completely at your mercy. This is the main gate to St James’s Palace and this is just about the only spot where you can actually stand alongside the guards and have your photograph taken trying to make them laugh or attempting to get them to talk! But once more never, ever, touch one of them as the results might not be quite what you expected.
