Of the closed tube stations that litter the London Underground, two top the list of stations that people want to visit.
One is Down Street, near Hyde Park as it was used as a WW2 command centre, and the other is the iconic Aldwych/Strand station, which is largely unmodernised.
In November, you can get into Aldwych — as it has a series of occasional open days.
Although only closed in 1994, it holds a special fascination for most people as it is still visible above ground, and even when open was hardly ever used so even the heaviest of tube travellers are unlikely to have been there.
It is also one of those stations that has a dual hidden history, as even when open, only one of two platforms was in use – so you have one old platform, and one even older one.
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Starting from the 7th November, the tours run every Thurs-Sun afternoon to early evening until the 1st December.
Access to the platform is by staircase only and there is no working lift in operation. 160 stairs connect the ticket hall level to the platform level – there is no step-free access.
On the vexed issue of photography, the tickets terms and conditions state “No professional audio visual or audio recording equipment may be brought into the venue without the express permission of London Transport Museum.”
To me, that sounds like a consumer DSLR camera would be allowed.
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Tickets are £25, but then again this is a venue that is rarely opened, so its not something they will have difficulty selling out.
Tours last about 40 minutes — book tickets here
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Aww man, they end 11 days before I’ll be in London for a week. Oh well. One day!
Where can you obtain tickets? Do the tours start at regular times?
Click on the link in the article that says “book tickets here” in order to obtain tickets.
Was lucky enough to go to a party in there in 2008.. a friends company had their christmas party there.. was an awesome venue for a warehouse style party. The hang over lasted for days 😀
Also worth mentioning that the ticket price will also include entry to the London Transport Museum up to a week after your tour.