Explore St James's - Piccadilly, Mayfair and Marylebone about Bond Street
Tube: Green Park or Bond Street.
While Oxford Street, Regent Street and Piccadilly have all gone downmarket, Bond Street , which runs parallel with Regent Street, has carefully maintained its exclusivity. It is, in fact, two streets rolled into one: the southern half, laid out in the 1680s, is known as Old Bond Street; its northern extension, which followed less than fifty years later, is known as New Bond Street. They are both pretty unassuming streets architecturally, being a mixture of modest Victorian and Georgian town houses. However, the shops that line them, and those of neighbouring Conduit Street and South Molton Street, are among the flashiest in London, dominated by perfumeries, jewellers and designer clothing stores like Versace, Gucci, Nicole Farhi, Saint-Laurent and so on.
In addition to fashion, Bond Street is also renowned for its auction houses and for its fine-art galleries. Sotheby's, 34-35 New Bond St ( www.sothebys.com), is the oldest of the auction houses, and its viewing galleries are open free of charge. Bond Street's art galleries - exclusive mainstays of the street - are actually outnumbered by those on nearby Cork Street. The main difference between the two locations is that the Bond Street dealers are basically heirloom offloaders, whereas Cork Street galleries sell largely contemporary art. Both have impeccably presented and somewhat intimidating staff, but if you're interested, walk in and look around. They're only shops, after all.
