London Quest: Chasing Dickens Through Victorian London

4.4 (8 reviews) one hour Free cancellation Private tour

out of 5

8 reviews

4.4

London Quest: Chasing Dickens Through Victorian London — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

London Quest: Chasing Dickens Through Victorian London, photo 2 — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

About this activity

You came to London to write, but the words won't come. Then on a foggy evening walk, you spot him: a man in a black top hat who looks impossibly like Charles Dickens. Dead for over 150 years, but real enough to follow. You set off after him.

This self-guided literary quest takes you on a walk through the Victorian heart of London. Using the Questo app on your smartphone, you follow the figure at 12 stops through Clerkenwell, Holborn, and Fleet Street: from the Charles Dickens Museum on Doughty Street and the buried Fleet River to Fagin's haunt on Saffron Hill, and Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, where Dickens drank with fellow writers.

Decode hidden messages, solve literary puzzles, and piece together the story of Victorian London's most famous writer.

Start whenever you like and explore 3.5 kilometres of London's most storied streets at your own pace. Best experienced during the day.

Perfect for history lovers, literature fans, and curious explorers. No knowledge of Dickens required.

Private and Luxury Private Sightseeing Tours Historical Tours Walking Tours Short term availability Weather Dependent - Moderate

At a glance

Duration: one hour
Confirmation: Instant confirmation
Ticket: Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Group: Your group only
People per booking: 1–15
Written guide: English
Operated by: Questo

Ages: Adults (1–99 years)

What is included

Included

Included: One device works for up to 3 players; buy extra tickets for the full multiplayer experience
Included: Self-guided Dickens literary quest through London
Included: Flexible scheduling, start anytime, best experienced during the day
Included: Follow a mysterious Dickens lookalike from Clerkenwell to Fleet Street
Included: Visit the Charles Dickens Museum, Fagin's Saffron Hill, and Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese
Included: Decode hidden messages and literary puzzles inspired by Oliver Twist

Not included

Not included: Live tour guide (self-guided via the Questo app)

Itinerary

Charles Dickens Museum

Passing by

The Charles Dickens Museum is an author's house museum at 48 Doughty Street in Holborn, London Borough of Camden. It occupies a typical Georgian terraced house which was Charles Dickens's home from 25 March 1837 (a year after his marriage) to December 1839.

Here you will have to look around to find the answer to our challenge to advance to the new location and learn the story of this place.
Stop 2

Passing by

It was laid out around 1686 and originally ran further, along what is now the Man in the Moon Passage. John Rocque's Map of London, 1746 shows Vine Street extending from Piccadilly northeast to Warwick Street. In 1720, the main properties on the street were a brewery and a carpenter's yard.

Here you will have to look around to find the answer to our challenge to advance to the new location and learn the story of this place.
Stop 3

Passing by

This stylish inn dates to 1759, but its moment of fame came in 1838, when Charles Dickens changed its name to the Three Cripples and made it Bill Sykes' watering hole of choice in Oliver Twist.

Here you will have to look around to find the answer to our challenge to advance to the new location and learn the story of this place.
Staple Inn

Passing by

Staple Inn dates from 1585. The building was once the wool staple, where wool was weighed and taxed. It survived the Great Fire of London, was extensively damaged by a Nazi German Luftwaffe aerial bomb in 1944 but was subsequently restored.

Here you will have to look around to find the answer to our challenge to advance to the new location and learn the story of this place.
Lincoln's Inn Fields

Passing by

The Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre was located in the Fields from 1661 to 1848, when it was demolished. This, originally called the Duke's Theatre, was created by converting Lisle's Tennis Court in 1695.

Here you will have to look around to find the answer to our challenge to advance to the new location and learn the story of this place.
Maughan Library

Passing by

Following a £35m renovation designed by Gaunt Francis Architects, the Maughan is the largest new university library in the United Kingdom since World War II. Designed by Sir James Pennethorne and constructed in 1851, with further extensions made between 1868 and 1900, it is a Grade II* listed building.

Here you will have to look around to find the answer to our challenge to advance to the new location and learn the story of this place.
Dr. Johnson's House

Passing by

The house now known as Dr Johnson's House was probably originally built for a City merchant. Its most famous resident, and one of the most distinguished figures in English literary history, Samuel Johnson (1709-84), rented it from 1748 to 1759.

Here you will have to look around to find the answer to our challenge to advance to the new location and learn the story of this place.
Stop 8

Passing by

Originally, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese was built in the 1530's, although the original pub was lost in The Great Fire of London in 1666. The current pub dates from 1667 – having been one of the first London buildings reconstructed after the Great Fire.

Here you will have to look around to find the answer to our challenge to advance to the new location and learn the story of this place.
Saint Peter's Italian Church

Passing by

It was consecrated on 16 April 1863 as "The Church of St Peter of all Nations". At the time of consecration, it was the only basilica-style church in the UK. Its organ was built in 1886 by Belgian Anneesen. During World War II, when Italian immigrants were interned, Irish Pallottines made use of the church.
Stop 10

Passing by

The Royal College of Surgeons has a long history. Its earliest origins lie in the 1540s when the Company of Barbers and the Fellowship of Surgeons joined together to form the Company of Barber-Surgeons. In the 1700s medicine became an academic discipline and surgeons demanded more recognition for their expertise.
Stop 11

Passing by

Romanian Orthodox chapel St Dunstan-in-the-West is one of the churches in England to share its building with the Romanian Orthodox community (St. George church). The chapel to the left of the main altar is closed off by an iconostasis, formerly from Antim Monastery in Bucharest, dedicated in 1966.

Meeting point and pickup

Everyone meets at the meeting point.

Meeting point

The game starts at the Charles Dickens Museum. After booking, we'll message you a code and activation link. Activate with your own email, then log in to the Questo app with that email. No message? Open the Questo app, tap "Bought a quest somewhere else?" and enter your booking reference number.

End point

Using your ticket

Thank you for booking with Questo. Your code is your booking reference number: the digits after "BR-".

Here's how to play it:

1. Activate your quest. Go to the unlock page on the Questo website (questoapp.com/unlock), enter your email and your code.

2. Download the Questo app on your phone (App Store or Google Play) and create an account with the same email used for activation.

3. Once you're logged in to the Questo app, open the Quests section. Your quest will be there, ready to be played.

IMPORTANT

Booked more than one ticket? You can invite the other participants right after activating, or later from the Quests section in the app.
If you don't see your quest in the Quests section in the Questo app, tap "Bought a quest somewhere else?" and enter your code again. You can also upload a screenshot of your booking confirmation there.

GOOD TO KNOW

The quest is available every day, at any hour. Go to the starting point and begin whenever you're ready.
Download the story and the map before you head out. After that, it works without internet.
Start with at least 50% battery.

Still have questions? Send us a message or talk to our customer support at: questoapp.com/chat