Visitors to London often want to go inside Buckingham Palace when they come there and see the Changing of the Guard ceremony. Yet, while Windsor Castle is open to the public throughout the year, the chief royal residence of London is only open for ten weeks between mid-July and September every year when the royal family are at Balmoral Castle. The tradition of spending the late summer and early autumn in the Scottish Highlands was established by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and has continued since her reign.

The London Marathon starts and finishes in two of London’s most beautiful areas. The starting point is a wide-open expanse of grassland lined by historic houses and cottages on the edge of the pretty village of Blackheath itself. The London marathon route then winds its way past some of our most recognised historic sites, and some of its newer attractions, before finishing near to Buckingham Palace on The Mall.