London East End: Women's History Walking Tour & Jack the Ripper

The Women the East End Forgot to Remember

You walk through Spitalfields market, Brick Lane, and the Tower of London with a professional guide who centers the stories of working women in the East End's history, including the five victims of Jack the Ripper. The tour is wheelchair accessible, takes a few hours, and includes all fees. You don't arrange anything separately.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore East End women's history sites

• Visit sites important to women's history
• Explore historic East End market
• Visit historical Brick Lane area
• Pass by Tower of London women sites

The Experience

The tour starts at a spot near Spitalfields, and honestly, the guide had to wait a few minutes while someone in the group got turned around coming out of the tube station, which is fine, it happens. But that small delay meant we arrived when the market was still moving, vendors calling out, the street still alive in a way the guidebooks don't quite capture. That's when it hit: this walking tour isn't about polishing up the East End's image. It's about the women who lived and worked here, the ones whose stories got buried under the bigger, louder narratives. The guide started by pointing out the streets where working women operated, where they lived, where they survived, and then she told us about the five women killed by Jack the Ripper, not as victims in a true-crime story, but as people with names, trades, families.

From Spitalfields we moved through Brick Lane, past the street art and the curry houses, but the guide kept pulling us back to what was underneath: the Jewish women who worked in the garment factories, the Irish women who came here with nothing, the sex workers who had no choice. The East End walking tour doesn't shy away from that. We stopped at the Tower of London, and instead of the usual crown jewels talk, we learned about the women imprisoned there, the ones who challenged power, the ones who paid for it. The whole thing took a few hours, and by the end you're not just walking through a neighborhood. You're holding onto stories that the mainstream history books left out.

What makes this different from other London history tours is the angle: it's not about famous landmarks first and women second. It's women first, and the landmarks are just the places where their lives happened. The guide is a professional, knows the streets, knows the research, and it shows. Wheelchair accessible, so you're not choosing between access and history. All the fees are included upfront, which means no surprises when you're already halfway through Brick Lane.

What’s included

• Professional guide.
• all fees and taxes.
• walking tour through Spitalfields market, Brick Lane, the Tower of London, and other sites of importance to women's history in the East End.

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller friendlyPublic transport nearby

Operated by Women of London

Is this one for you?Book this if you want London history that isn't the usual royal palaces and famous men: the professional guide and fixed route mean you get the stories that matter without having to research them yourself.

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Top questions

Is the tour wheelchair accessible?

Yes, the tour is wheelchair accessible and suitable for all physical fitness levels.

What's included in the price?

All fees, taxes, and the professional guide are included. You don't pay separately for entry or the guide service.

Does the tour cover Jack the Ripper?

Yes, the tour gives voice to the five women killed by Jack the Ripper and tells their stories as part of the East End's women's history.

Can I bring a pram or stroller?

Yes, infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller.

Is public transportation nearby?

Yes, public transportation options are available near the tour sites, and transportation options are wheelchair accessible.