The Royal Opera House, London — Visitor Guide & Things to Do Nearby

The Royal Opera House in Covent Garden is one of the world's most important performing arts venues, home to both the Royal Opera and the Royal Ballet. The current building is the third theatre on this site, and it has been hosting performances since 1858.

The first theatre here opened in 1732, and the site has seen two devastating fires. The first, in 1808, destroyed the original building. Its replacement burned down in 1856 after a masked ball. The current structure, designed by Edward Middleton Barry, opened in 1858 and has been expanded and renovated several times since, most recently in the 1990s.

The auditorium seats 2,256 and is famous for its horseshoe shape and gilded interior. The building also has a claim to a theatrical first: the first indoor use of limelight in a British theatre happened here in 1837, giving us the phrase "in the limelight."

Today, the Royal Opera House stages more than 300 performances a year across opera, ballet, and orchestral music. Backstage tours are available and take you through the costume workshops, the scenery construction areas, and the auditorium itself.

Even if you don't see a performance, the public areas of the building, including the Amphitheatre bar terrace with views over Covent Garden, are free to visit. If you're exploring London on a Questo quest, the Royal Opera House anchors a neighbourhood that's been entertaining Londoners for nearly 300 years.