A great way to explore this historic town is by following the "Historic St. George Town" walking tour.

The Town of St. George--King's Square, also called Market Square and King's Parade, is the center of life in St. George. It holds the colorful White Horse Tavern, where you may want to stop for a drink after your tour of the town.

The street names in St. George evoke its history. Petticoat Lane (sometimes called Silk Alley) reputedly got its name when two newly emancipated slaves paraded up and down the lane rustling their colorful new silk petticoats. Barber's Lane is also named for a former slave. It honors Joseph Hayne Rainey, a freedman from the Carolinas who fled to Bermuda during the Civil War aboard a blockade-runner and became a barber. After the war, he returned to the United States and was elected to Congress, becoming the first black member of the House of Representatives during Reconstruction.

The St. George branch of the Visitors Service Bureau is on King's Square (tel. 441/297-1642); it's open Monday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm. Here you can get a map and other information before setting out to explore. The bureau is opposite the Town Hall.

If you're really pressed for time, don't worry that you're missing out if you skip interior visits to the sights. The entire town of St. George, with its quaint streets and old buildings, is the attraction, not just one particular monument. If you have time to visit only one attraction's interior, make it St. Peter's Church. Otherwise, just wander around, do a little shopping, and soak in the atmosphere.

St. George: A World Heritage Site--Historic St. George and its related fortifications are now a World Heritage Site designated by UNESCO. The architecturally rich, 400-year-old town joins such select sites as the Great Wall of China, Statue of Liberty, Taj Mahal, and the historic center of Florence.

As the oldest continuously inhabited town of English origin in the Western Hemisphere, the town and its surrounding buildings, monuments, and structures illustrate the residents' lifestyles through the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. Historic St. George remains in authentic condition, featuring unique and diverse examples of Bermudian architecture spanning the past 4 centuries. The various forts of St. George are like a textbook illustrating British artillery and the changing styles of fort architecture from 1612 to 1956.