Discover a city of contrasts that has evolved continuously over the years. 

On this tour we explore the historic centre of the city, with its impressive architecture reflecting Birmingham's position as one of the world's most prosperous cities in the 19th Century.  Packed with stories about how the city grew and some of the fascinating characters who shaped it.

Birmingham

Really great tour with Ian in Birmingham. We saw so much of the Victoria Square and surrounds - with amazing stories and insight to the history. Thank you so much.

Ian is very friendly and knowlegeable about the area, I learn so much from his tours, and would love to do a real tour with him one day!

Another great tour...beautiful buildings.


Great for a Brummie to be able to see Victoria Square after so long (and the new development behind it). Ian certainly knows his onions, well done, Ian.

Ian is a wonderful person and tour guide! His tours are amazing, full of with fun and knowledge.  All of his tours in Oxford, Birmingham or anywhere else make me wanna go and see everything in real life. :) Highly recommend his tous! :)


This was a very enjoyable tour in a city I don't know much about. Tour guide Ian is an absolute pro, giving us a well-planned tour of the Victoria Square area while offering commentary that he knew like that back of his hand. What I particularly appreciated was his skill in managing the chat box, deftly reviewing guest comments without reading each one aloud (so minimal interruptions to the flow of his commentary), and responding to questions and comments relevant to the tour while bypassing the rest. Thanks Ian, I look forward to touring with you again!

Very knowledgeable. Nice long pauses on the buildings and artifacts to allow for beautiful postcard pictures

Wonderful tour.  Thoroughly enjoyed it.  Looking forward to seeing the next tour.

Very informative. Lovely to see it so empty. 

Always a pleasure touring with Ian. Is wealth of knowledge and 

Interesting and loved human stories eg voting, flossie jacuzzi.thank you 

My first trip with Ian and it was very enjoyable. Ian comes across as a very competent and experienced guide. He has a wealth of knowledge and puts this across in a very engaging way. I will definitely be booking more trips with him.

Another interesting and informative tour from one of Virtual trips best guides.


Hi Leslie,

Oh no! I'm sorry to hear that - could you please send us an email at support@virtualtrips.io so we can fix this for you asap? 

For the future we would appreciate if you could send us an email regarding technical problems instead of writing a review, as unfortunately this would impact the guide's ratings and is something they have no control over.


I could not login. I was looking forward to this and it did not recognize my email. I used this email address 

Great tour, so many interesting pieces of history. Thank you Ian for all the information

Enjoyable tour. Ian gave interesting , information about Victoria Square that I was unaware of despite visiting Birmingham over many years .  Thank you 


Good pace. Clearly spoken and lighthearted. Interesting. 

Ian is a good guide and there is more tothe centre than might be imagined. Might show the cathedral sometime as I went a wedding there!

Thank you Ian, your an Amazing Historian! We learnt alot while walking with you and got some amazing Postcards!

Most interesting tour of the centre of Birmingham.  Lots of great information and views of lovely architecture. Thank you so much Ian.

Although I know Birmingham fairly well, I’ve not taken in the detail of what there is to see in Victoria Square. Very interesting, thank you. 

Another very informative trip!
Thank you Ian!

He's knowledgeable and leads a very enjoyable tour.  

Having been brought up in Birmingham in the 50s and left in1967, I remember the city centre with roads and post war building. I went for a nostalgia trip about 4 years ago so have seen most of the developments round Victoria Square (a bit eerie today with no people around!), but it was great to have all the details from Ian. Look forward to some of the other parts of Birmingham too! Many thanks.

So well done!    Really enjoyed and will look forward to more trips with you.   Thank you Ian. 


Really knows his stuff - very informative 

I live nearby. I learned more about Birmingham in 45 minutes than I have ever before and in a very pleasant fashion .Thanks 

Another interesting tour.  Loved the old buildings.  Ian was very informative.  

Beautiful tour! Very interesting and I highly recommend it. The building architecture is fantastic!

Brought back lots of memories of my life in Birmingham. Thanks for a great and very interesting tour Ian. Very clearly spoken.

It was a nice informative tour of the city. Could have gotten into the tour quicker or started at a more scenic place.

Having been on several of Ian's "real" tours, I knew the virtual tour would be just as good and informative. Ian is a first class guide and never disappoints.

Ian is an amazing story teller and sitting at home with my cup of tea whilst listening to his tour was a very british experience. Thanks for a great tour and I am looking forward to my next one.

I didn’t know much about Birmingham but what Ian showed us today made me want to know more.  Ian is a great tour guide, he shared his knowledge in an entertaining manner, to the point and well, I’d love to go on more of his tours to learn more about his neck of the woods.  Thank you!

Loved the tour! So nice to see other parts of England. Loved the history and your humor.

 Ian did a brilliant job. I know the city well and he told me so much I did not know in a very effective way.  It was good to see he got a very large audience and he managed the comments very well. The only thing he missed was not mentionibg the original Birmingham tram track still in situ under the museum arch, but then one cannot mention everything! Brilliant job, well done!

Ian, thanks for a wonderful tour.  I could feel your passion!  Hope to see you again.

Loved the tour. Wish there had been old photos available to show us of what the area and demolished buildings looked like before the Square was "renovated" !

I have been to Birmingham many times, but I literally had no idea that all of those beautiful old buildings were there! Ian was very knowledgeable about all of them, I feel as though I learned a few things.

First time with Ian and it was great.... great camera work ... great information.. beautiful tour. Looking forward to new ones.

Great tour guide and very interesting stroll in Birmingham, thanks

My first trip with him. Lot's of knowledge to share.

Very knowledgeable tour guide who gives you great photo shots as well. 

very thorough and interesting tour of Birmingham

Ian was good and very knowledgeable, making it an interesting tour.

I’ve been to Birmingham many times, but I still learned some interesting information from Ian. He was also very good with the camera

Hi Ian. Many thanks for that awesome trip.  I enjoyed the information you gave. The fountain is so beautiful I'm really impressed and hope to see Birmingham 
in real life one day. Unfortunately in some moments the audio and the video were disturbed, but I guess it's not on you. I'm looking forward to following your next tour tomorrow. Please say hello to Sally-Jayne.
Bye, Nadia from Trentino

Excellent trip. I am a Brummie and thought I knew but you showed me things I didn't know. Please do more trips. Coming to the jewelry quarter tomorrow.

Great tour Ian. You are very knowledgeable and passionate. Never been to Birmingham but feels like I’m there. Thank you. 

First time with Ian and Birmingham, both enjoyed.   Looking forward to spending more time with both.

Thoroughly enjoyed the wander in Victoria Square and its environs. Reckon I know Brum pretty well but picked up some new interesting facts. Nice one, Ian. Many thanks.

I have never been to Birmingham. So it was interesting to see how the city looked like .

Great tour! Very professional, I learned a lot. Perfect multitasking, too, Ian :-)

Knowledgeable and enthusiastic. Good tour. Looking forward to more with Ian.

Very good photography. Lots of information 

I have lived near to Brum for 40 years yet I had never seen what Ian showed us, nor knew the background to many of the buildings. “The Floozie in the Jacuzzi” was a great talking point, in fact Ian hardly stopped talking as he had so much to tell us yet at the same time was replying to our questions. He was so professional and interesting that I have now booked on his other tours. Thank you, Ian.

Ian was extremely professional. Very knowledgeable and enjoyable tour.

Made me want to find out more about Birmingham.

I enjoyed this interesting tour of an unknown place for me, led by a friendly and knowledgeable guide. Thank you very much, Ian.

Felt really sorry for Ian, he had one rather horrible lady making stupid comments.  The tour was interesting .

Great tour. Ian is very knowledgeable. 
Thank you. 

A great first tour Ian.  Such a shame that at the start you had the negative comment from Annie S.  I believe what Virtual Trips and Tour Guides have created is a marvellous idea with most of us stuck at home in Lockdown.  At least it has helped us to visit some beautiful and interesting places from our sofas. Ian you gave us plenty of information and postcard opportunities during the tour.  Well done 👍🏻 

A really interesting tour, well planned and very professional

The tour of Birmingham Square was wonderful, thank you Ian for a very informative tour. Looking forward to your next one!

A most interesting and informative tour. 

Very good trip, very knowledgeable and passionate about Birmingham. Thank you for a very good presentation and I look forward to your next trip.

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The Centre of Birmingham: Victoria Square

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