Escorts in Westminster: ring the bell by St James's Park, SW1A and SW1P

Westminster is London at its most ceremonial. Whitehall runs past Horse Guards and the government offices, Westminster Abbey stands beside Parliament, and St James's Park stretches west towards Buckingham Palace, the view from the bridge over its lake among the loveliest in the city. Further south the streets turn residential, with the Georgian terraces of Smith Square and Lord North Street tucked behind the Abbey.

In the daytime it belongs to officials and sightseers. After dark it belongs to the few who stay: guests of the riverside hotels, delegates from conferences at the QEII Centre and people who simply like having the great landmarks of London almost to themselves.

The river sets the calendar. Summer evenings bring the pleasure boats past the terraces with their decks strung with lights, and on New Year's Eve the fireworks burst over the water beside the London Eye, a sight the river facing rooms on this side of the Thames see perfectly.

SW1A 2BD on Whitehall Place, bright and grand, with a vast chandelier glittering in its lobby. SW1A 2EJ on Whitehall Court, whose river facing rooms look out towards the London Eye. SW1H 0QW on Caxton Street, set back behind a curved red brick courtyard. SW1H 0BH on Broadway, close to St James's Park station. Across the bridge, SE1 7UT faces the Houses of Parliament from the south bank. Addresses only here, never names.

We name these to help you picture the stop, not because of any arrangement; London Babes has none with any hotel. A companion comes to you as a visitor, and the apartments and private homes of the district are welcomed on the same basis.

Westminster station, with Circle, District and Jubilee line platforms, sits about a minute from Parliament Square, and the Jubilee line runs east beneath the river from there. From Broadway and Caxton Street, St James's Park station and its Circle and District trains are about 4 minutes away. Late at night, the taxi rank by the station and the buses over the bridge keep the district moving.

Send the desk a message on WhatsApp or Telegram naming your companion, your hotel, the time and how long you want her company. After a quick check of your full name and room number, the desk confirms the booking in writing. Overnights, events and travel take a little longer to plan, so a day of notice helps.

In Westminster her knock usually comes an hour or thereabouts after confirmation, and later still when Parliament Square is closed for a march or a state occasion. The desk gives you an honest estimate when it confirms and lets you know once she is on her way. She collects her fare from you in person when she arrives.

Seven o'clock, dinner at The Cinnamon Club in the Old Westminster Library on Great Smith Street, among the bookshelves of a former reading room. Ten, a walk across Parliament Square as Big Ben strikes the hour, then down to the river. Half past ten, along the Embankment with the lights of the South Bank shimmering on the water, over Westminster Bridge and back again for the view. Eleven, a nightcap overlooking the Thames at your hotel.

Booked as a four hour dinner date, that evening costs £1,300. With an early start tomorrow, ninety minutes at £600 or a single hour from £400 may suit better.

Delegates at conferences and events nearby, who have spent the day in rooms full of people and want a relaxed dinner with someone interesting. Visitors staying at the riverside hotels for a few nights of sightseeing. Business visitors who prefer an evening arranged simply, confirmed in writing and kept completely private.

No companion lives inside Westminster itself, but several are very close. Just south, in Pimlico, Lucy goes running along the river in the early morning and can point out the planets over the Thames on a clear night, and Roxi, with glossy black hair, is into boxing fitness, podcasts and surfing. A little further west, in Belgravia, live Lea, Patricia and Violetta.

Every woman on the girls page comes to Westminster on the same fares, with travel included.

Victoria Street runs west to Victoria and its stations. Trafalgar Square at the top of Whitehall opens onto the West End and Covent Garden, and Buckingham Palace Road leads into Belgravia.