The area of Pall Mall stretches from St. James’s Palace to the west, all the way to Trafalgar Square and Charing Cross to the east. The streets facing Pall Mall consists of a variety of Regency-era buildings, while those facing The Mall are lined with trees, which the Carlton House Terrace sits behind. The terrace is made up of elegant townhouses designed in the Regency era by John Nash, which today holds institutions such as the Institute of Contemporary Arts, The Royal Society and The Royal Academy of Engineering, amongst others. Behind the street frontages, the area is characterised by the large Marlborough House and its Gardens, which dominate the western portion of the area. To the west, Waterloo Gardens are another prominent feature. There is no north-south road connection between Pall Mall and The Mall; the main foot connection is through the stairs south of Waterloo Place, where the Duke of York Column is located. There are some other large buildings set behind the main street frontages as well, mainly holding large companies.

Owing to the many gentlemen’s clubs in the area, its proximity to St. James’s and Buckingham Palace, and its history of government institutions, the area still retains a sense of aristocracy and grandeur today, particularly as the area has not seen the proliferation of restaurants that its northern neighbours have. Pall Mall’s name is derived from ‘pall-mall’, a precursor to croquet which was played in the area. Built during Charles II’s reign, it was even then filled with fashionable houses, and was known for high-class shopping in the 18th century. During the 19th century the neighbourhood’s famed gentlemen’s clubs began to emerge. The street has been host to many institutions in the past, including the War Office from 1855 to 1906, so much so that the street’s name became synonymous with the institution, much like Whitehall refers to government today. Then-Princess Elizabeth referenced Pall Mall in her diary during VE Day.

The Oxford and Cambridge, Reform, Athenaeum, Royal Automobile and Travellers’ Clubs have survived up to the 21st century, located in Pall Mall. Of those, only the latter has not accepted women into their ranks, but the category for admissions for all people still remain highly exclusive for the rest.

Apart from being extremely expensive, the area sees considerable traffic. Besides that, vehicular traffic cannot easily go from The Mall up to Pall Mall and vice versa. This inevitably channels traffic to chokepoints, particularly around the Charing Cross roundabout.

Admiralty Arch is located to the end of The Mall, just before the Charing Cross roundabout. Formerly a government office, the grand Edwardian building is now being transformed into a luxury hotel, with upmarket apartments and another private members’ club. There will also be restaurant bars, one of which will stretch across the first bridging floor (never before open to the public). That said, the project has suffered many delays. It was initially supposed to open in 2020 but works were completed in time and the future of the project was at one point at risk as well. Works are still luckily underway and in 2022 the project was been acquired by the billionaire Reuben brothers, who were named as the third richest family in the UK in the Sunday Times Rich List of the same year. The landmark hotel is expected to open and become operational in 2023.