A London sightseeing company has launched a multi-sensory bus tour designed to take schoolchildren back to circa 15th century, where they’ll learn about the Black Death, Shakespeare and the gunpowder plot.

The interactive bus tour, operated by Golden Tours, features costumed character guides and a variety of sights, sounds and smells used to recreate life in the city hundreds of years ago. Children will use different stimuli to learn about what people ate, drank and wore.

The experience is designed for school-age children, bringing to life the “gory details” of the time, including what the skin of a plague victim would have been like. The tour passes London’s great landmarks and attractions, including Shakespeare’s Globe, Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament and St Paul’s Cathedral.

The program was devised in partnership with Shakespeare Birthplace Trust and educational professionals and the attraction-style experience has been recognised by the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom.

“Shakespeare’s London is an inspiring way for children to engage with Shakespeare outside of the classroom walls and is certainly the closest thing to time travel that London has to offer,” said Mikesh Palan, managing director at Golden Tours.