 Historically , the Bedford Estate defined the boundary of Covent Garden , with Drury Lane to the east , the Strand to the south , St. Martin 's Lane to the west , and Long Acre to the north . However , over time the area regarded as part of Covent Garden has expanded northwards past Long Acre to High Holborn , and since 1971 , with the creation of the Covent Garden Conservation Area which incorporated part of the area between St. Martin 's Lane and Charing Cross Road , Charing Cross Road has sometimes been taken as its western boundary . Long Acre is the main thoroughfare , running north @-@ east from St Martin 's Lane to Drury Lane . Shelton Street , running parallel to the north of Long Acre , marks the London borough boundary between Camden and Westminster . 
