If you are looking for a perfect getaway from London, Kew Gardens is a great choice! We’ve created a great guide for your one day in Kew Gardens that includes things to do, how to get there and what to budget.
The Royal Botanic Gardens of Kew are a top tourist attraction outside of London and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. These beautiful grounds are manicured to perfection and the indoor collections are beautifully curated. These are some of the largest botanical gardens in the world and are a fun way to spend a day.
When to Visit
The gardens are open from 10 AM-6 PM daily. One day in Kew Gardens is well worth it year round as they do a great job creating exhibits that fit the seasons. However, do try to go during nice weather as a lot of the gardens are outside and rain could easily ruin some of the fun.
Getting There and Around
Kew Gardens is located about an hour southwest of London by public transit. If you have a car you can drive. However, the ride via public transit is easy and inexpensive. If you travel via the Underground, the entrance to the gardens is a short 500 m walk from the station. Buses and trains also run close to Kew but typically include more transfers.
What to Budget
Admission to Kew Gardens is 17.50 for adults.
If you drive, the car park does charge based on time. If you choose to take the tube to Kew Gardens station, your transportation will cost about 10 pounds, depending on where you are starting from.
Safety
As with any trip that takes public transit, be careful of your belongings while traveling. Plan your transit options before hand so that you don’t wind up stranded and make sure to hang on to your belongings while traveling.
What to Do
If you travel to Kew via the Underground (technically Overground here), you’ll enter the gardens at Victoria Gate. We choose to follow the main circular route around the gardens in a counter clockwise direction.
Lion Gate Area
Our first stop was the Ruined Arch, which entertained us. This mock arch, was built ruined so that eighteenth century visitors to Kew could get a sense of being among Roman ruins.
Next, we visited the Japanese Gateway and the Great Pagoda. The beautiful gardens are diligently maintained and peaceful. However, the real treat is climbing to the top of the Great Pagoda to get a panoramic view of the London landscape.
Then, we cut into the central area of the gardens to explore the Temperate House, one of Kew’s two main greenhouses. This greenhouse was closed for renovation when we visited. This greenhouse is home to numerous species of plants from around the world and is now open.
Since we couldn’t explore the interior of the Temperate House, we made due with the beautiful Mediterranean Garden and King William’s Temple. These beautiful gardens are reminiscent of a Grecian island and will whisk you away with their unique smells and sounds.
Next, we explored the Treetop Walkway. This fun, short walk takes you up to walk amongst the tops of the trees allowing you to have a different perspective of the gardens.
Next, we visited Queen Charlotte’s Cottage. The cottage wasn’t open when we visited, but we enjoyed walking the grounds around them.
Elizabeth Gate Area
We then took a leisurely stroll to the other side of the gardens and took in the views of Kew Palace, visit Ginkgo Lane and the Secluded Garden.
Then, we visited the Hive. By this time, the Hive was buzzing with activity (pun intended), being one of the main attractions of Kew. This interactive art installation allows you to travel inside the metal hive and hear the sounds of a real live beehive. We didn’t realized how truly cool this active sculpture is and have not one photo of it to show. We recommend visiting it in the early morning or later afternoon as midday was very busy.
Victoria Gate Area
Next, we visited the Rock Garden, for our family rock guy. This garden is beautiful as it homes plants from mountainous regions amid the cutting rocks and the tranquil waterfalls. This is a lovely relaxing area of Kew Gardens.
Then we did a short walk through the Princess of Wales Conservatory to view the many different climates on showcase. This was one of my favorite exhibits at Kew as it presented plants from a variety of different climates. It was neat to walk from dessert to aquatic plants all within one greenhouse.
Then we headed to the rose garden that sits behind the palm house and wondered at all the different colors and species of roses that Kew has to offer.
Lastly, we visited the Palm house, the second of Kew’s famous greenhouses. I like to save the best for last and this was no exception. As a lover of rainforests, this was one of my favorite exhibits. This steamy hot greenhouse houses tropical plants from throughout the world. Most people will never see the plants housed here in the wild, some of which are even extinct. Not only is the inside of the Palm House a wonder, but this is the first greenhouse of this size ever built. The architecture of the building is a great compliment to the beautiful species growing inside.
Want to Adjust the Itinerary
We weren’t able to see all that the garden have to offer in our one day in Kew Gardens. However, we were also moving at a pretty slow pace and admittedly all the plants started looking alike after lunch. However, there is so much more to Kew than we could write about in one post and we think that if you’re really interested in the plants, you could explore all of the gardens in one day. Our itinerary above is a good starting point for people just looking to have a pleasurable relaxing day in Kew and we think we hit all the best of the exhibits for this type of visit.
If you have less than one day in Kew Gardens, it is still a great option for a day trip from London. We’d recommend staying along the eastern path in the gardens. This is where a majority of the attractions in Kew Gardens sit. While we enjoyed the western section of the gardens as they are most spread out and less populated, there definitely weren’t as many well labeled and curated collections.
While grabbing lunch in one of Kew’s restaurants is most convenient for your day, we’d highly recommend picking up your lunch ahead of time in one of the small shops between the gardens and the station. Most shops in this area will pack you carry out and have a smaller price tag than the restaurants in the gardens.
