London - Sights around London Travel Guides | London | Sub Regions | London - Sights around London

One of the best things about the capital is the wealth of worthwhile destinations just a boat trip or train ride away. A small selection of those close to the city are mentioned here, though even medieval York in the north of England can be reached in a couple of hours on the train. To the southwest, up the river Thames, a visit to Kew or Richmond will require a whole day, but with fine weather the two-hour riverboat or half-hour train journey will be well rewarded. The varying seasonal delights of the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew are world famous and the town of Richmond with its tree-lined riverside walk, views from the hill and rolling deer park is one of the most 'arcadian' places near the metropolis. Further up river, Hampton Court is the most beautiful of the Royal palaces, best seen at sunset, when its mellow red Tudor brick glows with warmth and the riverside gardens take on an other-worldly quality. It set the standard for grand places along the river like Ham House and Marble Hill House. And then further upstream stands Windsor Castle, a proper castle and still very much a Royal residence, always heaving with tourists in summer.

Gallery Rd, Dulwich, T 020-8693 5254, http://www.dulwichpicture gallery.org.uk. Tue-Fri 1000-1700, Sat, Sun 1100-1700. Adult £4, children free. Train from Victoria to West Dulwich then 10 min walk.

Claiming to be the first purpose-built public art gallery in the world, specially designed by Sir John Soane and opened to the public in 1817, this neo-classical temple to Old Masters has been given a classy face-lift courtesy of super-fashionable architect Rick Mather. It stands in peaceful gardens next to the house of Edward Alleyn, Christopher Marlowe’s flamboyant manager, on the site of the original Dulwich College (relocated in the 19th century to much grander premises nearby). Inside, beneath elegant arches and restored roof lanterns, and above some rare antique furniture, hangs a small treasury of English, Italian, Spanish, French and Dutch paintings from the 17th and 18th centuries – by the likes of Gainsborough, Rembrandt, Van Dyck, Canaletto and Watteau.

T 020-8940 1950. Apr-Oct, Mon-Wed, Sat, Sun 1300-1700. Adult £5.

Maybe because of its slightly disjointed position away from the rest of Richmond’s box of delights, but a lovely riverside walk away across Petersham meadows, Ham House is often overlooked by visitors to the area. It’s a shame really as it’s one of the most appealing of the local estates, with original 17th-century artwork (including Van Dyck) and furniture, the ornate extravagance of the Great Staircase, and an enchanting garden with a tearoom in the old Orangerie.

T 020-8781 9500, http://www.hrp.org.uk. Recorded information T 0870- 7527777. Nov-Easter Mon 1015-1630, Tue-Sun 0930-1630 (last admission 1545); Easter-Oct Mon 1015-1800, Tue-Sun 0930- 1800 (last admission 1715). Adult £11.50, £7.50 under-16s, under 5s free, concessions £8.50. Privy Garden only £2, £1.50 under-16s. Maze only £2.50, £1.50 under-16s. Self-service cafeteria in the grounds and coffee shop in the Palace. The Palace is on the A308, well signposted from all the major local roads. Trains from Waterloo to Hampton Court take 30 mins or take a riverboat from Westminster, T 020-7930 2062.

Like the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace is run by Historic Royal Palaces and bears some of that company’s hallmarks: lively costumed tours, clarity in the signposting, and division into different themed areas of interest. Unlike the Tower though, the history of the Palace and its presentation to the public focuses mainly on two particular reigns: Henry VIII (1509-1547) and his many wives, and William and Mary (1689-1702) who, until Mary’s death in 1694, were unique in sharing the monarchy. What particularly marks it out as a visitor attraction is the variety of periods of history on display, from the late-medieval architecture of Henry VIII’s court to the Georgian splendour of the Cumberland Suite. Six different routes around the interior take in Henry VIII’s State Apartments, the Tudor Kitchens, the Wolsey Rooms and Renaissance Picture Gallery, the King’s Apartments (William’s), the Queen’s State Apartments (Mary’s) and the Georgian Rooms (decorated by George II – 1727-1760 – the last monarch to use the Palace).

Richmond Rd, Twickenham, T 020-8892 5115. Apr-Oct, Wed-Sun 1000-1800. Adult £3.70. The train from Waterloo to St Margaret’s station takes 30 mins.

North of the river, on Richmond Road in Twickenham, another rare survivor of the string of grand villas which once lined the Thames, easily reached by the foot ferry from near Ham House, Marble Hill House was built in the 1720s for Henrietta Howard, mistress of George II. Regally decorated and perfectly proportioned, this handsome Palladian mansion, refreshing in its authenticity, also possesses examples of early Georgian painting and furniture.

T 020-8940 1171, http://www.kew.org.uk. Daily Feb-Oct 0930-1800, last admission 1730; Nov-Jan 0930-1615, last admission 1545. Adult £7.50, concessions £5.50, under 16s free. M Kew Gardens on the Richmond branch of the District line.

In an area rich in parkland, gorgeous scenery, antique architecture and oodles of stereotypical English charm – somewhat disturbed by the airliners roaring overhead into Heathrow every two minutes – are the Royal Botanical Gardens (Kew Gardens for short). Originally founded in 1731 as a pleasure garden in the grounds of what became Kew Palace by Prince Frederick, the ill-fated heir to George II, Kew has evolved into a 300-acre site containing more than 33,000 species grown in plantations, borders and glasshouses and is a world-renowned centre for horticultural research.

Richmond is on the Richmond branch of the District line.

Europe’s largest city park and a former Royal hunting ground dating from the 13th century, Richmond Park is a popular attraction due largely to its freely roaming deer and the panorama over Surrey, the river and London (especially from King Henry VIII’s Mound, the highest point in the park).

Queen Elizabeth’s Walk, Barnes, T 020-8409 4400, http://www.wwt.org.uk. Daily summer 0930-1800 (last admission 1700), winter 0930-1700 (last admission 1600). Admission £6.75, under-16s £4. Can be reached on the Duck Bus from Hammersmith tube.

From Putney Bridge, a walk west on the south bank for about a mile along the Embankment, past Putney Boat House and the spooky old Harrods repository looking across the river to Bishop’s Park, leads to the Wetland Centre on Queen Elizabeth’s Walk. Converted from four Victorian waterworks reservoirs, the reed- filled ponds seem surprisingly natural. After a look round the Discovery centre, with its AV displays on wetland habitats, you can stroll around the perimeter of the 105-acre site, viewing the entire area and the rare waterbirds from three-storey hides and also via hidden cameras dotted about the birds’ feeding grounds.

T 020-7321 2233, http://www.the-royal-collection.org.uk (24-hr information T 01753-831118). Mar-Oct daily 0945-1715 (last admission 1600); Nov-Feb daily 0945-1615 (last admission 1500). Semi-State Rooms also open Oct-Mar only. State Rooms usually closed for one week mid- to late-Jun and occasionally at other times. Adult £11.50 (£6 when State Rooms closed), over-60s £9.50 (£5), under-17s £6 (£3.00), under-5s free. Guided tours of the restored areas not on the main public route including the medieval Undercroft and Great Kitchen. One tour each morning and afternoon on Tue and Wed Oct-Mar only. Savill Garden, Wick Lane, Englefield Green, Egham, Surrey T 01753-847518, http://www.savillgarden.co.uk. Daily Mar-Oct 1000-1800, Nov-Feb 1000-1600. Apr-May £5, Jun-Oct £4, Nov-Mar £3 (concessions 50p less).

Windsor Castle is hard to miss. Walk uphill anywhere in the town and you’ll find yourself beneath its walls. It was built as part of a circle of Norman control around London. Unlike the other castles – Rochester, Tonbridge, Reigate, Berkhampstead, Ongar, Hertford and Guildford, all roughly equidistant from the Tower of London – it has survived intact and been much extended over the centuries. Today, the Royal control extends to banning dogs, radios, mobile phones, bicycles or alcohol from the castle precincts. Founded on a strategic sight affording far-reaching views by William the Conqueror within a day’s march of the Tower of London, it ensured the dominance of the invading monarch over the western approaches to the city. The Queen still lives here most of the year. The public are admitted throughout the year (except on state occasions, phone first), to the State Apartments, including Charles II’s apartments and the Waterloo Chamber, decorated with paintings from the Royal Collection by van Dyck, Holbein, Rubens and Rembrandt and some very fine furniture; the castles’ precincts and Henry VIII’s gorgeous Gothic St George’s Chapel, where 10 sovereigns are buried (and where Edward and Sophie tied the knot). Highlight of the State Apartments is St George’s Hall, fully restored after the fire in 1992, where the Queen holds banquets and receptions. From April to June, the Changing of the Guard occurs here at 1100 Monday to Saturday. From July to March, the ceremony takes place on alternate days. The best vantage points are the Lower Ward of the Castle or outside on Windsor High Street. During summer, the Semi State rooms are also open, featuring some of the Castle’s most splendid interiors. One very popular curiosity is Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House, the most famous of its kind in the world, a complete palace built to a scale of 1 in 12 by at least 1000 master craftsmen in the 1920s. All the little place’s fixtures and fittings are in full working order, including the bathrooms, lifts and electricity supply South of the Castle stretches the wide expanse of the Great Park, most easily reached from town via the fine Georgian street Park St. Look out for the large and noisy flock of incongruous green parrots at the top of the Long Walk, which runs dead straight south for three miles towards a distant statue of George III on horseback. In the far eastern corner of the park, The Savill Garden is a woodland garden popular with recent monarchs, created in the 30s, and unusual for being open all year.

Travel Guides | London | Sub Regions | London - Sights around London
		Flights Cheap flights to any destination worldwide click here		Car Rental Compare prices for worldwide car rental click here		Hotels Lowest prices on over 60,000 hotels worldwide click here		Travel Insurance Compare Travel Insurance prices click here