Kew is well worth a half-day or more for its major glasshouses, historic landscape and exceptional plant collections; it works best if you give it 4–5 hours and treat it as a garden walk rather than a quick London sight.
Buy online, or choose £10 Tuesday
Ordinary daytime tickets do not require advance booking and are cheaper online (£25 adult peak or £17 off-peak); for visits between 8 September and 29 December 2026, book the official £10 Tuesday admission for the best independent-visitor value.
MoreBook Christmas and Halloween promptly
Christmas at Kew and Halloween at Kew are separately ticketed timed evening trails, do not include daytime admission, and popular slots can sell out—buy only through Kew’s official event ticket page.
MoreUse Victoria Gate from Kew station
Take the District or Mildmay line to Kew Gardens station, then walk about 10 minutes to Victoria Gate, the most convenient entrance for the Palm House and a first visit.
MoreAllow four to five hours
This is the right first-visit allowance for the Palm House, Temperate House, Princess of Wales Conservatory, galleries, outdoor walking and lunch; note that the Pagoda, Kew Palace, Queen Charlotte’s Cottage and Waterlily House are closed until spring 2027.
More| Monday | 10 AM – 6 PM |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | 10 AM – 6 PM |
| Wednesday | 10 AM – 6 PM |
| Thursday | 10 AM – 6 PM |
| Friday | 10 AM – 6 PM |
| Saturday | 10 AM – 6 PM |
| Sunday | 10 AM – 6 PM |
Hours from Google; check before you go.
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a 320-acre (129-hectare) UNESCO World Heritage botanical garden on the Thames in southwest London. Founded by Princess Augusta in 1759 and made a national botanic garden in 1840, it is both a major public garden and a working scientific institution for plant classification, conservation, horticulture and education. Its 50,000-plus living plants, Victorian Palm and Temperate Houses, Princess of Wales Conservatory, arboretum, Treetop Walkway and historic landscape are the visitor-facing part of globally important living collections and biodiversity research.
This is a half-day-to-full-day destination rather than simply a pleasant London park: its monumental glasshouses, mature trees, landscape design and botanical-art collections combine spectacle with real scientific purpose. It particularly suits garden lovers, photographers, architecture fans, families and anyone wanting a spacious break from central London; skip or shorten it if you dislike long walks, have only a tightly packed weekend, or expect peak flower displays in midwinter. In autumn and winter 2026–27, several headline sights—including the Pagoda, Kew Palace, Queen Charlotte’s Cottage and Waterlily House—are closed until spring 2027.
Before you go
No. Ordinary daytime admission can be bought online or at any gate, and Kew says advance booking is not required. Buy online before travelling for the lower online price; if online allocation is unavailable, buy at the gate during normal opening hours. Separately ticketed evening events, including Halloween at Kew and Christmas at Kew, do require timed advance tickets.
For the 8 September–29 December 2026 promotion, buy a £10 Tuesday daytime ticket for the specific Tuesday you will visit. Otherwise, buy online rather than at the gate: standard adult daytime admission is £25 online versus £28 at the gate through 31 October 2026, and £17 online versus £20 at the gate from 1 November 2026 to 31 January 2027.
No. Halloween at Kew and Christmas at Kew are separate, timed evening light-trail tickets and do not substitute for daytime Gardens admission. Halloween runs 16 October–1 November 2026; Christmas runs 13 November 2026–3 January 2027. For Christmas, book directly with Kew as soon as your date is fixed, especially for December, rather than using resale listings.
Allow 4–5 hours for a worthwhile first visit: the major glasshouses, a substantial outdoor route, galleries and lunch. Two hours is only enough for three priorities, such as the Palm House, Temperate House and Princess of Wales Conservatory. Make it a full day if you are a keen gardener, photographer, visiting with children, using the Explorer/train, or walking slowly.
Use Victoria Gate (TW9 3JR) for a first visit by Tube or Overground: it is about 6–8 minutes' walk from Kew Gardens station and convenient for the Palm House and central gardens. Use Elizabeth Gate (TW9 3AE) if arriving at Kew Bridge station, Kew Pier or by coach. Use Brentford Gate (TW9 3AF) if driving or heading straight to the Children’s Garden; it is by the main car park. Lion Gate is useful from Richmond or for the Temperate House/Pagoda side, but is weekends only from 2 November 2026 to 29 January 2027.
Take the District line Richmond branch or Mildmay line to Kew Gardens station, then walk about 500 m (6–8 minutes) to Victoria Gate. From Waterloo, Vauxhall or Clapham Junction, take South Western Railway to Kew Bridge and walk about 800 m (10–12 minutes) over Kew Bridge to Elizabeth Gate. If step-free access is important, use Richmond station, which has lifts and level access, then take bus 65 toward Ealing Broadway for Lion or Victoria Gate.