Visiting Hampton Court Palace from outside London

Seems a shame to come all that way and pay a lot of money and only stay for 3 hours. Plus it sounds exhausting. You wouldn't have time to see all the house and amazing gardens and you need to factor in lunch / tea / sit down time! The tube is no fun in the rush hour either. Would a coach trip be possible? , avoid the faffing changing in London, or maybe a night in a hotel, B and B or travelodge the night before so you can make a proper day of it.

Three hours is nowhere near long enough, Newquay. We visited Hampton Court in October as part of a two night stay in London. We arrived there before 11 and left soon after 4, because we were heading for a meal and a show in town. Even with over 5 hours we were wishing we'd had longer. It's an amazing place and there's just so much to see, especially in good weather when you'll want to have some time in the gardens.

I live very very near Hampton Court, could walk there in about 20 minutes. Hampton Court Station is practically adjacent to the Palace, come out of the station and you are practically on the bridge over the Thames and there it is Hampton Court the other side. 3 hours is not long if you want to take in the gardens as well which are lovely on a sunny day. The palace has more than one aspect to it, the obvious very Tudor part, which includes the kitchens which are worth a visit and set up as they would have operated mid 1500s. This area is obligatory it seems for school parties, I remember my children doing that outing in junior school and I often see school parties filing out when I dive past. The palace was also a residence for William of Orange (late Stuarts) who decamped there, I believe when Queen Mary II his wife died, because he found London dirty. You will see that part of the building was rebuilt during the William and Mary reign. If I remember rightly the Palace has some of his letters exhibited which I found interesting. Sometimes it can be a bit monotonous looking over the state apartment bit and I expect you will want to build in a break for tea and cake etc.

It is doable but expect to be tired and as you say, you will be heading back into London during the rush hour if you leave late afternoon, but against the tide until you reach Waterloo. I hope you enjoy it however long you decide to stay there and have a great day.

Thanks for that everyone. The friend I'm going with is a history buff and won't be interested in the gardens. I shall have to have regular sits so she can wander round (but not far, she's likely to get lost!). I'm really just going to keep her company as she has no one else to go with although I will enjoy seeing it.
Sounds like it will be busy any time then, with school parties term time and tourists (like us!) the rest of the time. Wonder if winter would be best if they're open then?

Even the gardens will be of interest to a history buff, Newquay. I'm no gardener, and I loved them. There's a free tour with a really knowledgeable guide - we had to duck out after 30 minutes due to our schedule, but it was very interesting. There's a massive ancient vine, the largest in the world, planted by Capability Brown. There are horse drawn tram rides too. And we didn't even have time for the maze

Newquay, I'm pretty sure HC is open all year, but no doubt their website would confirm that. The gardens are free until sometime in April I think. Living nearby we often take a wander around them at week-ends on a nice sunny day when the charges don't apply. The outer garden where the maze is, if you fancy getting lost is lovely in Spring carpeted with daffs and from there you can wander through to the formal gardens round the back of the palace and can see the large vine which is housed in a greenhouse that Maggiemaybe referred to above. In any case the palace looks magnificent from the back, as it does from the front. During the Christmas and New Year periods there is a temporary ice rink, not that I'm suggesting you have a go, but it does add to the seasonal atmosphere. Whenever you decide to go do build in some sitting down time for a cup of tea because traipsing around on those hard floors can make the feet ache.

Thanks again. Spoke to the friend today and we have agreed to go later in the year as it's open all year except Christmas time when, we hope, it won't be quite so busy.