VISIT KEW GARDENS – COMPLETE GUIDE TO VISITING KEW GARDENS 2026
Best time to visit Kew Gardens | Where to buy tickets | Kew Gardens visiting tips
Everything You Need To Know Before Visiting Kew Gardens
Kew Gardens features meadows, glasshouses with tropical plants, a walkway that brings you closer to treetops, galleries with botanical art, and over 50,000 living plants. They were created in 1759 and added to the UNESCO World Heritage list because they show us garden designs from the 18th to the 20th centuries, feature large botanic collections, and have added greatly to the study of plants.
It is a popular attraction, so we recommend booking your tickets online in advance to avoid wasting time at the entrance. Book your Kew Gardens ticket and enjoy a relaxing day in nature!
What to see at Kew Gardens
Temperate House
The Temperate House is the biggest Victorian glasshouse in the world, where you can find many rare plant species.
Princess of Wales Conservatory
The conservatory features ten computer-controlled climate zones with many tropical plants.
Treetop Walkway
Enjoy views among the treetops from 18 m up.
The Hive
The Hive is an installation that shows the inside of a beehive. It is 17 m tall and is set in the middle of a meadow.
Galleries
See more than 800 paintings by Marianne North, who traveled the world solo in the 19th century and painted tropical and exotic plants. You can also visit the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art, the first public gallery in the world dedicated to classic and contemporary botanical art.
Kew Palace
Kew Palace is the smallest royal palace with red walls, where King George III spent his summers in the 18th century, as he preferred living in the country as opposed to the court.
Planning your visit to Kew Gardens
BEST TIME TO VISIT: Any season is a good time to visit for different reasons. In spring, you can enjoy more color as flowers bloom. In summer, the weather is nicer and sunnier. In autumn, you can enjoy the beauty of falling orange, yellow, and red leaves. In winter, when many trees lose their leaves, you can visit the warmer glasshouses and still enjoy a day in nature.
GETTING THERE: There are four entrances to Kew Gardens: the Victoria Gate, the Elizabeth Gate, the Brentford Gate, and the Lion Gate.
By bus: You can take bus no. 65, 110, 237, and 267.
By train: Kew Bridge station is closest to the Gardens. You can catch a South Western Railway train from Waterloo, Vauxhall, or Clapham Junction. This station does not have level access, but Richmond station does. It also has an elevator. From this station, you can take bus no. 65 in the direction of Ealing Broadway, and enter at Lion Gate or Victoria Gate.
By tube: You can take the District Line (the Richmond branch) and the London Overground to the Kew Gardens station. This station does not have level access, but you can ride to the next stop (Richmond) and then ride the tube back to get off at the eastbound platform, which does feature level access.
By car: There are limited spaces available to park your car at the Ferry Lane car park at Brentford Gate. They are paid parking spaces, but if you are a Blue Badge Holder, you can park for free in disabled parking spaces (or other spaces in case they are unavailable). The Herbarium car park opens on the weekends, once the Ferry Lane car park is full. There are 3 parking bays with disabled access, as well as a drop-off area at Elizabeth Gate.
Visit Kew Gardens with one of our best ticket deals!
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Kew Gardens Ticket
Get ready for a day of relaxation among the lush greenery in Kew Gardens. Visit the world's largest Victorian glasshouse, see exotic plants from the rainforest in the Palm House, travel through ten climate zones in the Princess of Wales Conservatory, walk among the treetops on the Treetop Walkway, and more! Your ticket includes a map of the gardens and a seasonal highlights guide.
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Kew Gardens DOs & DON’Ts
DO have a picnic at Kew Gardens
You can bring your own food and have a picnic in the grassy areas. Please note that barbecue and picnic furniture is not allowed.
DON’T remove the plants
Some plants belong to threatened species, so don’t destroy them.
DO enjoy the peace & quiet
Kew Gardens is a perfect place to enjoy some peace in nature. That means not playing music or instruments, so as not to disturb other visitors.
DON’T walk over plants
Avoid stepping on any plants while you are in the botanic gardens.
DO explore more of London
Get your London Pass to gain access to top attractions in London, such as the London Eye, the Tower of London, and Tower Bridge!
DON’T bring large bags or luggage
There are no lockers or cloakrooms at the entrances.
Do you want to experience more than just the Kew Gardens?
London history & nature
Kew Gardens Ticket & Westminster Walking Tour
Visit more than 20 top attractions in London on a walking tour with a local guide! See Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, and more. You can see the Changing of the Guard at certain times. Then, walk around Kew Gardens and see thousands of trees and tropical plants, walk among the treetops on the Treetop Walkway, and have a picnic. You can select a small or private group experience.
Access to 90+ attractions
London Pass
The London Pass offers access to more than 90 London attractions! You can visit the London Eye, the Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Shakespeare's Globe Theater, the London Zoo, football stadiums, and Madame Tussauds, and enjoy a hop-on hop-off bus tour, a cruise on the Thames, a food tour, and more. The pass is valid for 1-10 days, making it perfect for your visit, however long it is.