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Hampton Court Palace Review

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Hampton Court Palace

Address: Hampton Court Palace, East Molesley, Surrey, KT8 9AU
Phone: 0844/482-7777
www.hrp.org.uk/hamptoncourtpalace

Category: Castles/Palaces
Location: The Thames Upstream

Write a review | Avg. member rating: 5.0/5

Fodor's Review:

The first buildings of Hampton Court belonged to a religious order founded in the 11th century and were expanded over the years by its many subsequent residents, none more important than Henry VIII and his six wives. Henry spent a king's ransom (today's equivalent of £18 million or $27.5 million) expanding and refurbishing the palace. Today the royal palace that sits beside the slow-moving Thames gives you two palaces for the price of one: The magnificent Tudor redbrick mansion that was begun in 1514 by Cardinal Wolsey to impress the young Henry, and the larger 17th-century baroque offering, for which the graceful south wing was designed by Christopher Wren of St. Paul's fame.

Highlights

If Tudor takes your fancy, wander through the State Apartments,hung with priceless paintings, and on to the wood-beamed magnificence of Henry's Great Hall,lined with tapestries and the mustiness of old, before taking in the strikingly azure ceiling of the Chapel Royal. Topping it all is the Great House of Easement, a lavatory that could sit 28 people at a time.

Feel a chill in the air? Watch out for the ghost of Henry VIII's doomed fifth wife, Catherine Howard, who literally lost her head yet apparently still screams her way along the Haunted Gallery. The latter-day baroque transformers of the palace, William and Mary, maintained beautiful King's and Queen's Apartments,Georgian Rooms,and fine collections of porcelain.

Don't miss the world's most famous maze, its ½ mi of pathways among clipped hedgerows still fiendish to negotiate. There's a trick, but we won't give it away here: it's much more fun to go and lose yourself.

Tips

Avoid the queue and save by buying your tickets online.

In a group? Save nearly £10 on admission with a £37 family ticket (two adults, three children).

Choose which parts of the palace to explore based on a number of self-guided audio walking tours.

In summer months, consider arriving in style by riverboat.

Come Christmastime, there's ice skating on a rink before the West Front of the palace—an unmissable mixture of pleasantry and pageantry.

Special programs, such as cooking demonstrations in the cavernous Tudor kitchens, also make history fun for young royal-watchers.

Cost: £13.30
Open: Apr.-Oct., daily 10-6 (last ticket sold at 5); Nov.-Mar., daily 10-4:30 (last ticket sold at 3:30); check Web site before visiting
Tube: Richmond, then Bus R68; National Rail, South West: Hampton Court Station, 35 mins from Waterloo

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Member Reviews and Ratings

Reviewed by trvlgirlmq from Hendersonville, TN on 11/2/09
Visiting Hampton Court was a highlight of our family trip to London. We went on a beautiful day and the gardens were in bloom. They have different tours available on the audio guides such as adults or family. We enjoyed the family tours with 2 boys, 11 and 4. The costumed guides were great and soaking in all that history was wonderful. The kids loved the maze although it was a bit easy in my estimation. The cafe on site was nice for lunch and there is a large outdoor eating area. One of the best memories of our visit.