What are the options to visit Hampton Court? <BR>What about boat trip to Hampton Court Palace from Westminster Pier? Is it good way to see London? How long does it take to get there by boat vs train? Would you do it at morning or afternoon. <BR>Thanks, <BR>Dmitry

I was at Hampton Court last fall and it's beautiful. I think it takes about 30-40 mins. by train. There's an electronic timetable at www.railtrack.co.uk for train times. Be sure to ask the guides about ghost sightings in the Palace! If you're a fan of English History, read up on Henry VIII before your visit. The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir is great.

I would not take the boat as you will spend all day getting to and from London. If you want a boat ride take one to Greenwich. For Hampton Court take the train. <BR>

I took the boat ride to Hampton Court when I was there about 2 years ago, because I really wanted to arrive the same way Henry VIII did. But we were confused about how long it would take. There is only 1 or 2 rides per day, about 11AM, depending on the tide and it does take 3-4 hours, again depending on the tide. The tides were very low when we went, so we left at 10:30, and arrived around 2:30. It did not leave enough time to see the palace. Also the seats on the boat were very uncomfortable. I would NEVER recommend this. It was boring and uncomfortable. Take the train! Give yourself plenty of time at the castle, you could easily spend the whole day there if you wanted to. There are a number of guided tours through different wings, and some self-guided and tape tours too. Definitely visit the Tudor kitchens, I thought this was the most interesting part. And give yourself some time to spend in the gardens. By the way, in September the house closed at 5, the gardens were open till 7. But its good to know that the hedge maze closes with the house. We missed it, because we thought we could go after we finished touring in the palace.

Beth, I shoulda asked this Forum first, but it's not too late to change the plans. Had thought to take the boat back from Hampton Court with the girls as a special surprise; one heck of a surprise. I shall ixnay the oatbay and take the train back. Hey, 3 more hours to spend in a pub! Thanks for the info.

Elvira, glad I could save you the trip. I wish I'd known about this forum when I was planning that trip, it might have saved me several annoyances. That boat ride definitely went into my "most disappointing experiences" file. Of course, I should have known. I've seen "A Man for All Seasons" about 8 times, and Sir Thomas Moore would leave London late at night for his home near Hampton Court and arrive at dawn. And the riverboats they use today really only go moderately faster than the muscle powered ones they used then

Hi Dmitry, <BR> I was there this spring. I took the tube and then went the rest of the way by bus. Hampton court is a great place to visit and you can easily spend a day there. I would leave in the morning so you can get there when it opens. The crowds can be rather thick if you wait till later. If you get a chance, catch lunch at the tearoom. I had a great meal there and it's not every day you get to say that you had lunch at Hampton Court. Have a great time! <BR>

I went to HC in March. I would recommend going on your own rather than with any tour company. We took the district line (green) to Richmond and then the public bus (R68 maybe? I can't remember). It was very simple, on both the train and bus you get off at the end of the line. HC costs L16, or about $10. It is very worth it. There is a guided tour for about 30 minutes which you have to reserve at the information desk. There is also an excellent audio tour on a terrific CD headset that has 3 different tours for three different parts of the palace. Each one is good but I enjoyed the Tudor Kitchens the most. For each tour, you can listen to the main tour and get more information about certain items by pressing the button for that option. Therefore, the tours can take the minimum time or a lot longer and you can get as much or as little info as you want. The gardens are also beautiful and I would leave a couple hours for them alone. However, I was extrememly disappointed by the maze. All of this is included for the one admission fee of L16. It was very worth it and satisfying, unlike Windsor Castle. While you didn't mention going on an organized tour, I know many tours do advertise the boat trip. IMO, it's not worth taking a tour when you can easily and informatively do it on your own for very little money. I would go in the morning. That way you know you have the whole day. Richmond is also a quaint town and worth a look before you take the train back to London.

My wife, son, and I went to Hampton Court via tube and bus as described above. We had a good time, particularly on the bus, where the locals were very chatty and helpful. I think riding along talking with people was about as much fun as the actual target of our trip. We had no trouble in knowing when to get off the bus because several people were getting off at the same stop and made sure we were alerted in advance. Great fun. <BR>

We were at Hampton Court in late April and took a train (about 30 min.) from Waterloo station. The train stops 3 or 4 times if I remember correctly but it was no big deal, it was a fast trip. If you buy your ticket at Waterloo the agent will ask if you want to buy your Hampton Court admission ticket at the same time...you save a pound or two doing it that way. The train station at Hampton Court is just over the bridge from the Palace. I too wanted to go by boat but it was just too time consuming. As someone else said, take a boat to Greenwich, it's only a little over a hour and quite pleasant and plan on spending time in Greenwich Park as well --- lovely park. <BR> <BR>You need to allow the better part of the day for Hampton Court if you want to do it right and enjoy it as well. The gardens were simply fantastic in April, the tulips, etc. were just out of this world. There are two places to eat within the Palace area if memory serves me right, there are also a number of places in town including a Pizza Hut right by the bridge and train station. I'm no fan of Pizza Hut but if you have kids with you (you didn't say) it might be someplace they would want to eat at. We went down on the 10 a.m. train and stayed till about 4 p.m. or so. It's a really beautiful place, made even more enjoyable in that there were not many tourists there that day (a Friday) and we had much of it to ourselves!!! You can't beat that!

There is also the option of actually staying at one of two cottages on the Hampton Court Palace grounds. During the summer I believe you have to book for a week, winter short stays ok. One of the cottages has a private garden, and large windows where you can watch the tourists arrive.