Where is Hampton Court? How do I get there and is this trip a full day trip? If not what would you pair with it on that day. Travelling with 2 older children Cathy

Don't you people know how to use a search engine?! Basic info like this is available on any attraction's web site. If you do a search at www.yahoo.com for "Hampton Court Palace," the very first link takes you to the info you seek.<BR><BR>http://www.hrp.org.uk/hcp/indexhcp.htm

Hi Cathy<BR>In addition to the official website mentioned above, most general London guidebooks have a lot of good info on Hampton Court because it is a very popular daytrip.<BR>The maze outdoors in the garden is a lot of fun. The visit take up at least half a day, depending on how you go.<BR>There are bus tours that will get you there and back, and some will combine the trip with, for example, Windsor Castle. My nephews who were aged approx 10 and 8 are history buffs but were not that thrilled with Windsor because they saw it as mostly furniture and pretty rooms. They liked Hampton Court much more because of the maze, and the walking in the gardens offered more outdoor activity.<BR>You can get there by train, and even by boat on your own:<BR>The Westminster Passenger Association phone 207 930 4721<BR>offers riverboat service from Westminster Bridge to Kew, Richmond, and Hampton Court. The trip is available from approximately Easter through October. Trip time varies: about 90 minutes to Kew, 2.5-4 hours to Hampton Court (so note that it's a long trip.)<BR>look at www.citycruises.co.uk and<BR>www.transportforlondon.gov.uk/river<BR><BR>I believe you can also take the Tube part way; Take the District Line to Vauxhall or Wimbledon to pick up the overland train to Hampton Court Station. Alternatively, take the District Line to Richmond, then the R68 bus from Richmond station direct to the palace.<BR>Trains run twice an hour direct from London Waterloo to Hampton Court Station. The journey time is only about 30 minutes and the palace is a 2-minute walk from the station.<BR>Finally, Green Line buses (coaches): depart from terminal behind Victoria Station for the 45 minute ride.<BR><BR>

Thanks for your advice but some of my questions were not answered on my search. Could you do a whole day at Hampton Court Palace or could you pair it with another site? Also if I take the train which seeems the quickest from Waterloo, would it be covered in the 1 and 2 zone pass? How about the all zone pass? And if I were doing Windsor and Hampton on different days should i opt for the all zone pass. Greenwich also on a different day.Would it be worth it? Train from Waterloo again may be a silly question Is that the tube {underground} or a Brit rail train? Sometimes a search is not good enough. Real people give really great advice.

Elaine, You've just proved my point and a Big Thank you to you.. Your advice will help me when i take my trip to the Palace. cathy

Cathy<BR>Don't buy a pass for all zones for every day when you're only going to the "outer" zones on one or two days.<BR>When you need it, just buy a supplementary ticket for those days.

Cathy---Elaine did not prove your point that real people are better than research because everything she told you is readily available on the internet and in basic guidebooks. What you proved is that you have spent no time doing research, even after several people made excellent suggestions. People are tring to be helpful but you are just plain lazy.

Elaine, Can I get an extension on a 7 day London 1 and 2 zone pass purchased in the US or am I better off buying a zone 1 and 2 daily in London?or can i add an extension to a 7 day bought in London? I know i would need a picture which i could bring.I also would like to leave early before 9:30 on some days and the daily is more expensive with that added to it Thanks you are so helpful. Do you live in London? cathy

Sorry but this is research Talking to people and getting advice is a form of research. You can form your own opinions and i have mine People don't have to answer me if they choose not to. Have a wonderful day...

cathy - just wait until you are in London. I usually only buy a zone 1 weekly pass (instead of zone 1 & 2). 95 % of the sites are in zone 1 and most of the others are in outer zones. So just get the cheapest one (zone 1) and supplement it for the few longer journeys.<BR><BR>The only time I get more zones is when I stay up in Highgate or Hampstead in zone 3 - but 9 trips out of 10 a 1 zone pass is all that I need. <BR><BR>And as you know, the weekly passes don't have time of day restrictions

Cathy,<BR><BR>The train to Hampton Court is a "Britrail" type train, not the Tube. Actually, you will take a Southwest Trains train from Waterloo rail station... "Britrail" does not exist now except as a commercial travel service.<BR>For rail schedules:<BR><BR> http://www.rail.co.uk<BR><BR>I think you should plan on spending 2-4 hours at Hampton Court itself. Add commute time, lunch, etc. and you have almost full day's trip. If you have extra time, consider substituting a boat trip on the Thames on the way to, or back from, Hampton Court.<BR><BR>David White<BR>[email protected]<BR>http://www.KidsToLondon.com

Cathy, we did this trip by train in February, on a day when I think we just had zone 1 & 2 Tube passes. We went via Waterloo & when we bought our one-day return tickets to Hampton Court, they were discounted because of our Tube card--I think it was 3.5 pounds each (round-trip). The woman from whom we bought our tickets asked to see our Tube tickets, to give us the discount. I think Hampton Court requires a full day trip--there are so many wonderful things to see there! The gardens are lovely & you can bring a picnic to eat in them, as well as enjoy all of the buildings & the maze.