Accommodation Airports&Transfers London Transport What To Do Contact Us

Kensington Gardens / Palace & Royal Albert Hall
Part 1 of our self guided walk through London's Kensington





London Walks
Self Guided Walks
Walks Overview
London Icons Walk
City of London Walk
Kensington Walk
Shopping Walk

Windsor Walk
Runnymede Walk
Hampton Court Walk
Salisbury Walk
Avebury Walk
London Tour Buses

Original London Tour
Big Bus Tour
Amphibious Tour
Black Taxi Tours
Rock Tour
Other Guided Tours

Guided Day Tours
Overview
Day Tours Visiting
Bath
Cotswolds
Oxford
Stonehenge
Stratford Upon Avon
Windsor
Paris (France)

Evan Evans Tours

Premium Tours
International Friends
Private Tours
Multi Day Tours
Cotswolds+Bath
Independent Trips
Hampton Court
Windsor
Stonehenge
Salisbury
Oxford
Bath
Stratford Upon Avon





The Kensington Walk
Stage 1 - Kensington Gardens
& Bayswater

Stage 2 - South Kensington
& Knightsbridge

Starting Off
We start the walk at Queensway Underground Station on the Central Line. If its more convenient, Bayswater Station is just 200m away on the Circle and District Lines. Just turn right down the main shopping street (Queensway) towards the trees at the end of the road (Kensington Gardens)

In front of Queensway station cross the busy Bayswater Road and enter the park by Black Lion Gate.
Kensington Gardens
Kensington Gardens
Diana, Princess of Wales' Memorial Playground
Just inside the gates on your right is the playground dedicated in memory to Princess Diana whose home at Kensington Palace is very near. The centrepiece is a huge wooden pirate ship and various other activities and playthings for the youngsters. One of the better free playgrounds you will come across on your travels.
There is also a cafe selling sandwiches, drinks etc. and toilets. (Queensway behind you has one of the best selection of budget restaurants and fast food
in Central London).

Map Key

1 - Diana Playground
2 - Orangery
3 - Kensington Palace
4 - Round Pond
5 - Albert Memorial
6 - Royal Geographic Society
7 - Albert Hall

Kensington Gardens
From Black Lion Gate / Diana Playground walk straight down the wide path in front of you into the park. For visitors, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens can be termed one park. There is no visible boundary between the two.

This royal park is the largest open space in Central London and was originally started as a private hunting ground for King Henry VIII to hunt deer nearly 500 years ago. Today it is a great place to escape the crowds and traffic of London.

You will see joggers and horseriders as well as impromptu games of soccer. The park is sometimes used for great open air concerts

Since the death of Princess Diana, the number of people visiting Kensington Gardens has greatly increased.

Kensington Palace

After 5-10 minutes you come to the Kensington Palace complex.
Popular on account of its associations with Princess Diana, Kensington was in the 17th and 18th centuries where the monarch held court before royalty moved onto Buckingham Palace.

A display of Princess Diana's dresses is a highlight of a tour here.
We have a dedicated Kensington Palace page.

Kensington Palace

The Orangery (open to everyone) is a very civilised place to take tea or something heavier.

The Round Pond

On the east side of Kensington Palace is the imaginatively named Round Pond. It was here that the playwright J.M.Barrie met Llewellyn Davies whilst walking his dog, LLewellyn being the inspiration for Peter Pan. There is a statue of Peter Pan elsewhere in the park.

Make your way away from Kensington Palace in an eastward direction, south of the Round Pound. We are heading for the Royal Albert Hall which you will see on the south side of Kensington Gardens. There are various options, perhaps the finest is to take the path that runs east just south of the Round Pond. Ignore turnoffs until you are due north of the Royal Albert Hall, where you turn right straight for the hall.
Albert Memorial
At the edge of the park, on the other side of the road to the Royal Albert Hall is the Albert Memorial.

Built as a memorial by Queen Victoria to her husband between 1863 and 1875. Prince Albert was responsible for much of what you will see in the next part of the walk. Prince Albert was enthusiastic about education, progress and industry. The piece of land south of this point was made available and developed under Prince Albert's influence and contains world class museums, a university and the Royal Albert Hall concert hall itself.

During the 2nd World War an anti aircraft gun accidentally shot off the orb and cross at the top of the memorial. Now cross over the road to the Victoria and Albert Hall

Albert Memorial
Royal Geographical Society
Immediately to the left of the Royal Albert Hall is the Royal Geographical Society. A charity devoted to the promotion of all things geographical, it has over 14,000 members world-wide and holds about 2 million items.
The public are allowed access to the reading rooms and collections, but you will need Id and pay a fee.

Victoria and Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
Opened in 1871, perhaps the UK's most famous concert hall. Was originally going to be called the Hall of Arts & Sciences but Queen Victoria instead had it named after her husband.

The hall is best known for the annual proms concerts, but has hosted a wide range of performances including the first Sumo tournament held outside Japan.
Concerts tend to be 'establishment' entertainers, opera and such like.
Heavy metal bands a definite no. Big headline rock bands and pop music with large audiences tend to play Wembley or O2 arena instead. The building is circular in shape. Take a look what's on before making your way to the back of the hall, (pictured above) then descending the steps to Prince Consort Road.

The Kensington Walk
Stage 1 - Kensington Gardens
& Bayswater

Stage 2 - South Kensington
& Knightsbridge