Wednesday 4 September 2013

Hampton Court

On our list of things to do in London before we go included walking a section of the Thames path and visiting Hampton Court Palace.

We decided to combine these two on 13 August by catching the train to Kingston and walking to the Palace along the river path.


At Clapham Junction, going to catch the train

"Mum, I think we should go this way". Unfortunately it's not the right direction.

Educating Theo on the dangers of swans and geese, he kept his distance from this one. 


Hurry up daddy!!

Time for a break

Ok daddy, can you carry me for a bit


It was great to be back on the Thames Path, we've missed going for long walks in the country side and while this isn't quite the country, it feels like it. Theo probably walked for about 2km which is quite an achievement for him.

The fancy gates to the palace grounds with the palace in the background.


Up close with the palace, we decided not to go inside, it was quite expensive.

We did spend some time in the grounds, including a picnic lunch and a stop at the poshest park loos around.


Looking down the 'Long Water'

Horse drawn carriage take tours around the grounds. 

The gardens were very impressive
You can check out the history of Hampton Court Palace on the web, I think the main things is is famous for is being home to Henry VIII and for its Tudor architecture.

The battery on my phone ran out so we didn't get any more pictures which was a shame.

We did go and see what is apparently the longest grapevine in the world. 



We also had a look at the Royal Tennis Court, the dude below will explain what that's all about.


After a several hours of walking and lounging around in the gardens we had a look around Hampton Village before heading home from Hampton Station.

Another great day out with brilliant weather, a bit of reminiscing and some new discoveries.