In 1625 Charles I brought his court to Richmond. He subsequently, with quite heroic selfishness, built a wall ‘round a large expanse of open grassland, and created Richmond Park. These days the park is thankfully accessible to the public, opening at 7 am (or 7.30 in the winter) and closing at dusk every day. It’s the biggest of the Royal Parks in London, and is an obvious choice for long bike rides, picnics, informal sports and other wholesome pursuits for your golden, happy days of youth. Oh, and there’s deer.
The park has a number of gardens and wooded areas, the most beautiful of which is probably the Isabella Plantation, an organic woodland garden that blooms with azaleas and rhododendrons. The Pen Ponds is another popular feature, as is Pembroke Lodge, the park’s Georgian mansion, which can be rented out for weddings and conferences (www.pembroke-lodge.co.uk or call 020 8940 8207). The adjacent café also does a mean cream team.
There are three rugby pitches near the Roehampton Gate that are available for rental on weekdays during winter (contact the Rosslyn Park Rugby Club at 020 8948 3209), and two eighteen hole, pay and play golf courses (call 020 8876 1795 for info. and booking). Between 16 June and 14 March you can purchase a fishing permit for the Pen Ponds (call 020 8948 3209 for information). Or for more extreme park-goers there is the option of Power Kiting, whatever the hell that is (www.kitevibe.com), and military-led Boot Camps to shape you up fast and mercilessly.
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, begun in 1660, is not only easy on the eyes but is an important centre for horticultural research and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Guaranteed to take place every year are the summer festival ‘Kew the Music’ (July) and ice-skating (Nov-Feb). Kew is a hugely popular day trip destination for schoolchildren and adults alike and contains such a surplus of sights and attractions that repeat visits are always surprising.
Of course the main attractions here are the Gardens themselves. Between the formal gardens, smaller themed collections of plants and wildlife and conservation areas, there is enough walking and cooing to be done to justify any length of cake and sandwich sessions at one of the Gardens’ eateries. There are also 39 Grade I and II listed buildings, all of which have some kind of historic significance. The 17th century Kew Palace (www.hrp.org.uk), is one of the most interesting of these, having previously been home to the notoriously ‘mad’ King George III. Other buildings in the gardens include the Chinese Pagoda of 1762, a traditional Japanese ‘Minka’ house and a number of museums. Decimus Burton’s glasshouses (The Palm House and the Temperate) are iconic examples of this quintessentially Victorian architectural theme, and an essential part of any visit to Kew.
Kew Gardens is run with great enthusiasm and has a packed programme of events throughout the year. These occur and change frequently so it’s best to check the Kew website, which has comprehensive listings of everything that is going on in the Gardens, down to the blooming or blossoming of individual plant species: www.kew.org.
Several of the historic buildings, most spectacularly the Temperate Glasshouse, are available to rent for corporate and private parties.
Richmond station (overland trains, District Line) is a 20 minute walk from Richmond Park, or buses 371 and 65 both go from the station to the pedestrian gate at Petersham. Kew Gardens is (surprisingly) the closest station for Kew Gardens, London Overground trains stop here from across North and North West London. Trains from Waterloo stop at Kew Bridge station, a ten- minute walk from the gardens.
A large number of buses go from Hammersmith, Fulham, Clapham Junction, Wandsworth and Ealing to Richmond Park and to Kew Gardens.