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| Kensington and Kensington Palace tips and photos posted by real travelers and London locals. • 238 Photos
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The Palace was the birthplace of Queen Victoira in 1819. And it was the home of Princess Diana.
At the Gardens is a giant pond with a lot of ducks and geese to feed.
The Gardens open daily and the palace is open daily from 10 ap to 5 pm.
The entrance: the Gardens free - the palace 10 Pounds. Leave a Comment Address: Kensington Palace, W8Phone: 020 7937 9561Directions: Tube: High Street Kensington, Queensway or Hyde Park cornerWebsite: ww.hrp.org.uk
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Finally, in July 2004 after many delays, the official monument to Lady Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales was ceremoniously unveiled.
It consists of two streams of water than run around a roughly oval / heartshape formed out of grey granite. It twists, turns and ripples as it goes, before meeting under a bridge and disappearing.
Although it has been variously described by world-weary journalists as "An open sewer" or a "waterslide", it may not work too well as a piece of sculpture, but it certainly gets a five-star rating from appreciative toddlers as a kiddies paddling pool.
This was always part of the design and even on a cloudy day in London it seemed immensly popular with children, most of whom born after her sad demise. In view of her character, I think it is a wonderful idea.
It does however seem a pity that the sculpture is only surrounded by plain grass (and now quite matted), at least a few flowerbeds would really make it feel a bit more like a memorial - a red rosebed would be perfect.
As can be seen in the picture, kids of all ages are certainly taking to it.
During the summer of 2004, the memorial was shut down a couple of times because algae has been growing on it, making the surface a bit slippy, and we couldn't possibly have the little dears falling over and bruising themselves, could we ?
A month later a solution was found - exemplifying the worst excesses of the nanny state. A fence was erected around the monument, visitor numbers controlled, six 'busybodies' employed to police it and signs put up to tell people not to walk or run in the fountain. It's enough to make you ashamed to be an Englishman. You can't even paddle now. Pathetic isn't it ? Leave a Comment
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kensington palace was commissioned by william III in 1689. the palace was designed by christopher wren. queen anne and queen victoria once lived here. before her divorce from prince charles, princess diana also lived here. the palace is surrounded by beautiful gardens which are open to the public. open 10:00am to 6:00pm daily. Address: kensington palace gardensPhone: 020 7937 9561Directions: kensington, tube: high street, kensington, or notting hill gateWebsite: www.hrp.org.uk
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Kensington did not become a palace until William III decided the air at Kensington might benefit his lungs. Nottingham House, as it was then called, had been built in 1661 for his Secretary of State, the Earl of Nottingham. The King and Queen Mary moved from Whitehall in time for Christmas in 1689. Of great historical importance, Kensington Palace was the favorite residence of successive sovereigns until 1760. It was also the birthplace and childhood home of Queen Victoria.
In 1897 plans were made to demolish it, but Queen Victoria, who did not want to have the building demolished while she was living, convinced the Parliament to restore Kensington Palace. After the restoration, the State Apartments were opened to the public May 24, 1899.
Today Kensington Palace in London is a working Royal residence. Parts of the palace remain a private residence for members of the Royal Family; the State Apartments and Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection are open to the public. It was formerly the London residence of Diana, Princess of Wales and bore the brunt of the tremendous public outpouring of sympathy following her 1997 death in the form of hundreds of thousands of bouquets of flowers piled upon the palace gates. Leave a Comment
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I had passed by Kensington Palace on previous trips but this was the first time I went inside. On previous trips the gates outside the Palace were covered with notes, gifts and flowers in memory of the late Princess Diana since this was her home prior to her divorce from Prince Charles but on this trip all of that was gone.
The tour inside the Palace is by taped audio guide so you can go at your own pace. The highlight of the Palace, at least for most women anyway, will be the dress collections of both the current Queen, Elizabeth II, and also Princess Diana. In addition to the basic taped commentary, you can also hear additional information on each of the dresses with the audio guide.
The modern part of the Palace where Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon lived was a bit of a disappointment as it had been modernized and was not showy at all but after visiting that section you go on to visit King William III and Mary's Apartments which are more royal in design.
There is no photography allowed inside the Palace.
We went early on a Sunday morning, there was no line to get in nor was it crowded inside. Leave a Comment
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kensington is a really beautiful area of london, with beautiful terraced houses, lovely gardens and a charming ambience. located just off the kensington high street is the gateway to kensington palace. the home of the late princess diana, this stately mansion is set in beautiful kensington park. this was my favorite haunt on a sunny day during my lunchbreak, as i worked just steps away! Leave a Comment Address: kensington high stDirections: tube stop - kensington high street, turn right out of exit and will be there in 100 metres or so.
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The gardens of the Kensington Palace cover around 260 acres and border Hyde Park on the east. This should be another place to spend a liesurely day. The famous statue of Peter Pan is located to the north of the Sepentine Bridge and a true masterpiece. Also home to the Albert Memorial and the Seprtine Gallery. I will have a seperate tip for Peter Pan and Albert. :) Princess Diana memorial playground is also located within these gardens .Kensington Gardens was a playground for the nation's young queen in the not so distant past. Now children can enjoy not only the playground but the model boats on Round Pond. We enjoyed the geese everywhere at Round Pond and the nice lawn chairs for relaxing. Pack a lunch , kick off your shoes and relax. Another lovely place to take a walk and wander through some beautiful flower gardens. Careful of the hungry wildlife. LOL! Ask me about the squirrel sometime. :) Leave a Comment Directions: High Street Kensington tube or Queensway tube
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The elliptical Royal Albert Hall is a renowed venue for a wide variety of entertainment from classical music to sporting events. It has a capacity of approximately 5000.
The Italian Renaissance style building was completed in 1871. Just opposite to the Albert Hall, the Albert Memorial can be found. The elaborate monument was built in 1876 and recently restored. Leave a Comment Address: Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Gore , London SW7 2ADirections: The Royal Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial are situated near the southwestern part of the Hyde Park. This part is known as Kensington Gardens. Tube: South Kensington or Gloucester Road StationWebsite: http://www.royalalberthall.com/
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We stayed at a hotel near Kensington and were amazed our first morning out at the number of beautiful spring flowers that were already blooming in late March.
The area around Kensington Palace (I believe this was where Diana spent her time) was busy with Londoners enjoying the bright spring weather. Leave a Comment
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I've been through Kensington Gardens oodles of times on various visits to London, we've stayed close by several times and it's a lovely place to stroll through on a warm sunny day. When the weather turns nice, it doesn't seem to matter whether it's a weekday or a weekend, the parks are jammed with people trying to get a little sun and fresh air, they are there with their dogs playing fetch, kids playing with model boats on the round pond, people sunbathing in the grass or queing for tea at the Orangery.
Hyde Park is right next door and you pass freely between the two, I started my most recent walk at the Italian Gardens on the north end, along the Long Water, around the Serpentine in Hyde Park, past the Diana Memorial and then back into Kensington Gardens to see Peter Pan, past the Physical Energy sculpture and then over to the Orangery at Kensington Palace for tea.
After tea I visited the elaborate Albert Memorial, built by Queen Victoria in 1876 for her beloved husband who died in 1861, is across from Royal Albert Hall on the south side of the park. Leave a Comment Address: KensingtonDirections: Closest tubes: Lancaster Gate & Queensway - Central Line Bayswater - District Line High Street Kensington - Circle and District Lines
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