Kensington Palace is a royal residence found in London’s Kensington Gardens. The palace has been a residence for young British royals for more than 300 years. Among the most famous past inhabitants of the palace were a young Queen Victoria, Princess Margaret (Queen Elizabeth II’s sister), Charles III (then-Prince of Wales, now King) and Princess Diana.

In the present day, the most well-known residents of the palace are Prince William and Princess Kate who, together with their children, occupy apartment 1A. Apartments 8 and 9, formerly occupied by Princess Diana, are today used as office space.

Kensington Palace was initially built as a Jacobean mansion in 1605, and subsequently purchased by King William of Orange and his consort in 1689. The palace thus became the favoured residence by British monarchs for a time. The palace was later expanded and redesigned in the 18th century.

At Kensington Palace, you’ll be able to visit the gardens as well as the interiors. Here, you can visit the old private apartments and other public rooms, where clothing, jewellery, and tapestry exhibits are usually displayed. Near the palace are also the two most expensive streets in the UK. They are Kensington Palace Gardens (aptly nicknamed London’s Billionaire Row) and Phillimore Gardens (a few streets eastward). Here, among embassies and expensive boutiques, the price of a property is more than 150 times that of the average UK home.

Location

Kensington Gardens, London W8 4PX.

Kensington Gardens is located at the western end of Kensington Gardens, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, in central London. It is surrounded by the Kensington district (west and south) and the Bayswater area (north). The Royal Albert Hall, a renowned concert venue, is located just across the street from Kensington Gardens, which surround the Palace.

Further east, attached to the Kensington Gardens, you’ll also find Hyde Park, another large public park. Not far from the palace, just southwest of it, are three important museums, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Natural History Museum, and the Science Museum.

Entries

The Palace advises its visitors to pre-book tickets online on their website , although it is still possible to just turn up at Kensington Palace and buy your tickets on the spot. An admission ticket includes access to all public areas of the palace and gardens, including the exhibitions set up at the palace. A full-priced adult ticket for Kensington Palace is £25.40. Visitors with disabilities, students, and seniors enjoy discounted prices (£20.30).

Visitors with a Historic Royal Palaces Membership enjoy free entry at all 6 historic royal sites, which include Kensington Palace. You can become a Member on the Historic Royal Palaces website .

If you want to support the Historic Royal Palaces foundation, there is an optional 10% donation that you can add to your entry ticket.

Schedule

Kensington Palace is only open from Wednesday to Sunday, from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. Entries are permitted up to one hour before closure. The palace remains closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Transport

Kensington Palace is fairly close to Central London, so you’ll find quite a few public transport stops in its vicinity. The closest Tube stops are Notting Hill Gate (Circle, District, and Central lines) and Queensway (Central line) along the northern side of the Palace, and High Street Kensington (Circle and District lines), just south of it.

If you prefer the bus, lines 9, 23, 27, 28, 49, 52, 70, 94, 148, 328, and 452 stop along the western side of the palace, as well as just north and south of it.

You can find a summary of the public transport options in the table below.

Nearby sights

Kensington Gardens - east of Kensington Palace.

Hyde Park - 950 m (0.6 miles) east, 12-minute walk.

Holland Park - 1.3 km (0.8 miles), 17-minute walk.

Science Museum - 1.4 km (0.9 miles) southeast, 18-minute walk.

Victoria and Albert Museum - 1.5 km (0.9 miles) southeast, 19-minute walk.

Natural History Museum - 1.5 km (0.9 miles) southeast, 19-minute walk.