London City Guide

Parks, Gardens & Cemeteries

Outdoor events on this week include enjoying an afternoon tea outside Kensington Palace

Brompton Cemetery

Brompton Cemetery - Brompton Cemetery has some fine tombs and is rather overgrown in places. Its most famous grave is the Suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst5

Chelsea Physic Garden

Chelsea Physic Garden - This garden focuses on plants used for food, perfumes, aromatherapy and medicines. It also has a pretty rockery and a nice cafe5

Garden Museum

Garden Museum - Housed inside the deconsecrated church of St. Mary-at-Lambeth, this museum contains the grave of Captain Bligh from Mutiny on the Bounty3

Green Park

Green Park - Green Park is one of the plainest parks in London with no flower beds at all, but it’s close to Buckingham Palace and the shops along Piccadilly2

★★Greenwich Park

Greenwich Park - Home to the National Maritime Museum and Royal Observatory. You can also enjoy a great view of the skyline from the top of Greenwich Hill7

★★Highgate Cemetery

Highgate Cemetery - Highgate is one of the most atmospheric places in the whole of London, and its two halves contain lots of famous tombs like that of Karl Marx6

★★Hyde Park

Hyde Park - This vast park in the centre of London has a bandstand, man-made lake, and the world-famous Speakers’ Corner in the corner by Marble Arch4

★★Kensington Gardens

Kensington Gardens - This Royal park has Kensington Palace on its western edge, the Serpentine Gallery, and the Albert Memorial opposite the Royal Albert Hall3

★★Kew Gardens

Kew Gardens - The Royal Botanic Gardens has one of the largest plant collections in the world. It also has a Palm House and the remains of Kew Palace3

London Wetland Centre

London Wetland Centre - The London Wetland Centre is a wild land full of reeds and marshes, and has some professional hides if you’re interested in birdwatching5

★★Parliament Hill

Parliament Hill - Parliament Hill gives you a view of the London skyline from Big Ben and Parliament, all the way round to the skyscrapers of Canary Wharf4

Postman’s Park

Postman’s Park - A small garden nestled amongst some offices with some interesting memorial plaques that remember people who gave their lives for others2

★★Primrose Hill

Primrose Hill - Five minutes walk from Regent’s Park is this hill with a great view of London Zoo, the Square Mile, and Canary Wharf’s skyscrapers3

★★Regent’s Park

Regent’s Park - Regent’s Park has a pretty rose garden, a boating lake, an open-air theatre, and views into London Zoo’s cages along the edge of Regent’s Canal4

★★Richmond Park

Richmond Park - Richmond Park is a walker’s paradise with the Pen Ponds, the beautiful gardens of the Isabella Plantation, and herds of wild deer roaming free4

★★St James’s Park

St. James’s Park - Stand on the central bridge for a great photo of Buckingham Palace, and then turn around to get the fountain and turrets behind Horse Guards3

Victoria Embankment Gardens

Victoria Embankment Gardens - This little park away from the hustle and bustle of the Strand has York Water Gate and is close to Cleopatra’s Needle2

Wisley Gardens

Wisley Gardens - The Royal Horticultural Society Garden at Wisley contains sixty acres of wild gardens, decorative gardens, glasshouses, and a huge arboretum

Upcoming outdoor events in London

Marc Quinn: Light into Life at Kew Gardens

Marc Quinn: Light into Life at Kew Gardens Contemporary sculptures and artworks inspired by Kew Gardens' collection of plants

An Audience with Gardeners’ World presenter Monty Don

An Audience with Gardeners’ World presenter Monty Don Hear Monty Don talk about his favourite gardens while sharing stories from his 30-year career