This is the meeting point for all our tours
This bronze statue of man on horseback is called Physical Energy and is the work of the British artist George Frederic Watts (1817-1904). Watts had very high ideals for his art, and intended his work to help humanity embrace progress. Physical Energy is an allegory of the human need for new challenges – of our instinct to always be scanning the horizon, looking towards the future. In the artist’s own words, it is ‘a symbol of that restless physical impulse to seek the still unachieved in the domain of material things’.
The park's name comes from the Manor of Hyde, which was the northeast sub-division of the manor of Eia (the other two sub-divisions were Ebury and Neyte) and appears as such in the Domesday Book.
The Italian Gardens are an elaborate mix of four main basins. They feature central rosettes carved in Carrara marble, the Portland stone and white marble Tazza Fountain, and a collection of stone statues and urns. See if you can spot the five main urn designs – a swan's breast, woman's head, ram's head, dolphin and oval.
The Ornamental Pond commissioned by Queen Caroline
Built by Sir Christopher Wren between 1789 and 1794. Additional work by William Kent. Only acessable if you book the option with Palace Entry
In January 2017, Diana's sons commissioned a statue of their mother for Kensington Palace to commemorate the 20th anniversary of her death. Ian Rank-Broadley executed the statue.
Tea at the Orangery designed by Hawkesmore in 1704
It was the perfect way to start our first day in London, David was fantastic, knowledgeable, funny and very welcoming. we will definitely use this company again!
Phenomenal experience. Extremely informative. Doug our guide was amazing. A must do when in London . Great time
Doug was an excellent guide, he offered lots of insight & details but was also willing to adjust the tour to our interests & expectations. The high tea & The Orangery was absolutely lovely. And the Kensington Palace tour was indeed a pleasure using the self guided audio device.
Excellent tour guide sharing history and insights. High tea was amazing. This quite a long walk so please be aware. The grounds are exceptional.
This was an absolutely lovely experience. Our tour guide, Doug was incredible. We viewed the grounds and learned the history of this Palace prior to enjoying our tea and treats. The scones were sensational and all of history behind this beautiful place made the experience so enjoyable. Having the personal touch of a private tour guide was a great bonus. We would highly recommend this experience and are so appreciative to Doug for making this afternoon so memorable for us.
Tour guide Doug Cooper was excellent, engaging and informative. We went on a very nice walk around the gardens along with an educational discussion of the history and activities of the gardens and the palace. Doug also sat with us for tea and explained the customs and background of high tea.
Great tour. Super knowledgeable. Highly recommend this team 5/5 stars.
Had a wonderful time with David through the Kensington Gardens and Palace. We had a great afternoon tea as well! Wonderful with children as well! And very patient!
Simon was so wonderful, so informative and engaging and fun! We had a lovely time, and he was kind and full of history. I’d recommend this tour to anyone visiting London!
Doug was exceptional! His knowledge of the palace and surrounding park were outstanding and he kept us engaged throughout our time with him. The tea was served in a beautiful room with outstanding food that has been the highlight of our time in London. My wife and I would absolutely recommend this tour!
Simon was an expert on Royal History, which made the experience superb! We visited St James Palace, Buckingham Palace and Kensington Palace, where we had high tea at the Orangery!
Highly recommend this tour for anyone wanting to be immersed in Hyde park and Kensington palace surrounding including a finish with a beautiful tea service. Very easy to find starting spot. Our guide was already there waiting. Our guide, David took us through Hyde Park pointing out all of the highlights of this beautiful space. Things we would not have known on our own walking through. He was funny and knowledgeable about the park and surrounding area. He did well with our questions. I would definitely recommend this tour for anyone wanting a nice stroll in Hyde park to get hungry, followed by a beautiful and yummy tea service. And if you want to really know how tea is done in Britain, ask your guide to stay for tea service and share a tea and meal with someone who will entertain you with stories through the whole service. Fantastic, one of a kind experience!!!
Simon was a wealth of knowledge and charming as can be! We would happily book any tour he leads. Kensington Palace Gardens are beautiful and high tea was lovely.
Simon our guide was phenomenal! Wonderful job telling us the history and very engaging. Highly recommend this guided tour and Simon. He was very charismatic and engaging, full of knowledge.
We had a truly amazing tour experience. Our guide was very knowledgeable and was easily able to personalize the tour by answering our questions and picking up on the details that were most interesting to us. The high tea was charming and delicious. Highly recommend!
Simon was informative, helpful, accommodating and made this a wonderful experience. It was a joy spending tea time with him.
This was a fantastic experience! Our wonderful guide, Simon, was so knowledgeable and interesting. The tea was delicious and the service impeccable. Highly recommend!
Just the very best tour!! Simon was so incredibly engaging and entertaining!!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND We loved every minute
We had a wonderful time with Simon and had the opportunity to try some amazing teas and learn very interesting British history.
The other people on our tour ended up getting lost so we basically had a private tour. Simon was amazing & was so knowledgeable. We learned so much & then had a great time at High Tea! I highly recommend this tour.
Simon was absolutely fantastic. We had such a good time and he took a lot of care going through each and every detail to give us the entire history. High tea was an amazing experience. If there’s one tour to do while here, this is it. Ask for Simon!
David was a truly outstanding tour guide! From the moment our private walking tour began, it was clear we were in great hands. He was incredibly knowledgeable about London’s rich history, architecture, and hidden gems—but what made the experience exceptional was his warm, engaging personality. He struck the perfect balance between being informative and approachable, sharing fascinating stories while making us feel like we were exploring the city with a very well-informed friend. He answered all our questions with insight and humor, and tailored the tour perfectly to our interests and pace.
Royal High Tea at Kensington Palace, thank you to the chef for providing special sandwiches required due to diet, everything was excellent.
We absolutely loved our experience and the tour with Astrid was fantastic! What a wonderful treat it was all around!
Our guide, Barbara Ann, was a real delight. Was so kind to bring us both water and took the time to learn a bit about us before the tour. She was very informative and felt more walking with a friend than a tour guide. Oh, the tea was a delight too. The Orangery was very pretty.
Barbara Ann was a wonderful guide! Knowledgeable, personal, outgoing… we loved our time with her! And the Tea? Omg… fabulous. Highly recommend!
Barbara Ann was an excellent guide. Knowledgeable, outgoing, affable…loved our afternoon. The gardens and grounds are stunning. And the tea and treats! OMG…
We didn’t go with our guide because we already had tickets to Kensington Palace so we just walked over to the Orangery for our high tea experience. Barbara (High Tea tour guide) came over and introduced herself and explained the high tea experience to us, she was so friendly. Thank you !
Such a memorable experience!! The walk around the gardens was so pretty albeit a bit cold - typical British weather! But the group was rewarded with a delicious, traditional afternoon tea!! Couldn’t recommend it more for a truly quintessential English experience!!
This was one of the best experience ever. So stunning and delicious. Simply A Must! Our expedience here made us to want to return again super soon. Thank you for the team for looking after us so beautifully.
Excellent tour guide! He was informative, funny, charming and a good storyteller. We all enjoyed the tour and the tea at the end exceeded expectations for the quality of the food. Lots of walking.
I mistakenly put my comments on the three palace tour ……please find my comments. Dee was a wonderful guide ….. I looked so forward to high tea at the pavilion only to be disappointed…. Had less than an hour Thank goodness for the takeaway box for which most of the luscious delectables had to be boxed. Not how I intended my teatime
The Kensington Palace Gardens Tour and High Tea was amazing! Our Tour Guide Astrid was a complete delight and made it all the more lovely. Her detailed descriptions of the history of the Parks and the Gardens -- Hyde and Kensington -- were extraordinary and brought the Gardens to life. During the High Tea, she went through great pains explaining how tea was served back in the day as well as what to expect nowadays. She explained the different types of teas and the full range of customs (do's and don'ts) including what to do with your pinky, how to sip properly, when to speak (and not to speak) and how to spread your clotted cream and jam on your scone -- in Devon, it's clotted cream first then jam, in Cornwall is jam first, then clotted cream. Fun and fancy information all in one! If you are lucky enough to have Astrid as your Tour Guide on this tour, you'll have an INCOMPARABLE EXPERIENCE that will exceed all of your expectations! Thank you my dear, sweet, charming and oh so enchanting Astrid!
Astrid was a wealth of knowledge about Kensington Gardens and the palace. She was incredibly kind, interesting and was able to infuse the cultural experience with the historical context making it a memorable event. Her love for the gardens was evident!
Wonderful guided tour of the park with the culmination of the high tea as a finale. Lots of information as well as instruction on how to act.
We have never experienced tea like this before. Astrid made this a truly memorable experience. She is in the blue dress at Kensington Palace with us.
Ridiculously expensive for what we received. We walked through the park to reach Kensington Palace where we had afternoon tea. We could have booked the tea on our own.
If there were 10 stars, we would give it! We purchased the Private Tour with the Royal High Tea at Kensington Palace. The directions to the meeting point were precise and our tour guide, Simon, was there waiting for us 10 minutes early. Simon was like meeting up with an old family friend, immediately he greeted us with such a warming presence. The tour was great and the company was even more wonderful! Simon provided fantastic knowledge and "fun facts" throughout the tour which made it even more enjoyable. Tea and sandwiches were amazing. We enjoyed some of the Queen's favorites. A glass of bubbly with tea was a bonus! We ended the tour walking through the beautiful Princess Diana Memorial Garden and finished at the gate of Kate and Prince William's prior residence. Lots of photo opportunities and found ourselves talking about the experience throughout the rest of the day. 10/10 experience with Simon!
The private tour with David was fine. The tea was awful. It was at Harvey Nicols not the palace. Food was stale, it was loud, and not traditional English at all. We were very disappointed.
We had a splendid walk around the park with Doug and ended with delicious tea. Doug was informative and educational. Highly recommend.
Very nice and relaxing atmosphere, impeccable service from the team, starting from meter-d to a waiter. Excellent selection of teas and food. Extremely satisfied, totally worth the experience and expense!
Walk through the garden and tour of Kensington Palace. Where we heard of the Queens illness. Beautiful experience on a sad day.
David, our guide was a fabulous guide. He explained the history of Kensington Gardens as we strolled the vast property. We enjoyed our walk about & seeing all the history & grandeur of the Kensington. The we enjoyed a wonderful tea with him, instructing the proper etiquette of afternoon tea in London. It was a great experience & quite fun. My husband & I highly recommend David! Thank you.
A truly spectacular walking tour of Hyde Park leading to Kensington Palace for high tea, without guide from Top Tasting Tours London England. We met at a spot just outside the tube station and walked into the park on a truly beautiful day in London, stopping at the Italian Fountains - which I had never seen! - and through the park past the Peter Pan statue. Stopped to feed the wild parakeets - a real treat! - before making our way towards the palace. The tea was gorgeous, and a lovely selection of afternoon sandwiches and cakes. Our guide, David, was knowledgeable and helpful in relating stories about Britain's past and present, with notes about royalty and traditions. *Highly* recommended!
While we had walked through Kensignton on our own before, our guide Ellen truly brought the park's history and beauty to life for us. We learned so much even in the cold wet weather of London we truly enjoyed ourselves. After walking through the park, we had a lovely afternoon tea, learning how the tradition of High Tea became part of British culture. It is one of my favorite London experiences to date.
My 17 year old daughter and I were so lucky to have been able to take this tour. Our guide David was very knowledgeable and friendly and we learned a lot of British history as well as having a delicious sit down tea. I got the gluten free tea nibbles and I am pretty sure my cakes were just as tasty if not tastier than the regular tea cakes. A++++
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