Private tour with an accredited expert guide Hampton Court Palace

5.0 (106 reviews) 2 hours – 2 h 30 min Free cancellation Private tour

out of 5

106 reviews

5.0

Tulip Festival at Hampton Court Palace — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

The Abraham Tapestries — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

About this activity

This is the ultimate tour of history where it happened, you will walk in the footsteps of kings and queens.

Your guide, Sarah, is a social historian, storyteller and expert on the 16th century Tudor period. She is a qualified Blue Badge Tourist Guide and has worked at Hampton Court Palace as a member of staff since 2008, she has been interviewed on the BBC and acknowledged by authors, so is ideally placed to impart the secrets of those who have lived, worked and died within the palace walls.

Hampton Court is a 'palace of two halves'; the 16th century Tudor and Wren's 17th century Baroque. You will see magnificent artworks in the State Apartments, the Astronomical clock, kitchens, wine cellars, gardens and maybe even a ghost!

Note the Chapel may be closed on Sundays.

Entrance fees to Hampton Court Palace are NOT included in the price of this tour booking, entrance tickets to the palace cost approximately £32 per person and should be purchased through the Historic Royal Palace's website.

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At a glance

Duration: 2 hours – 2 h 30 min
Confirmation: Instant confirmation
Ticket: Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Group: Your group only
People per booking: 1–15
Guide: English
Operated by: Sarah Slater Blue Badge Tourist Guide @ The History Guides

What is included

Included

Included: Sarah has worked as a Guide Lecturer at Hampton Court Palace since 2008
Included: Sarah has been acknowledged by authors and interviewed for her expertise knowledge of Hampton Court
Included: Personal tour with Sarah who is accredited with the Institute of Tourist Guiding, White Badge Guide

Not included

Not included: Please note the Chapel Royal is a working chapel and may close at short notice for services.
Not included: Entrance fees: Hampton Court Palace
Not included: Admission fees into Hampton Court Palace are not included

Itinerary

Hampton Court Palace

2 hours Admission not included

As we enter through the Tudor Gatehouse it may feel as though we have stepped back in time to the 16th Century. Together we will explore the courtyards and Tudor Kitchens, we will sense the smells and sounds of a busy working environment where sumptuous meals were prepared by the many servants for the Court of King Henry VIII. We will ascend to the upper floors to view the magnificent Tudor State Apartments which includes some of the finest artwork and tapestries from the period such as the Abraham Tapestries and the painting of the Family of Henry VIII. Walk through the Great Hall and along the Haunted Gallery where I shall tell the ghost story of Catherine Howard, King Henry VIII's doomed fifth wife. Then we will move into the Baroque side of the palace built in 1689 by Queen Mary II & King William III to rival Versailes near Paris. We will see the magnificent gardens which include the world famous hedge Maze, the Great Vine, the Royal Tennis Court and the King's Privy Garden.

Meeting point and pickup

Everyone meets at the meeting point.

Meeting point

I will meet you at the West Gate which is the main palace entrance.

Once you have entered through Trophy Gate from the road A309, proceed up the driveway which is known as Trophy Drive, I shall wait near the moat just in front of the main entrance, West Gate.

End point

I will meet you at the West Gate which is the main palace entrance.

Once you have entered through Trophy Gate from the road A309, proceed up the driveway which is known as Trophy Drive, I shall wait near the moat just in front of the main entrance, West Gate.