Kensington Gardens is one of the eight Royal Parks of London and offers a mix of historic and modern parkland and pastimes. The park covers an area of 265 acres and was once part of Hyde Park. Kensington Palace is set in the grounds of the gardens with areas of the palace open to the general public.
Lots of events are held in the park for both adults and children covering a wide variety of genres including the arts, nature and fitness. The park even has its own allotment where you can buy fruit and veg.
Children can enjoy a massive wooden pirate ship, a beach, a sensory trail, teepees and sculptures at the Diana Memorial Playground which opened in 2000 in memory of the late Diana, Princess of Wales. The theme of the playground was inspired by J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan - the 'Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up'.
There is a sculpture of Peter Pan in the park that was commissioned by Barrie, who was inspired by the park when he wrote the book 'Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens'.
See seasonal exhibitions of contempoary art and architecture at two galleries - the Serpentine Gallery and the Serpentine North Gallery. The Serpentine North Gallery is housed in a former 1805 gunpowder store and has a restaurant and shop. Just five minutes away is the Serpentine Gallery where every summer an architect who has not previously built in the UK, is commissioned to design a temporary pavilion for the lawn in front of the gallery.
In addition to Kensington Palace, there are a number of interesting buildings, statues, memorials and monuments scattered around the park including a bandstand, Queen Caroline's Temple, the Speke Monument, Queen Victoria Statue and the Albert Memorial.
Kensington Gardens originally made up the western section of Hyde Park but was separated on request of Queen Caroline in 1728. Prior to this, in the sixteenth century, the whole extent of the parkland was used by King Henry VIII as a hunting ground.
The Serpentine was split between Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park. The part of the Serpentine in Kensington Gardens is called 'The Long Water'.
Queen Victoria was born in Kensington Palace in 1819 and it was her home until 1837. Victoria updated the park by adding the Italian Gardens, with ornate fountains, and also the Albert Memorial, built in memory of her husband. Outside the palace is a statue of Victoria, which was commissioned by her daughter Princess Louise to celebrate 50 years on the throne.
Diana Princess of Wales had an apartment at Kensington Palace from 1981-1997. The palace is currently home to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Kensington Palace is essentially an extension of an older residence called Nottingham House. The work was undertaken in 1689 by Christopher Wren at the request of King William III and Queen Mary. The extensions were completed after Queen Anne took the throne and lavish new apartments were added by King George I. The last reigning monarch to use Kensington Palace was King George II. It was George's wife Queen Caroline who made the last major updates to Kensington Gardens, which we see today.
Kensington Gardens often plays host to a number of varied nature related events designed to appeal to all ages. The beautiful gardens offer a stunning array of plants and flowers.
You can see varied bird life at the park. There are lots of species of waterfowl that frequent the Serpentine. Birds seen in the past include Coots, Moorhens and Grey Herons.
The gardens and parklands provide habitat for an abundance of insects - a natural food source for the bird life. Numerous rare species of insect have been catalogued in the park too.
There are a number of ancient trees in the park including oak and chestnut. To the south-east of the palace is the Wildflower Meadow. Here can be seen varieties of summer blooming flowers including daisies, campion and poppies. These flowers offer a natural habitat for pollinators and insects.
Visitors will enjoy the peaceful ambience of the Sunken Garden with its typically pastel coloured floral displays and lawns.
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