Kensington Palace

I expected a little more from Kensington Palace. The outside is rather drab. We took the tour, which I believe was 12 pounds (a little overpriced). The first couple of rooms you get to see on the tour are quite interesting. They're about the day-to-day lives of the people that lived there, including costumes, and fabrics and tools used by tailors. Shortly after the tour goes to the Debutante area, which is all about Princess Diana. It has a nice collection of her dresses, but is otherwise presented in the cheap manor that a local museum in a small town would use (posters and a few videos).

The last part of the tour is the state rooms, which are beautiful, and the only saving grace of Kensington. Tapestries, architecture, antiques, paintings, and a nice bit of history provided by the audio tour.

I can't really recommend it unless you have a lot of time, or won't be seeing the inside of one of the better places, like Windsor Castle, in which case the state rooms will dazzle you.

We visited KP primarily because it was very close to our hotel. We had read the information that there wasn't much to it but since we were in the neighborhood... Big mistake. It is a complete waste of money, in my opinion. The best part, the grounds, can be toured for free. The rooms were a little shabby and after Windsor Castle, it suffered in comparison. I was also lured by the promise of a look at antique court dress. There was ONE display with two or three ladies dressed in fashion from the 1920s or 30s (plus, in the case directly across from the ladies, a man being dressed for a party). The ladies were readying themselves for a debutante party. Hardly an extensive exhibit.

Some might find the Princess Diana exhibit interesting. While I thought she seemed like a wonderful lady and might even consider myself "a fan", we skimmed through these exhibits and I found them uninteresting. Somehow it felt a little unseemly- like her memory was being exploited to draw people to the palace to sell tickets. The only part I enjoyed was the film of her leaving St. Paul's in a carriage, after her marriage. Naive souls can sign a book in the exhibit, which we chose to skip. Who is ever going to read it?

Tea at the Orangery: The orange cake is delicious and the scones and cream were pretty good (the Tower of London had better scones!). The Darjeeling tea was yummy. But the mint tea was horrible. They served it already prepared in a glass filled with mint leaves. Who finds drinking large pieces of leaves appealing? It cost around 3 GBP as well- which means it set us back over $6. You are able to order high tea for one and split it with the other person. In other words, when they bring you the sandwiches, scones and cake you can half it with the other diner. We split the high tea and ordered the mint tea in order to have a second beverage. In hindsight, I would skip that and would just share my teapot with the second diner. The cucumber sandwiches lacked flavor. They were awful and dry. It was just cream cheese and slices of cucumber- no salt and pepper, no herbs, nothing. When we make cucumber sandwiches for teas in the South (this tradition is only maintained for special occasions, like wedding showers, etc.) we mix in shredded onion or chives and sometimes a little mayo with the cream cheese to add some flavor. Fellow Southerners you will be disappointed if you were expecting something similar to what you are accustomed to. I have had much better in the U.K., so try tea sandwiches elsewhere.

I just returned from a 8-night vacation in London. We spent our Sunday visiting Kensington Palace and Hyde Park. I do NOT agree with the 3 previous reviewers, saying the tour is not a must see in London. Yes, it is nothing like Windsor Castle and the breathtaking furnishings and paintings; however, the Princess Diana photo collection by Mario Testino is simply beautiful. These were photos taken a few months before she passed away. They show a fun and softer, more down to earth and playful side to the Princess. In addition to the several rooms of photographs, the Palace has a display of 9 of Princess Diana's dresses that had been sold at auction before her death. One is particular is the black velvet, off the shoulder dress she wore at her first White House dinner as Princess, where she danced with John Travolta. Besides, the Princess Diana collection, guests are shown the apartment where Princess Margaret lived and artifacts from the Royal Seamstresses, etc. You get to feel the fabrics used in construction of beautiful Royal clothing in the 1600's. Outside the Palace is a large and beautiful statue of Queen Victoria, as she was born and lived in Kensington Palace.