Guided Kensington Palace Tour, Royal Guard Change & Afternoon Tea
Recommended by 90% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
London, England
- 5 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Group discounts
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Make the most of your time in London by seeing Kensington Palace, Hyde Park, and the Changing of the Guard with the help of a guide on this comprehensive tour. Ideal for fans of the British royal family, this experience also includes afternoon tea, so you can take refreshments the classically British way. Then, embark on an audio-guided tour of Kensington Palace, where you can explore at your own pace.
- Let one simple booking handle your London sightseeing for the day
- Relax—your guide has the itinerary covered
- Get a closer look at how the British royals live
- Learn fun facts you wouldn’t get if you traversed the city alone
What's Included
- Pre-reserved tickets to Kensington Palace
- Afternoon tea at the Orangery (if option selected)
- Audio guide at Kensington Palace
- Kensington Gardens
- Buckingham Palace (exterior) (if option selected)
- St. James Palace (exterior)(if option selected)
- Clarence House (exterior)(if option selected)
- The Mall (if option selected)
- Local English-speaking guide
- Hotel Pick-up/Drop-off
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
Type to search
End point
- Kensington PalaceKensington Gardens, London W8 4PX, UK
Start time.10:00 am
Itinerary
1
Guard's Division Memorial
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Changing of the Guard
1 hour 15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Hyde Park
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
4
The Orangery Restaurant
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
5
Kensington Palace
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Most travelers can participate
- The tour is in English.
- Unfortunately due to the nature of this tour it is not suitable for guests with mobility impairments or with wheelchairs, or strollers.
- This is a walking tour so guests should be able to walk at least 3 miles without difficulty.
- Changing the Guard can sometimes be cancelled at very short notice, especially in wet weather and can be decided as late as 10:45am on the day. The tour will still run with an alternative itinerary.
- Kensington Palace is Self guided with audio guide.
- Please note that for security reasons bag searches might take place at Kensington Palace
- Please note: This tour offers multiple options. Take a moment to choose the one that best suits your interests.
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 16 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.6
based on 88 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Our tour guide Charo/Shadow was awesome! She was fun, informative and very kind! There is a lot of walking, so make sure to wear comfortable shoes!
It was a lot of walking, involving approximately 3.5 miles. So be prepared and wear comfortable shoes. The tour guide was nice and shared many stories and historical facts. The meeting point address in the tour description was incorrect. It would be easier to find if there were a picture of the memorial we were supposed to go to.
Guide was excellent and very knowledgeable. Saw a lot of good sites. Soldiers parade was fun. Tea was great.
Lots of walking so wear comfortable footwear
Phill our your guide was fantastic.. very engaging and knowledgeable.Enjoyed his stories.
Kate was our tour guide and she was great. The tour involved a lot of walking which left only small bits of time for each stop. Kate did a wonderful job of telling us the history but the time crunch really limited us. It was cool to see the changing of the guards at Buckingham but it’s important to note that you don’t get to stay long or get close as you have to stick to the tight tour schedule. Tea at the Orangery was lovely and a highlight of the tour. The tour does not include a guided tour through Kensington Palace, but the palace was our absolute favorite!! The information and displays were so informative. The Punjabi Princesses exhibit was by far the best exhibit we have ever seen.
Great way to get to Kensington palace through the parks
All up there is alot of walking.
It is flat and 2 drink stops along the way.
Wear appropriate footwear
And umbrella for hot/ warm and rainy days would be recommended.
Becki went above and beyond for my son and I. She mixed good conversation with great knowledge, was ok with our quick walking pace. And even adapted the tour a bit to show us more because we were running ahead of schedule. This wasn’t just a tour. This was us learning from someone proud of their craft and making a friend. I would absolutely do this again.
We had a great experience even with the high temperature causing the Changing of the Guard to be canceled. :(
George was a great tour guide and kept us entertained with many stories during our walk.
We had a wonderful day on our guided Kensington Palace tour, Changing of the Guard and a delightful high tea experience. Deidra was an outstanding guide—knowledgeable, friendly, and fun to be with. Everything was well organized, and the high tea was the perfect finishing touch. A fantastic way to experience some of London’s most iconic traditions. Highly recommend, especially if you have Deidra as your guide!
Danny was an excellent guide born and bred here. Very nice, personable, and knowledgable. This is an extensive walking tour that was amazing. I felt like I saw two days worth of sights in this 5 hr tour.waling through three parks, passing by palaces, Danny explained it all. Having tea at Kensington was splendid. Lovely setting in Queen Anne's Orangerie. Enough food and tea for all. We had a small group of nine people ranging from 10 years to 75. Danny kept us all entertained. He showed concern that everyone knew how to get back to their destination. His direction got me to the proper underground to my hotel. Also there was a woman with a recent foot injury, and I had an unexpected, recent back injury. Danny was very considerate and we both finished the walking tour. Danny, if you are reading this I have made it back to The Shakespeare Pub near my hotel, and I am enjoying a lager. Here is a toast to you. Thank you for a great day!
Highly recommend this excursion! Our tour guide was engaging and informative. So much information and we got to see a lot of things!
This was an amazing tour! Sharan was exceptional and very informative about the history of the areas we walked. Be prepared to walk!
The guide was excellent. He knew his stuff and communicated well. I had 2 issues with the tour.
1) the meeting place is confusing. I had a taxi drop us off at the address, but the address is a long street. The actual meeting point is by the memorial statue.
2) the description says 3 miles walking. It was actually almost 5 miles. So if thats alot for you, think twice.
The tea was lovely and we were in good position to view the guards marching back from Buckingham palace. It is not the actual changing of the guard at the palace. Still fun to see though
Fantastic tour! Saw the changing of the guard parade, Buckingham Palace, Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, Kensington Palace and a lovely high tea at The Orangery!
Take this tour with Shadow! We had a private tour with her, exceptionally friendly, and easy to be with. Not to mention she has a Masters in history from
Cambridge. She showed us everything. Wonderful education of the gardens, palaces, changing of the guards it was incredible. She had so many wonderful bit of history and fun mixed in with the tour. Highly recommended.
The exact same thing that happened to Jerry, happened to me. We were told to meet at the Guard Memorial, but the street was closed off so we had to walk there. We arrived at about 5 minutes before the tour start and saw no one except a different tour group. We called Viator and after holding about 20 minutes, they told us the tour started and we could not join them. So we went to BP and watched the guard change. This tour is not necessary. Viator wouldn't issue a refund so I will reach out to my credit card and dispute. Since Viator books local tours, they don't stand behind it if the local company leaves without you. All our other tours were fine.
Our guide - Peter - was amazing!! That being said the changing of the guard was cancelled and no one let us know in advance or we would have changed tour date/times. Tea at the Orangery was only so-so. A British member of our party said it was a very scant service and you share tea with the group, you do not get to enjoy with only your party. Tea with strangers isn’t what we were looking for on our honeymoon. You will do a lot of walking - around 5 miles - and you will learn and see a lot so that was great. Again Peter was a true highlight of our whole trip.
I’m sure most viewers won’t get to see this review. If you put the meeting point address in your “maps” the actual location is about 1/4 mile off. They “request” checking in 15 minutes prior to the start of the tour. After locating the meeting point, because we weren’t able to find the meeting point and check in we discovered the guide left with the group at least 5 minutes prior to the start time. Since we had 3 hours to “catch up” to the group, I asked to forgo the tour and just attend the tea. But they would not I allow us to participate in any of the tour.
Response from Host, Apr 2026
Dear Jerry,
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback.
We're very sorry to hear about the difficulty you experienced locating the meeting point and the frustration this caused at the start of your tour.
We understand how important clear directions are, and we regret that the location information and mapping did not guide you accurately on this occasion.
Regarding the tour departure, our guides are instructed to begin promptly at the scheduled start time to ensure the experience runs smoothly for all guests.
That said, we're sorry this left you unable to join the group, especially after your efforts to locate the meeting point.
We also understand your request to attend the afternoon tea portion only. As this experience is sold as a combined package, we’re unfortunately unable to offer partial participation once the tour has commenced. However, we appreciate how disappointing this must have been.
If you’re willing to share additional details privately, we’d welcome the opportunity to review this further. Please feel free to contact us at feedback@walks.org with your booking reference number.
Thank you again for your honest feedback, and we hope you’ll consider giving us another chance in the future.
Warm regards,
Princess
Walks Feedback Team
Danny gave a wonderful tour. Lots of information about royal history, the gardens, Hyde park, Kensington…complete with pit stops at the loo, cafe, and an afternoon tea at the orangery that was delicious.
Response from Host, Apr 2026
Thank you for the 5-star review, Nicole! We are so pleased to hear that Danny provided such a wonderful and informative experience.
It is great to know that you enjoyed the deep dive into royal history while exploring the gardens and Hyde Park. We also believe that a great tour is all about the details, so we’re glad the pacing allowed for those helpful pit stops and that you found the afternoon tea at the Orangery delicious!
I’ll be sure to pass your kind words and high recommendation along to Danny and the rest of the London team.
Kind Regards,
Gerard
This was a great tour. We had beautiful weather and our guide was very knowledgeable. I highly recommend this to anyone looking for an active tour.
Response from Host, Mar 2026
Jen,
Thank you for your kind words! 🌞 We’re thrilled to hear you had beautiful weather and enjoyed an active tour with such a knowledgeable guide. Your recommendation means a lot, and we hope to welcome you on another adventure soon!
Warm Regards,
Sarah
Walks & Devour Team
Sophie was our guide and she was excellent and the tour was fantastic. Sophie lead us from Buckingham Palace through Hyde Park and to Kensington Palace. She knew the best placers to get a good picture view, had fast knowledge on the subjects around her as she guided us on a 3 1/2 hour tour to Kensington Palace where we had our Afternoon Tea. She left us when we started our Kensington Palace tour. She did a wonderful job. I highly recommend Sophie
Judd was very friendly and knowledgeable. We travel to learn. History, customs, food, traditions etc. We learned a lot and had a wonderful time!!
Great tour! My guide was very friendly and knowledgeable. The tour wasn’t rushed- we had plenty of time to walk through the park (saw the rose garden, princes Diana Memorial Fountain, etc.). Afternoon tea at the Orangery was delicious! The palace was beautiful.
Trip was canceled but I was able to book directly to through palace the same day on Sunday October 5
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you, Maria, for your feedback. We’re very sorry your tour was canceled, but we’ve already issued a full refund. We’re glad you were still able to visit Kensington Palace and hope to welcome you on another tour soon.
We had a very nice time and enjoyed the tour along with our tour guide Sue!! Highly recommend it! Thank you
Suzanna was an absolute pleasure and guided us with loads of information and wonderful anecdotes of many facts about our new favorite city.
You will love her presentation and have great fun along the way.
Response from Host, Sep 2025
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re delighted to hear that Suzanna made your tour both informative and fun, sharing engaging anecdotes along the way. It’s fantastic to know you left with new favorite memories of the city. We truly appreciate your kind words and hope to welcome you back on another tour soon!
Kind Regards
Walks and Devour Feedback Team
Unfortunately we went to the published starting point and this was incorrect hence we did not make our scheduled tour. Most regrettable to say the least. I would like my money returned. Tour operator did not connect w us before the tour to inform us.
Response from Host, Jul 2025
Thank you for reaching out, and we’re very sorry to hear about your experience.
Please contact us directly at so we can review the details of your booking and confirm the meeting point information. We want to ensure this is resolved quickly and fairly.
We appreciate your understanding and look forward to hearing from you soon.
Sue was an amazing tour guide. We had a great walk about St. James Park, Hyde Park and Kensington gardens and finished with a lovely tea!
Danny was absolute great!! He was engaging. He tailored the talk to our interest. Bridgerton or Tudors anyone😉. Highly recommend. The tea at the end of the tour was delicious. Loved touring Kensington palace. Diana’s former residence.
A lot of history and walking. Sophie was an excellent guide and had knowledge of when and where to be for the best spot of Sunday Parade. Tea at the Orangery was excellent.
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per personWas $92.98(-5%)
up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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