Special announcements

What's happening at Hampton Court Palace in spring 2013?

Trophy Gate is open to vehicles again although there is still a bit of landscaping to do. So the palace car park entrance is as normal. Pedestrians: please be aware that there is still work going on in front of the Gate so take care in this area.

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The palace 'route' known as the Georgian Private Apartments is changing! The final rooms, Queen Caroline's Private Apartments, are now part of the 'Secrets of the Royal Bedchamber' exhibition - having been reunited with the Queen Caroline's Public Apartments for the first time in decades.

The first few rooms - known as the Cumberland Suite as they were the rooms used by the Duke of Cumberland, son of George II - are now closed for 18 months for a major refurbishment programme to include the installation of proper picture lighting to make this part of the palace a 'must see' for art lovers. The art works that were on display in these rooms will go into Royal Collection storage. They will not be on public display - at Hampton Court or anywhere else - until November 2014.

The Communication and Cartoon Galleries remain open to visitors.

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The work to refurbish the Wilderness Toilets in the gardens - which was postponed from January/February due to the weather - began on Monday 15 April. The work will take about 4 weeks. During this period the Laburnum Toilets, by the exit from the Maze, will be open.

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The scaffolding that has been supporting the conservation work to the Buttery roof over Henry VIII's Kitchen is coming down! However, this will mean that access between Master Carpenter's Court and the North Cloister will be closed off periodically to enable the scaffolding to be removed safely. As the scaffolding is so large, its removal will take until mid May. Please bear with us and follow any diversion signs.

The Secrets of the Royal Bedchamber
27 March - 3 November 2013
Our new exhibition 'The Secrets of the Royal Bedchamber' is now open to visitors. It is included in all palace admission tickets - there is no additional fee.

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The Story of the Palace exhibition, behind the colonnade in Clock Court, is now closed for refurbishment and a re-fresh prior to re-opening as a new exhibition called The Baroque Story (about the Baroque building) on 24 May.

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Henry VIII's Crown of State
Hampton Court Palace has its own 'crown jewels' now. Henry VIII's Crown of State is on display in the Royal Pew above the Chapel Royal.

It is on display 10:00-16:00 Monday to Saturday and between 12:30-13:30 on Sundays. Whenever there are services in the Chapel Royal, the Royal Pew will be closed so it won't be on display for the duration of the service. This could be for the whole afternoon if the service in question is a wedding.

Please note that if there is a queue to see it, visitors will be prevented from joining the end of the queue shortly before the scheduled closure times. This could be as much as half an hour beforehand.

This is a permanent exhibition so will still be here when you visit Hampton Court on another occasion. But if you want to avoid the crowds, and possibly even avoid queuing, make it the first thing you see - don't save it until the end of your visit or you will probably miss out.

Please note that photography is not allowed in the Royal Pew.

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Chapel Royal
Saturday 1 June 2013
There will be a marriage service on 1st June so the Chapel Royal and Holy Day Closets (so also Henry VIII's Crown) will be closed to visitors from 12:00 until after the service has finished at 14:30.

17 June until mid-July
Due to the organ work currently ongoing, the Chapel Royal will close for 4 weeks from 17 June, only opening to visitors between 13:00 and 14:30 (Monday to Saturday). Access to the Royal Pew and Henry's Crown will be unaffected as long as visitors are as quiet as possible so as not to disturb the voicing of the organ. Voicing is a delicate procedure which tunes the organ (an 11 minute demonstration can be seen on this youtube video) so noise other than that of the organ can be extremely distracting.

Saturday 7 September 2013
Chorister Open Day, 14:00-17:00. Pre-registration essential - see PDF flyer for details.

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Advanced warning: two RideLondon events will go past the palace on Sunday 4 August 2013, resulting in the closure of local roads and limited local parking, with none at the palace. Please see the RideLondon website for details.

Advanced notice: Young Henry VIII's Story will be closed 1 September - 15 October 2013 for electrical work.