Find answers to common questions about booking online, visiting and how to make the most of your visit.
Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, Hillsborough Castle and Gardens, Kensington Palace are all open on various days and times. Please check the palace you wish to visit for opening times. Banqueting House remains closed.
Opening times vary across palaces. Please see links below for opening times.
For any queries relating to our Superbloom event in June 2022, including ticket enquiries, please visit our Superbloom FAQs page.
In line with government guidelines, we ask visitors to consider wearing a face covering in our indoor spaces, shops and crowded places unless exempt.
We ask that visitors continue to maintain a respectful distance from staff and other visitors not in their group. Please continue to show courtesy and consideration for other people visiting the Palaces.
My e-tickets are missing
We recommend searching your email inbox for hrp.org.uk. If you can't find your e-tickets, you can show your confirmation email/booking reference at the Ticket Office.
I can't download my e-tickets
We are sorry to hear that you have had issues downloading your tickets.
If you are not able to download your e-tickets using the link in your confirmation email, please show your reference number which begins 42xxxxxxxxx to the ticket desk when you arrive and staff on site will be able to print your tickets for you.
I don't have a booking confirmation email
You can search your email for hrp.org.uk or you can quote your booking number or email address at the Ticket Office.
We operate a strict no refunds policy, however, we can amend your booking subject to availability. Please see below how we can do that. We will make an exception if the palace is closed unexpectedly.
We can amend unused admission tickets from the current ticketing year (March 2022- February 2023) bought directly with us for a booking amendment fee. This excludes any event tickets, such as the Ceremony of the Keys. You can visit between now and any other date we’re open until 28th February 2023 (subject to availability).
When you have chosen your new date and are ready to amend your booking and pay the amendment fee, please call 0333 320 6000. Our phone lines are open Monday – Friday, 09:00-14:00.
If you don’t make the change before your original visit date, please don’t worry as we will be able to see your tickets have not been used.
We will be releasing tickets for future dates periodically and you can keep up to date by signing up to our mailing list. Sign up here
For questions related to carer tickets or accessibility, please click here for Hampton Court Palace, here for Hillsborough Castle & Gardens, here for Kensington Palace, or here for the Tower of London
You will need your membership number to book tickets, so if you're waiting for your new membership card to arrive and want to visit straightaway, please email [email protected] and we'll sort it out for you.
As a member, you need to pre-book a timeslot for your visit using the Member portal. This is to ensure the safety of both visitors and staff.
1. Log in to the Member portal
2. Choose the palace you'd like to book your tickets for and follow the ticket purchase process, selecting your free member tickets from the list of ticket types. If pre-booking tickets for members only, you will skip the payment process.
We inform our members and customers about new ticket releases by email. If you aren’t receiving notifications and would like to, simply sign up for our e-newsletters on the website, or if you're a member it maybe we need to update your email address or contact preferences. You can drop us a line on [email protected] and we'll arrange this for you.
If you are unable to login with your membership number and surname, try a space after your surname. It is not case-specific.
If you have recently purchased a membership and cannot login, your membership might not have been processed yet. Please email our team at [email protected] and we'll try to help.
Thank you for letting us know. You can’t amend a booking, so just book new tickets for when you would like to visit and we will delete this booking.
To use your Blue Peter badge, please bring the badge, card and proof of age to show our Admissions team on arrival. As children are only able to use a Blue Peter badge when accompanied by an adult, please book the paid tickets you require in advance, selecting the palace you’d like to visit and clicking the ‘Buy tickets’ option in the top right corner.
Whilst we cannot pre-book these free spaces, we will admit Blue Peter badge holders on the same timeslot as your pre-booked ticket(s) and will not ask your party to split up.
We offer a 30% discount to holders of a valid MOD90 card, the Defence Discount card, or the MOD Certificate of Eligibility at our London palaces.
How much are tickets?
A MOD family ticket will allow entrance for 1 military personnel, 1 additional adult and up to 3 children. A MOD family 1 ticket with allow entrance for 1 military personnel and up to 3 children without the additional adult.
Unless otherwise stated, these prices are valid from March 2022 and subject to our Terms & Conditions.
What do I need to do next?
Discounted tickets can only be bought at the palace on the day of your visit. Simply show your proof of eligibility at the ticket office and we will be happy to offer the reduced rate.
No, we are an independent charity who rely on income from visitors to preserve the palaces in our care. Following the pandemic we are facing a £100 million shortfall in our finances. We are limited to what discounts we can offer and are not offering any reduced rate tickets for NHS staff / Blue Light Card holders.
It isn’t possible to pre-book these offers via our website but they can be redeemed onsite by bringing your card , pass or voucher with you to the Ticket Desk.
You will have been issued with a special voucher from your employer that allows you to visit during opening hours without pre-booking. If you would like to visit with more guests than your voucher allows, you will need to book extra tickets on hrp.org.uk. We will endeavour to admit you on the next available time slot but as we are operating with a limited capacity please note that you might have to queue. We appreciate your patience if this should happen. If this doesn’t answer your question, please contact [email protected].
Yes, the car parks are open but cannot be pre-booked.
Hampton Court Palace
Limited parking is available on-site. £1.60 per hour. Pay for your parking by card or by using the Glide app.
9 disabled bays are available, free for blue badge holders.
Hillsborough Castle and Gardens
Free car parking is available with 27 disabled parking bays, free for blue badge holders.
Tickets for the Ceremony of the Keys are free of charge, but must be booked online. Most dates are sold out many months in advance, so please book early to avoid disappointment.
Tickets are released on a rolling monthly basis.
Once you have booked your tickets (for everyone in your party except the carer), reply to your booking confirmation email and to let us know that you require a carer ticket.
Unfortunately, we cannot amend or cancel any tickets for this event and all bookings are non-exchangeable and non-refundable in line with our Terms & Conditions.
There is no pre-booking for corporate partners - partners should just present themselves, with their voucher and proof of ID as per the terms and conditions of the voucher, on the day they'd like to visit where they will be admitted at the next available time slot on the day (every half hour).
Our retail shops are open. You can continue to make purchases from our online shop too.
We will continue to ensure that the safety of our visitors and staff is our priority. We have implemented a comprehensive plan to help our visitors and staff feel safe at the palaces. We will:
Where appropriate – particularly where closer contact with members of the public is required – our staff will be issued with PPE, or may be working behind screens, for their protection and to protect our visitors.
Historic Royal Palaces is an independent charity that looks after the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, the Banqueting House, Kensington Palace, Kew Palace and Hillsborough Castle.
Find out more about visiting our six palaces and our various attractions in the links below.
Discover London's castle – a secure fortress, royal palace and infamous prison.
Wander the corridors of royal power and pleasure at the former home of Henry VIII.
Experience the drama and splendour of the Rubens Ceiling at the Banqueting House in Whitehall.
Be charmed by a stylish royal residence — once the home of Queen Victoria.
Glimpse inside an intimate royal family retreat, hidden in the grounds of Kew Gardens.
Explore the gardens and discover a castle at Northern Ireland's royal residence.
