09:30–11:00
1Kew Gardens Nature
Arrive near opening for the Broad Walk and Palm House before coach groups fill the paths; the Treetop Walkway gives a rare canopy-level view.
Kew, Richmond, TW9 3AE · website
Trips planned by Robin · London, United Kingdom
London Parks Itinerary: 3 Days of Gardens & Green Spaces.
London is a city you can cross almost entirely on grass, and this plan proves it: a Kew Gardens morning that ends on Richmond Hill, a Hampstead day built around Parliament Hill's skyline and the canal to Primrose Hill, and a final walk that links St James's Park to Kensington Gardens in one unbroken green line. The pubs are chosen to sit at the edges of the green, so every day ends where the grass does.
Robin planned this trip forGreen-space daysKew & the HeathPicnics & pubsBalanced paceEarly JuneChange these assumptions →
Planned by Robin
3 days · 16 stops
Every place is real, planned with the same verified data that Robin uses in the app. How these itineraries are made
3-day London itinerary at a glance
1Kew Gardens→Thames Path→Richmond Hill→The White Cross
2Parliament Hill→Hampstead Village→Camden Lock→Primrose Hill
3Regency Café→St James's Park→Hyde Park→Kensington Gardens
- Best for
- Green-space lovers, second visits, anyone allergic to museum queues
- Car needed
- No: the Tube and your feet do all of it
- Where to stay
- Richmond or Kew for the west, Hampstead or Belsize Park for the north
- Best months
- May, June and September; October for the Heath in colour
- Pace
- Balanced
- Robin recommends
- Treat the connectors as part of the walk, not dead time: the towpath and the Green Park cut-through are where London actually lives between its parks
Your 3-day route
All stops, numbered by day order · Map © OpenStreetMap contributors
Day 1 · Wednesday
Day 1: Kew's glasshouses and the tidal Thames to Richmond
Ease into London with a slow morning among the glasshouses at Kew, then let the afternoon unwind along the Thames to Richmond Hill, go early to Kew (opens 10am, but the Broad Walk is quietest right at opening) to beat the coach crowds.
Stops in walking order · Map © OpenStreetMap contributors
↓930 m · ~12 min walk
13:00–13:45
2The Original Maids of Honour Eat
Tiny Kew tea shop serving the eponymous 18th-century tart it invented, the real, local specialty to have here, not a Kew Gardens café sandwich.
288 Kew Rd, Richmond TW9 3DU
↓3.5 km · a short ride
14:30–16:00
3Thames Path: Kew to Richmond Walk
An easy riverside stroll past Old Deer Park with the tide-exposed foreshore at low water, genuinely local Sunday-walk territory.
↓1.4 km · ~18 min walk
16:15–16:30
4Richmond Hill Viewpoint Nature
The only view in England protected by its own Act of Parliament, the Thames looping through water meadows below.
↓1.5 km · ~18 min walk
18:00–19:30
5The White Cross Eat
Riverside Richmond pub right on the towpath, sit outside and watch the rowers as the tide comes in.
Water Ln, Richmond TW9 1TH
Robin's tip. The Thames Path between Kew and Richmond is tidal: at the highest tides the towpath floods for an hour or two, and locals just wait it out in the pub or take the parallel lane. Check the tide before you set off.
Day 2 · Thursday
Day 2: Parliament Hill, Hampstead's lanes and the canal to Primrose Hill
This is your Hampstead day: Parliament Hill's kite-flyers and skyline view in the cool of the morning, then the tangle of Hampstead's lanes and Camden's canal-side market for the local-life texture you asked for.
Stops in walking order · Map © OpenStreetMap contributors
09:00–11:00
1Parliament Hill, Hampstead Heath Nature
Climb the grassy rise for the best free skyline view in London, best in the low morning light before the picnic crowds arrive.
↓1.5 km · ~19 min walk
11:15–12:15
2Hampstead Village Wander Walk
Cobbled Flask Walk and Church Row for a sense of London's leafiest old village, largely unchanged since Victorian times.
↓300 m · ~4 min walk
12:15–13:30
3The Holly Bush Eat
18th-century gas-lit pub tucked up a Hampstead alley, order the pie, a proper sit-down lunch away from tourist crowds.
22 Holly Mount, London NW3 6SG
↓3.8 km · a short ride
14:00–15:30
4Camden Lock Market Shopping
Canal-side stalls and food traders on Regent's Canal, go for the crafts and local buzz, not another meal here.
↓1.3 km · ~17 min walk
15:45–17:15
5Regent's Canal Towpath to Primrose Hill Nature
Follow the canal west then cut up to Primrose Hill's summit for a second, quieter skyline view as the afternoon light softens.
↓4.7 km · a short ride
18:00–19:30
6The Spaniards Inn Eat
17th-century inn on the Heath's edge, said to be Dick Turpin's hideout, a proper wood-beamed close to the day.
Spaniards Rd, London NW3 7JJ
Choose your route from Hampstead to Primrose Hill
If you love the canal more than the marketwalk straight through Camden Lock without stopping and give the saved hour to the towpath and a longer summit sit on Primrose Hill
If you want the market buzzkeep the plan: Camden's craft stalls earn 90 minutes, and the canal walk after is the palate cleanser
If you would rather stay on the Heathskip Camden entirely and ask Robin to reroute you across the Heath's ponds to Kenwood instead, ending at The Spaniards Inn as planned
Ask Robin to personalize this day →
Day 3 · Friday
Day 3: A fry-up, then one green line from St James's to Kensington
A gentle last day threaded through London's parks, a proper fry-up at a neighbourhood institution, then a walk clear across St James's, Green Park and Kensington Gardens before you head home.
Stops in walking order · Map © OpenStreetMap contributors
09:00–10:00
1Regency Café Eat
Art-deco Pimlico caff beloved for its full English fry-up, arrive by 8:30 to beat the queue that forms by 9.
17-19 Regency St, London SW1P 4BY
↓1.3 km · ~16 min walk
10:15–11:30
2St James's Park Nature
Cross the lake bridge for the classic view of Buckingham Palace framed by weeping willows and resident pelicans.
↓2.8 km · a short ride
12:00–13:30
3Green Park to Hyde Park Walk Walk
An unbroken green corridor through the heart of the city, cut across to the Serpentine for the water's edge.
↓2.6 km · a short ride
14:00–15:15
4The Churchill Arms Eat
Flower-festooned Notting Hill pub, famous locally for its Thai kitchen, a proper sit-down lunch to close out the trip.
119 Kensington Church St, London W8 7LN
↓1.2 km · ~15 min walk
15:30–17:00
5Kensington Gardens & Italian Gardens Nature
Wander to the ornate Italian Gardens fountains, a quiet formal counterpoint to the wilder heath you climbed on day two.
Bucket-list foods in London
A Maids of Honour tart
An 18th-century curd tart still baked by the Kew tea shop that invented it; this is as local as London food gets.
On this trip: The Original Maids of Honour, day 1 lunch stop by Kew Gardens
The full English fry-up
Done properly in a formica-and-tea institution, not a hotel buffet: eggs, bacon, bubble and squeak, builder's tea.
On this trip: Regency Café, day 3 breakfast; arrive early, the queue forms fast
A proper pub pie
Suet pastry, a pint of bitter, a wood-beamed room that predates the United States.
On this trip: The Holly Bush, day 2 lunch up a Hampstead alley
A picnic on the grass
The parks are the dining room: ask Robin to build you a picnic run from a deli near your day's park and it will slot one in.
Where to stay for this itinerary
Stay in Richmond or Kew if…
- you want day 1 on your doorstep and river walks every evening
- leafy quiet beats central buzz for you
Stay in Hampstead or Belsize Park if…
- the Heath at dawn sounds like the trip's best moment
- you like village London: bakeries, bookshops, gas-lit pubs
Stay in South Kensington if…
- you want Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens as your front lawn
- you need easy Tube links for the Kew and Hampstead days
Before you go
Do you need a car?
No. Every day here is the Tube plus walking, and a car would actively hurt: Kew and Richmond are on the District line and the Overground, Hampstead on the Northern line, and day 3 never leaves the centre.
What should be booked ahead?
Kew Gardens tickets are cheaper and quicker booked online for a timed morning entry. Nothing else on this plan needs booking, though the pubs take table reservations if you want a riverside seat at The White Cross.
What happens if it rains?
Kew's Palm House and Temperate House are the best wet-weather hours in London, and each day's pub is chosen to shelter you at the right moment. The Heath in drizzle is genuinely lovely; Primrose Hill in horizontal rain is not, so swap day 2's summit for a longer Holly Bush lunch.
How do you get in from the airport?
From Heathrow, the Piccadilly line or the Elizabeth line gets you in directly, and staying west (Richmond or Kew) puts you 30 minutes from the terminal with day 1 on your doorstep.
Is three days enough?
For the classic green circuit, yes. What it leaves out is the wilder edge: Richmond Park's deer and the Isabella Plantation deserve a fourth day, and Greenwich Park with its meridian line a fifth.
4–5 days
Have 4–5 days?
Day 4: Richmond Park and the Isabella Plantation
Give the deer a whole morning: Richmond Park is London's largest enclosed space, and the Isabella Plantation's azalea streams are its best-kept secret. End back on Richmond Hill for the view you now know.
Day 5: Greenwich Park and the meridian
Cross the city east for the Observatory's hilltop view down to the Naval College and the river, a completely different London skyline from Parliament Hill's.
Stretch day 2 while you're at it
With the extra days absorbing the big sights, let Hampstead breathe: add the Heath's swimming ponds or Kenwood House and drop the Camden dash entirely.
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