The top things to do at Hampton Court Palace

There are loads of fun and fascinating things to do at Hampton Court Palace – it’s way more than just a grand building where super-important people used to live! These are the top picks from people who have visited:

Hampton Court Palace Flower Show

Spectacular Show Gardens, an amazing Floral Marquee, Hampton Court’s famous rose displays in the Festival of Roses and many other floral delights will be wowing visitors from 30^th June – 5^th July!

2015 celebrates 25 years of the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show, so look out for lots of themed events to mark the silver anniversary, including special silver floristry, historic gardens and even scarecrows!

Please note: the Flower Show is not included with your Hampton Court tickets. Separate tickets will be required.

See music icons at the Hampton Court Festival!

Throughout June 2015, Hampton Court’s stunning Tudor Courtyard plays host to a stellar line-up of international performers. Previous line-ups have included The Beach Boys, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Andrea Bocelli, Bryan Adams, Katie Melua, James Morrison, Lisa Stansfield, Westlife, Katherine Jenkins and Dionne Warwick to name just a few world-class music acts!

Take a look at what you could be enjoying in this festival video:

Please note: the Festival is not included with your Hampton Court tickets. Separate tickets will be required.

Hampton Court Gardens’ famous maze!

Perhaps the most famous maze in the world, the Hampton Court Palace Maze is the most visited attraction in the palace gardens with around 350,000 people going in (and hopefully coming out again!) every year.

The maze consists of half a mile of paths covering 1/3 of an acre, and it takes on average 20 minutes to reach the centre.

Henry VIII’s Astronomical Clock

This astounding Astronomical Clock told the Tudor Court everything they needed to know – the times, the tides…. even the future. And it’s still functioning!

The Tudors used to clock to ascertain:

• Hour
• Month
• Day of month
• Position of the sun in the ecliptic
• Twelve signs of the zodiac
• Number of days elapsed since the beginning of the year
• Phases of the moon
• Age of the moon in days
• Hour when the moon crosses the meridian – meaning high water at London Bridge.

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