27th June 2010
For the people of my generation, Kensington Palace will always be remembered as the residence of Princess Diana, Princess of Wales. After she was wedded on 29 July 1981, she stayed at one of the state apartments in Kensington Palace until her death on 31 August 1997. It was a historic moment as tens of thousands of people descended upon Kensington Palace to sign her condolence book.
Due to building works, all previous exhibitions are closed and a new installation called “The Enchanted Palace” is in place. This new feature is very much a modern art installation, where it tries to illustrate the lives of 7 princesses who had lived here. Even though most of the rooms are closed, you will still be able to see about 15 rooms in this new exhibition. Sadly no photography is allowed and I wouldn’t be able to show you how lavishly some of the rooms are decorated.
Globe Nomads review ratings: 2/5
I felt that this new exhibition was not as engaging and dramatic as I expected it to be. I suspected many visitors felt the same as they did not linger but hurriedly moved on to the next room. In a way the modern art installation did not blend in with the rest of the palace and I felt that it got in the way of a visitor who wished to appreciate the beauty of the decorations and the history behind them. In addition, it was a short visit and it may not be worth it if you are paying the full entry price. I recommend only about an hour or two for this attraction.
(please refer to ratings explanation)
Visitor information:
Historic Royal Palaces (HRP) property.
Admission: adult £12.50, child £6.25, Concessions £11, Family £34, HRP members free
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The Golden Gates of Kensington Palace
The entrance to The Enchanted Palace
We saw other visitors snapping away in this room and we got into the act too.
The Orangery, which is the cafe.
The Sunken Garden.
2 Comments
Lovely place, isn't it? I remember being there just a few days after she died, flowers filling every centimeter.
I wasn't there but I remembered it on TV. Yes, it is really lovely but too bad most of the palace is closed for building works. Thanks for visiting!