England's most famous royal palace, and the official residence of Queen Elizabeth II, Buckingham Palace opens the doors of its State Rooms to the public every summer. Originally acquired by King George III for his wife Queen Charlotte, Buckingham House was increasingly known as the 'Queen's House' and 14 of George III's children were born there. On his accession to the throne, George IV decided to convert the house into a palace and employed John Nash to help him extend the building. Queen Victoria was the first sovereign to live here (from 1837). The State Rooms are now still used by the Royal Family to receive and entertain guests on State and ceremonial occasions. Visitors can admire some of the more unusual gifts received by the current Queen, including drawings by Salvador Dali, an embroidered silk scarf from Nelson Mandela and a grove of maple trees. Decorated in lavish fashion, the rooms include paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, Canaletto, Vermeer and Poussin, sculpture by Canova, exquisite examples of Svres porcelain, and some of the finest English and French furniture in the world. The Ball Supper Room, the setting for a host of sparkling events in the history of the palace, 29-acre gardens and annual exhibitions are all also available to visitors.
The Goring Hotel
Beeston Place, Grosvenor Gardens, SW1W 0JW
The Goring, near to Buckingham Palace, was built by the current owner's great grandfather in 1910 and... More
Inn The Park
St James's Park, SW1A 2BJ
Boxing Day, 26th December 2008. Closed Christmas Day.
This year you could ditch the Boxing Day bubble and squeak for... More
Green Park to the South Bank
Distance & Difficulty - 2.5 miles. A peaceful meander through town.
Highlights - Strolling in St James's Park, the view from ... More
Many of London’s most idiosyncratic hotels benefit from a historic tradition of opulent living. With hundreds of years of experience in the trade, they combine... More
London's Theatreland is the finest in the world, with swarms of Hollywood stars making pilgrimages across the pond to tread the hallowed boards of ... More
Once Buckingham Palace's resident chapel, the Queen's Gallery was opened in 1962 and holds regularly changing exhibitions. It allows the general public glimpses of rarely ... More
A landmark triumphal arch set opposite the Duke of Wellington's residence at Apsley House, Wellington Arch was built in 1830 to commemorate the victories won ... More
The tenth best hotel in Europe (according to New Yorker's tourist Bible 'Travel and Leisure') is so close to Buckingham Palace you can almost hear ... More
Something of an unconventional choice for the Royal Academy of Arts, this major exhibition takes you on a 'journey' through the works of Anish Kapoor ...More
The Royal Academy heralds the new year with a blockbuster exhibition on the works of Vincent van Gogh - the first major solo exhibition dedicated ...More
Cheek by jowl with Buckingham Palace and owned by the same family for three generations, The Goring is part of the British establishment. Appropriately, given ... More
Mango Tree does make you breathe a peaceful sigh when you walk into its cool, calm interior, especially coming (as you will) off of traffic-whizzing ... More
The Instituto is the official Spanish Government Cultural Centre. The London branch is one of forty that make up the largest Spanish teaching organisation in ...More
Catalyst personal trainers are among the best in London. Get fit without doing yourself an injury, lose weight with a specially devised programme or build ... More
A favourite with young royals - Princes Harry and William, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie have been spotted here... all at the same time. And where ... More
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England's most famous royal palace, and the official residence of Queen Elizabeth II, Buckingham Palace opens the doors of its State Rooms to the public every summer. Originally acquired by King George III for his wife Queen Charlotte, Buckingham House was increasingly known as the 'Queen's House' and 14 of George III's children were born there. On his accession to the throne, George IV decided to convert the house into a palace and employed John Nash to help him extend the building. Queen Victoria was the first sovereign to live here (from 1837). The State Rooms are now still used by the Royal Family to receive and entertain guests on State and ceremonial occasions. Visitors can admire some of the more unusual gifts received by the current Queen, including drawings by Salvador Dali, an embroidered silk scarf from Nelson Mandela and a grove of maple trees. Decorated in lavish fashion, the rooms include paintings by Rembrandt, Rubens, Canaletto, Vermeer and Poussin, sculpture by Canova, exquisite examples of Svres porcelain, and some of the finest English and French furniture in the world. The Ball Supper Room, the setting for a host of sparkling events in the history of the palace, 29-acre gardens and annual exhibitions are all also available to visitors.
