Family Fun this Christmas at Kew Gardens
Father Christmas, Vintage Car Rides, and Winter Walks!

August 2011

As you enter the gardens, admire our stunning Christmas tree at Victoria Gate, as well as the beautifully decorated wreaths placed around the gardens.

Walk...

Join a free guided ‘Winter Walk’ with Kew’s expert guides and discover the Christmas plants that shine throughout winter in Kew’s 300 acre site. The walks are daily and start from the volunteers desk (Victoria Plaza) at noon and run from 1 December to 29 February.

If you prefer to go at your own pace, why not pick up a leaflet at the gates and try a self-guided ‘Winter Walk’, from 3 December to 2 January.

For images of Kew in winter please click here

Father Christmas...

Would anyone in the family like to meet Father Christmas in his festive grotto? If so, the grotto is open from 10 to 23 December in the Princess of Wales Conservatory. The queue opens at noon and closes at 3pm.

Fun...

Once the little ones have visited Father Christmas, take them for a carousel ride on Kew Palace lawn, from 10 December to 2 January. The rides begin at 10.30am and finish at 4.00pm. Adults £2, children £2, adults accompanying a child under five, £1. Also available is seasonal face painting at Climbers and Creepers, from 10 December to 2 January. £4 a face, or two for £7.

If your little ones prefer Christmas in the fast lane, they can take a spin in our mini-sized vintage cars. The rides will run from 10.30am to 4.00pm daily. Adults £3, children £2.

Learn...

Would you like to learn how to use what grows in your garden to create delicious Christmas dishes? Drop into our secluded garden to find out, at one of our ‘hands on’ sessions. 3 December to 2 January, Wednesdays and Sundays, 11.30am to 2.30pm.

Eat...

If you’re feeling hungry after all of this Christmas fun, either enjoy a snack of roasted chestnuts and mulled wine outside the south end of the Princess of Wales conservatory ( 10 - 11 / 17 – 18 December) provided by the Rotary Club, or order a sumptuous meal from our in-house caterers Peyton & Byrne’s special festive menu, in one of our four onsite restaurants.

Shop...

A variety of festive products will be available from our fabulous onsite shops, which will be opening late before Christmas on the evenings of 7, 10, 14 and 17 December, 4.30 – 8.30pm.

Recycle...

Once Christmas is over, feel free to bring along your Christmas tree minus decorations and have it recycled by our very kind arboretum team!

Please note, the glasshouses and Xstrata Treetop Walkway close at 3.45pm, with the gardens closing at 4.15pm.

For more information please contact the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Press Office on 020 8332 5607 or email pr@kew.org

Images are available to download from www.kew.org/press/images . Please contact the press office for the username and password.

• Opening hours: 9.30am – 4.15pm (weekdays), 9.30 – 4.15pm (weekends)
• Last entry to the Gardens, the glasshouses, galleries and the Xstrata Treetop Walkway is 30 minutes before closing
• Admission: Adults £13.90, Concessions £11.90, free for children under 17 (with an adult)
• Visitor information: 020 8332 5655 or info@kew.org
• Website: www.kew.org

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a world famous scientific organisation, internationally respected for its outstanding living collection of plants and world-class Herbarium as well as its scientific expertise in plant diversity, conservation and sustainable development in the UK and around the world. Kew Gardens is a major international visitor attraction. Its landscaped 132 hectares and RBG Kew’s country estate, Wakehurst Place, attract nearly 2 million visitors every year. Kew was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2003 and celebrated its 250th anniversary in 2009. Wakehurst Place is home to Kew's Millennium Seed Bank, the largest wild plant seed bank in the world. RBG Kew and its partners have collected and conserved seed from 10 per cent of the world's wild flowering plant species (c.30, 000 species). The aim is to conserve 25% by 2020, and its enormous potential for future conservation can only be fulfilled with the support of the public and other funders.

Kew receives funding from the UK Government through Defra for approximately half of its income and is also reliant on support from other sources. Without the voluntary monies raised through membership, donations and grants, Kew would have to significantly scale back activities at a time when, as environmental challenges become ever more acute, its resources and expertise are needed in the world more than ever. Kew needs to raise significant funds both in the UK and overseas. Members of the public can support the work of the Millennium Seed Bank Partnership by getting involved with the ‘Adopt a Seed, Save a Species' campaign. For £25 an individual can adopt a seed or for £1000 anyone can save an entire species. www.kew.org/adoptaseed