Kensington Palace

Kensington Palace is the most human of London's royal palaces. William III and Mary II bought what was then a modest Jacobean house in 1689, because the king's asthma suffered at riverside Whitehall, and they asked Christopher Wren to enlarge it. It became a principal royal residence through the reigns of the early Georges, and Princess Victoria was born and raised here, learning in 1837 in these rooms that she was queen. In the modern era it has been a home to many members of the royal family, Diana, Princess of Wales among them, and part of the building is still a private royal residence. The public half is run by Historic Royal Palaces and offers several distinct routes. The King's State Apartments are the showpiece: the King's Staircase, painted by William Kent with lifelike courtiers gazing down from the walls, the Cupola Room's gilded ceiling, and the King's Gallery hung with paintings from the Royal Collection. The Queen's State Apartments, from William and Mary's time, are smaller, panelled and intimate. Exhibitions on Victoria's childhood and on the palace's royal residents change over time and are usually the most popular rooms. Outside, the Sunken Garden is a quiet, formal space, and the statue of Queen Victoria by her daughter Princess Louise stands before the east front. Entry is timed and book-ahead, and in the winter season the palace is usually closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. The great advantage is the setting: Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park surround it, so a visit here slips into a morning in the park.

The palace rewards a visit of about two hours, and the order matters. Begin with the King's State Apartments for the architecture and the art; William Kent's staircase murals are the moment visitors slow down and start looking for the faces he painted into the balustrade, among them a page, a court dwarf and Peter the Wild Boy, a feral child brought to court. Continue through the Queen's apartments for a sense of how William and Mary actually lived, then on to whichever exhibition is current. The palace changes its exhibitions regularly, from royal fashion to the stories of lesser-known residents, so look at what is on before you go; some are included in standard admission and draw their own crowds.

Getting there is easy: High Street Kensington and Queensway stations are both about ten minutes' walk through the gardens, and Notting Hill Gate is not much further. There is a cafe on site, and the Orangery next door, built for Queen Anne, has long been known for afternoon tea, though it has gone through periods of restoration, so check whether it is serving. The palace is at its best when combined with Kensington Gardens: the Round Pond, the Italian Gardens, the Albert Memorial and the Diana Memorial Playground for younger children all sit within a short walk.

Who will love it? Anyone interested in Queen Victoria or the Georgians, fans of the modern royal family, and visitors who prefer an elegant, manageable palace to the crowds at Buckingham Palace, which only opens its State Rooms for part of the summer. It is less dramatic than the Tower or Hampton Court, but more personal. For families with young children, the visit works best as the indoor half of a park day, with the playground as the reward afterwards. Allow time, too, for the palace shop and the gardens on the south side, and if the weather turns, the free museums of South Kensington are a short bus ride or a twenty-minute walk away.