London is one of my favorite cities - and I know I’m not alone. The charming streets, classic black cabs, British accents, loads of culture, and now the food scene - all make London a delightful destination. My mom and I just returned from a trip for her birthday to visit the famous RHS Chelsea Flower Show. If you’re interested in the show and tips to attend next year, read on! For more on our London exploring, shopping and dining recommendations check out my London guide here.
The Chelsea Flower Show is held for five days every May at the Royal Hospital Chelsea in London, and is attended by over 150,000 people each year, including members of the Royal Family. Tickets much be purchased in advance and they definitely sell out a few weeks before the event.
We spent three full days in London, and purchased tickets to go to the show on two separate days. Tickets are sold by time, and there are specific days and times that are only available to RHS members. We had tickets for Wednesday starting at 3:30pm and 8am on Thursday. The show runs from 8am-8pm each day.
We loved having the opportunity to go to the show twice. On Wednesday we arrived right at 3:30pm and had time to walk around, get our bearings and see part of the exhibitions inside. We were really tired since we’d landed at 6am that morning, so only stayed a few hours, but it was really helpful to get an overview and then plot out the things that we wanted to prioritize the next day. There’s a lot of people there and it’s a big space, so it can feel overwhelming. Having a bit of a plan helped us to maximize our time.
On Thursday we were back at the show first thing and planned to spend most of the day there. Our first stop was the “Back to Nature” garden that Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, designed. This was clearly a highlight of the show this year, for good reason. We had to wait in line about 30 minutes to enter, but once we were in it didn’t feel too crowded and we were able to walk through, admiring the treehouse, rope swing, fire pit and tepees at our own pace. It was a lovely, nature-filled oasis and seems to have been very well received.
We spent the rest of the morning covering the the exhibition hall - filled with roses, compact herb and vegetable gardens, decorative floral arrangements and everything in between. Even for someone who doesn’t know a lot about flowers (me) it was a fascinating place to explore. And for my mom, a garden and plant enthusiast, it was a dream come true!