Kew Gardens Reviews 187

I am writing this review on behalf of my friend with whom I was visiting Kew Gardens.

We arrived at 3:10 pm, only to be told we’d missed the last entry for the Singh Twins exhibition, which was fine we were late .
When we politely asked to use the toilet inside—given my elderly friend was struggling to walk —we were bluntly refused.

Victoria, the staff member we spoke to, was unnecessarily rude and dismissive, despite the fact that the gallery was still open until 3.30pm and people were still inside shopping.
Her attitude was unacceptable and showed a complete lack of compassion or basic customer care.

It’s deeply disappointing that Kew Gardens would allow such unkind and unreasonable behaviour towards visitors, especially towards an elderly person struggling to walk to the next nearest toilet.
My friend has been a long term supporter of Kew Gardens and will be cancelling his membership.

Based on this experience I have no desire to return to see the exhibition or Kew Gardens again. The restaurants are over priced and clearly appalling customer service.

If you reply to this review please do let me know which other institution does not allow the public to use the toilets?

The having read your response- the exhibition may have been closed to visitors but the gallery was still open people were browsing and shopping were the toilets closed to them also ?

I doubt it and your response is a poor attempt at making it look like your shop assistant was right to refuse us use of the toilet - it was not closed.

Your toilets were only closed to us because I had questioned how unreasonable your staff member Victoria was being after all it’s a judgement call to be kind. There were still 20 mins before your gallery was actually closing. Main point being my friend was struggling to walk further to the next available toilet. Not knowing how far it was anyway.

Halloween at Kew – I’ve now seen many similar complaints here and, sadly, I had the same experience. I contacted the kew info email, but the reply I received was extremely formal and ignored Kew’s own terms and conditions about visitor experience and safety.

That evening was heavy rain with thunder and lightning — clearly not “light rain” as described. It was not just uncomfortable, it was impossible to visit safely. In such situations, Kew should take responsibility to reschedule or offer an alternative, rather than leaving visitors with no options.

As a Kew member living in East London (Zone 5), I’ve always loved and supported Kew, and that’s why I bought a membership. But this experience was deeply disappointing. It may not mean much to an organisation, but it certainly does to ordinary families and members who genuinely care about this place.

I truly hope Kew reflects on how this was handled — members deserve better from an institution that represents care for nature and the public.

Visited Halloween at Kew with my girlfriend and found it to be an overall disappointing experience.

We arrived at 8:30, the start time on our tickets,and was rushed in to the trail as we were told it would be closing at 9.

While the theatrics were interesting, it was clear they made less effort than the previous year,

as we reached the end of the trail, we wanted to grab some food, due to being rushed on to the trail we didn't get a chance to think about food or drink, to find out that EVERY catering server had closed. No mention of this by staff nor when purchasing tickets.

Overall disappointing time, I do
not recommend the Halloween at Kew event overpriced for what it is. will not be visiting again.

Recently I purchased tickets to daytime Kew Gardens by mistake, instead I was meant to book the Xmas lights at Kew. It was a surprise for my mother’s birthday and as soon as I got the email saying it was for day tickets rather than evening Xmas lights, I emailed to try and get my money back. I had a very quick response to say I couldn’t have a refund and instead they’d let me change the dates to another daytime ticket. £48 of my money is now not being refunded to me and i emailed back to say i was not happy about this and they now have not replied to me. I need this money back to try and book something else in time for my mother’s birthday! I cannot believe this and also can’t believe they’re now not replying to me.

Halloween at Kew - the trains were all cancelled except for the overground wich had a trespasser on the track and the service was suspended. For this reason were unable to attend and the lovely see tickets people who Kew outsource their responsibilities to refused to refund us even though it was impossible for us to attend. We waited in the freezing cold for an hour and half hoping the overground would start running again. Kew customer service couldn’t care less. £77 for a family of 4 after membership discount in the current economic climate is not a small sum. Abhorrent behaviour from Kew and see tickets. We are extremely disappointed

A lovely visit to Kew to see the autumn colour, but in all the cafés the food was uninspiring and wildly overpriced. Sandwiches freezing cold, and the £8 mini baguette I bought was gluey. Why not offer hot soup, rolls, cheese, ham? In future, I'll go to the nearby pub to eat.

I placed an order 2 weeks ago. I haven't heard anything from the company as to where my order is, and I have emailed them and had no response, very unhappy and wish I hadn't placed the order..

Very poor value for money.arrived at around 11am,paid full price only to be informed that it will close at 1pm .so full price for 2hrs. I advise you that there are far better places to visit than waste your money on Kew Gardens for 2hrs.very very poor value.

I just love Kew Gardens, it’s a great day out and good to see the good work going on there.

I enjoyed the garden centre and shop an bought some lovely plants.

I wish there were more food outlets suitable for vegetarians.

We rolled into Kew Gardens on Friday, 15th August, me, my wheelchair-bound mum, and my bestie, ready for a botanical adventure. From the moment we arrived, the staff were absolute gems! Whether they were greeting us at the entrance, pruning petals in the gardens, or steering the Kew Explorer like pros, everyone went above and beyond to make our day magical.

Special shoutout to the Kew Explorer crew, part tour guides, part superheroes. The gardens? A dreamy escape into nature’s finest. Accessibility? Top marks!

Now, about the Brasserie... let’s just say the maitre d’ must’ve mistaken themselves for royalty. A little less snoot, a little more kindness, please!

All in all, it was an enchanting day, just maybe bring your own snacks and save those pennies for the gift shop.

I went to see Alison Moyet at Kew in July. We booked VIP Hospitality package as special treat and were very disappointed. The package did not represent value for money and in fact impacted our enjoyment of the music.
The pre show food and drink at The Botanist Kew Green was poor. The food was very late being served, this resulted in us being late into the arena and barely anywhere left to sit in the ‘VIP’ enclosure. Managed to squeeze ourselves into a small gap with other concert guests being disgruntled by our arrival taking up ‘their’ space.
The food was reasonable not very inspiring and all a bit brown but the worst of it was we were given a minute plate ‘tea plate’ size to fit our helping on. I’m not a big eater but this was ridiculous. Hardly any of the micro deserts left when we went up. We had arrived at pub at 4.45 and left about 6.30. Very disappointed.
Unfortunately Imelda May had withdrawn due to illness and the substitute act was poor.
Alison Moyet was fabulous fortunately but not likely to go to any similar events again and would always take my own food.

Loved the soundings .and the staff in the Queens house nothing was too much for us
But the food . celiac in our party and only able to eat ice-cream and a piece of cake nothing substantial for them when I asked in the Orangery ,I was told to have salad which had been sat out since 11.20ish am, this was 2pm.sausage rolls ,tuna subs and egg mayo just sat on a marble counter.in a very warm environment.i thought maybe the marble was cooled but now felt room temperature.not good enough the had plant based vegan sandwich.so why no gluten free.

Been to Kew gardens today after nearly 30 years ago. Lots of negative reviews mostly about food but I just bring my own food and plan your route before hand like booking a car park place with just park plenty of places just 5 to 10 mins walking distance. Check the map online before hand, staff where friendly, really nice day with lots of history behind Kew gardens. Will come again for sure.

You must avoid the afternoon tea!! They told us the tickets are not valid until the management came and said is active but this after we already paid again for a tea (so we did not get any food or drinks as per the tickets we purchased) Waste of money and time! AVOID AT ANY COST SCAM ALERT!!!!!

Wakehurst stables restaurant.

We had a lovely day out at Wakehurst yesterday. However we were really shocked by the restaurant:-
1. Overpriced. £13.95 for one skewer of halloumi (three tiny pieces) and vegetables which were inedible (had been left on the heater for too long) on top of a mass of lettuce
2. Wasps everywhere in the restaurant and crawling over the pastries and food (which were covered up but the wasps had got in underneath). None of the staff seemed bothered.

Seriously shocked that Kew/ Wakehurst use this caterer

Extremely rude staff who don't use any common sense when dealing with customers who have paid a small fortune to visit a garden. After writing a fair compliant on google reviews I was directed to email in, only to face an equally rude and dismissive reply. For what they charge to visit Kew you would think they could treat their customers with a little decency.

The staff were very welcoming this day. I went to Kew with my wife. First time in a long time for her. We had a pit stop for coffee and ice cream in the Orangery. Wonderful venue, welcoming, and good food. Lovely day out! Thank you

I visited Kew and while looking some leaves close up, being short sighted, a female member of staff shouted out loud what are you doing. I replied just looking, she said are you taking seeds?
My hands were nowhere near the bush, i was not standing on a flower bed. Again i said just looking at leaves. She went on about possibly hiding seeds on me.
Anyway she stopped hassling me, and we both moved away in opposite directions.
At no time did i do anything that could be viwed as being suspicious. Just added this, my eyesight also affected by glaucoma- both eyes
Here again 11th June, in what seems to be their final reply to the initial complaint about staff behalf behaviour they merely state their staff have had diversity training. Little point in complaining to Kew's Management

I visited Kew Gardens yesterday and was genuinely impressed by the beauty of the grounds and the serene environment. The gardens are clearly well cared for, and the palace staff I encountered were courteous and responsible. It was a lovely experience overall, and I was seriously considering becoming a member.

Unfortunately, one incident significantly marred my visit. As I walked across one of the greens, where professional filming or photography seemed to be taking place, an older male Kew staff member—white, nearly bald, with short hair—suddenly shouted at me. I was confused, as I had not used my phone or camera at all. When I asked for clarification, he said I was not allowed to film the filming, which I wasn’t doing.

What stood out was that he did not address or shout at any of the other pedestrians walking nearby—only me. As an Asian woman, I couldn’t help but feel that I had been unfairly singled out. Sadly, this reflects a broader issue: Asian women are often stereotyped as quiet, non-confrontational, or unable to respond due to language barriers. That assumption can lead to disrespectful and discriminatory treatment, as I experienced here.

While I still appreciate the beauty of Kew Gardens, this experience left me feeling deeply unwelcome. I hope the management will take steps to ensure that all staff treat visitors with fairness, dignity, and cultural sensitivity. Everyone deserves to feel respected and safe when enjoying public spaces like this.

Harry at the pagoda was absolutely amazing! Very smiley, warm presence and made us feel very welcome and trusted. Thank you so much Harry for making our day—you went above and beyond for us!