Hampton Court and Kew Gardens

You can:
https://www.thamesriverboats.co.uk/thames-boats/fares.asp

I would probably go to Hampton Court first (by train) and aim to get there right when they open. Kew is open a bit later in the evening.

Hampton Court itself has lovely gardens, so you may not feel the need to travel on to Kew if you are enjoying your time there.

I agree with Laura on both counts.

You may also find that the boat takes more time than you want it to.

boat trip from Winchester

eh? Come again?

The links below provide the opening and closing times for both.

You will need to factor in travel time to one from where you are staying, then travel time between them and finally your return.
https://www.kew.org/kew-gardens/visit-kew-gardens/opening-and-closing-times

https://www.hrp.org.uk/hampton-court-palace/visit/opening-and-closing-times/#gs.6he8yq

Winchester = Westminster?

Westminster.... It was early when I posted, that's my only defense.

I took the boat from Kew back to Westminster last May and it seemed like it took forever. I know it didn’t and it was good to sit down but I’d not do it again.

I spent most of the day at Kew. Can’t imagine trying to combine it with Hampton Court.

Also if you do decide to do the boat, check carefully on the schedule. I had emailed the boat company and gotten the time schedule right before I traveled last May. As we were getting ready to leave Kew I checked with their info desk on the dock location and he gave me different times for the boat which turned out to be correct instead of the boat company email. I knew as a back up we could just take the tube back.

It is very easy to get to Hampton Court by train and you can even use your Oyster Card. You exit the station, walk across a bridge and there you are at Hampton Court. I found Hampton Court quite fascinating and there are so many things to see and learn about. The Audio Guide was well done. I spent most of the day.

I agree. I’d just do Hampton Court and forget about boat trips. There’s enough there to keep you busy for the better part of a day.

Both are great, and both are the sorts of places where I'd suggest just relaxing and enjoying your time there rather than rushing through so you can "see" something else in the same day (which is counterproductive, IMO - YMMV...)

HCP would probably be my first suggestion, as it has amazing gardens of its own - it's a huge site, easy to spend the better part of a day exploring, as said above - it's easy to get to via train from Waterloo (or you can take the tube to Wimbledon if you are on that side of town, and catch the same train as it passes through there.)

You can do Windsor and Hampton in the same day. I found Kew to be a real spread out bore. In the summer they also get nasty wasps. The gardens at Hampton are perfect. You can take a train but I would really consider uber esp if you are splitting the fare with someone .

I'd echo what others are saying about Hampton Court Palace - you could easily spend your day there without ever running out of things to find interesting. The grounds are gorgeous, kitchens are neat, and the history and layout of the palace itself keeps the intrigue going as you stroll around.

As an additional factor to consider...… Dave Chihuly is doing a special exhibition at Kew from now until mid October. It is called Chihuly: Reflections on nature . If you are not familiar with his work, he does blown glass sculptures. He did an exhibit at the Biltmore House in Asheville NC last year. I'd love to go see it, as Kew is one of our favorite places in London! They even light up most of the sculptures at night, so Kew may have some special late night hours. Here is a link to info on the exhibit:

[https://www.kew.org/kew-gardens/whats-on/chihuly-at-kew-reflections-on-nature][1]

We visited both on the same day, but by train and taxi. Maybe we missed the boat, in more ways than one, but it allowed us more time at each sight. We visited Kew first, the Hampton Court Palace. Even so, time was running short, and we saw the older, Tudor parts but had to skip the newer wings.

You could see both if you use the bus. You can get one of several buses from Hampton Court to Kingston, then the 65 to Kew Gardens. If the traffic isn't too bad, you can do it in 50 to 60 mins. The 65 is a lovely route too.