I am having difficulties buying on line tickets to Kew Gardens in London. When I tried to purchase the on line tickets I did not receive the e-tickets (bar codes) that I expected but the money for the tickets was charged to my credit card. Multiple emails to the Gardens have failed to be acknowledged so I ultimately had the credit card reversed. I have looked at using Viator but they are twice as much money and a pretty bad reviews. Any ideas on how to do this before we leave for the trip.
Thanks, S. Christensen
Posted by
UK
1015 posts
You don’t need to prebook Kew Gardens. Just turn up and buy on the gate.
Posted by
London, UK
71 posts
As the previous poster said, you do not need to pre-book tickets. Just walk up to the gate and purchase there before you enter Kew. There is also no need to go through Viator or another site. Kew is great to see on your own. There are also guided tours from Kew frequently throughout the day.
Posted by
752 posts
Hi,Sandi2c,
Perhaps you were trying to take advantage of the £1.50 savings per ticket by booking online, not a bad idea! When you emailed afterward, did you use this customer service link?
Kew Customer Service
Others have had difficulty finding this link, hopefully it will help if you decide to try again.
Have a great time at Kew, either way!
Posted by
Washington DC
27161 posts
The last time I looked, Kew Gardens was on the list of places with 2-4-1 offers. Those tickets must be purchased at the gate, and the easiest way to qualify is probably for both parties to have paper travel cards issued at a rail station (not purchased at an Underground station).
Posted by
OP
6 posts
I eventually found the Customer Service button but they replied that they did not recognize either the ticket or order reference numbers. We are looking forward to seeing the gardens this trip specifically because of the current Chihully exhibit. He is very popular here in the US and thought there might be long lines.
Posted by
Virginia, USA
5530 posts
I was just there 2 weeks ago and bought tickets at the gate. I waited maybe 20 minutes in the queue. If you can’t get the online purchase to work, I wouldn’t worry.
Posted by
OP
6 posts
Thank you everyone for your reassuring input. It looks like "just show up at the gate" will work for us and certainly cheaper than paying for a tour. Tours work if you are in a rush but we like to take our time if we can.