To Kew Gardens from Paddinton station

Why not take the District Line?

Change at Earl’s Court. Exit at Kew Gardens stop and walk about a block and 1/2 to the main gate to Kew.

Get off and walk on the side walk to the entrance.

Kew Road is busy but it’s easy to cross at the light to the entrance to Kew.

To plan public transport around London, rely on the government website with good planning functions:

https://tfl.gov.uk/

Google Maps offers a similar service.

TfL (Transport for London) is not a "government" website. It is the website of the organisation who runs transport in London. Given the often fractious relationship between the Mayor of London and the Government regarding funding for TfL this is a big distinction.

But yes the TfL website gives the most up to date, real time, information

Or download the Citymapper app. It is by far more up to date and gives more options than the TFL website.

I use it in cities all over the world. it's never been wrong.

But the District line is probably the easiest.

TFL has a .gov web address which is a good clue that it very much is a government organisation. It is run by local government not central government.

Citymapper has serious omissions. In four different cities in the UK where I have tried it, it has failed to give me bus services, which I not only know exist, but which have subsequently used.
That has even happened in London, where I got correct information from a TfL press release, then their website.
If you didnt know about those services by other means you would think Citymapper was right.
In one case it didn't even know of a railway station, which I was trying to.find a bus from, in Liverpool.
TfL journey planner is real time data. It is more up to date than the dot matrix signs at bus stops due to how those are fed data.

For the average traveler, Citymapper does an excellent job. Quite often it has alerted me to issues on a route faster than the TFL website. It has also given me more alternatives to routes than the TFL website.

As an example, when looking for a route from Heathrow, all the TFL site would give me is routing using the Heathrow Express. Citymapper gave me that plus the Elizabeth Libe. Tube lines, buses, delays and approximate arrival times in real time.

And I doubt many tourists get the TFL press releases.

But if you prefer the the TFL website then use it. .

But do you really need to try to counter everything I write? It's pretty obvious. If it makes you feel good, then go for it. I really don't care.

Frank please keep posting! I try to ignore anyone who is being rude or difficult but it can be tricky. It’s a shame when people leave the forum because they get fed up with it.

There is rarely one right way to do things and the best part of a forum is in sharing ideas.

It isn't you, Frank II - some people have to have the last word or show that their knowledge is best. Different people have different personalities.

I have stopped arguing - mostly.

Thank you for the support. I, like most people, make mistakes here and there. And I don't mind if I'm corrected. I learn as well.

Opinion is opinion. If you prefer one thing over another, that's fine. But no need to put down someone else's way.

By the way, in case anyone is interested.....TFL is owned by the Greater London Authority which is basically the government for Greater London.

The chairman of TFL is the Mayor of London who is also the head of the Greater London Authority.

The QUICKEST way is probably the Tube as described. The FUNNEST way is the boat service to Kew Pier (https://www.thamesriverboats.co.uk/info/index.asp?page=westminster-to-kew-service-128).

mlstimetotravel, I took the District Line to Kew Gardens, and it was so easy and quick. There’s no transfers or anything, and it let you off in the cute little town of Kew. If you get there early, like I did, there’s a nice little coffee shop right there by the station. And then it’s a 4 to 5 minute walk down to the entrance. And if you get to the entrance early, like I did, there’s a lovely park bench that you can sit on and chat with other people who are waiting. :-)

Thank you everyone! I appreciate everyone’s input so again thanks!
Thank you Mardee for that wonderful sounding way of getting to Kew that includes a short walk, coffee shop and a bench to sit and wait on.
People have mentioned the District line. I am guessing that means the tube.
I just tried the website given by Southam and it seems pretty easy! I had been looking on the LNER site and so didn’t see these other options.
Do we just get tickets at a machine? There will be two of us but one phone between us with apple pay.

Physical tickets are the worst possible way to travel on the tube. They are deliberately overpriced to encourage travellers to use other forms of payment. Apple Pay can be used for one person. Others can use a contactless card if they have one. It doesn't matter if the cards are linked to one account, they will still work separately.

If you don't have a contactless card or another phone or smart watch to use you can buy an Oyster card for a non-refundable £7 and then load some more cash for the fares. Any of these ways will always charge you the cheapest fares for each day you travel, so contactless or phone pay is cheapest as there is no £7 to pay.

I see your confusion.

The London Underground--aka "the tube" is made up of numerous lines going all over the city and its suburbs.

Read about it here:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Underground

LNER is a train company that operates intercity trains. It's one of handful.

So if you are looking for something in and around London, LNER is not the site to look at. If you want to travel along the east corridor of Great Britain then that is the site for you.

Thank you!
So are District and the tube the same thing?

Yes the district line is one of tube lines. Have a look at the tube map online and you will see how it all works. The district line is green on the map.

What Helen said. Paddington is on the green (District) line and so is Kew. The only thing you have to watch for is to make sure it goes to Kew, as some trains will not. But just check the boards and it will tell you. I also ask people around me a lot, and they have always been so helpful.

But it really is the most efficient and quickest mode of transport for you. I had an Oyster card, but all you need is a credit card that can tap and pay or use Apple or Google Pay. Any of those will work. You tap going into the station and then you tap coming out. No need to tap on the actual train.

Thank you everyone and thanks Helen and Mardee for the specifics. They are very helpful !
We are looking forward to our day at Kew Gardens!

when looking at the front of District Line trains or the overhead display boards on the platform you will never see Kew listed because it is an intermediate stop, one before the end of the line in Richmond. You are looking for a Richmond bound District line train. There are two similarly named stations near Kew Gardens - Kew Gardens and Kew Bridge, which is on a different line... You want Kew Gardens.

District line trains also go to Ealing Broadway, Kensington Olympia and Wimbledon so you don't want one of those after the split...

OP here is the London Underground ( Tube ) map.

https://tfl.gov.uk/tfl/syndication/widgets/tubemap/default-search.html

Thanks everyone! The map and other info are really helpful.
When we were in London last year we walked everywhere, took two ubers at night after plays, and took the metro only once with our son and he led the way.
We used the LNER app many times to get places, including going thru London from Windsor to Canterbury.
So I wasn’t thinking about the metro initially when we decided to plan a day at Kew Gardens.
Thanks so much for enlightening me! : )