The Royal Parks have some exciting autumn events and activities for the whole family to enjoy.
We love this time of the year when you can pull on your boots and feel the crunchy leaves under your feet, put on warm jumpers and drink hot chocolate to keep warm of course. Let’s embrace the chilly autumn mornings and head outdoors, whatever the weather. Where better to go to than to a beautiful park. The Royal Parks have great autumn events and fun activities for all ages, including art fairs, historical walks, Halloween events, nature play, afternoon teas and so much more.
You can see the full list of events taking place in the Royal Parks What’s on page.
1. Get cultural at Frieze art fairs in The Regent’s Park
Some of the best works from a collection of leading and emerging contemporary artists can be admired during Frieze London.
Theere will be performance-based installations, debates, panel discussions and keynote lectures. And coinciding with Frieze London is Frieze Masters, bringing together 130 galleries specialising in pre-21st century art.
You can also visit the Frieze Sculpture Park, set in the English Gardens in The Regent’s Park, free until Sunday 31 October.
You can find an informative audio guide to this year’s sculptures here.
When: 13 – 17 October
Where: The Regent’s Park
2. Spook it up with our bone-chilling Halloween events
Children will love the FREE hair-raising Halloween themed activities this October half-term. Expect ghost stories, creepy crafts, eerie nature trails, powerful potions and fang-tastic bug hunting.
Daily activities during the school half-term across many locations:
· Monday 25 October Mission: Invertebrate Roadshow, Brompton Cemetery
· Tuesday 26 to Thursday 28 October Discovery Days, Hyde Park
· Friday 29 October Mission: Invertebrate Roadshow, Brompton Cemetery
For those who do not scare easily, join our Dead After Dark: The Queen’s Gardens ghost walk.
Brave the gruesome tales of buried secrets and nightmarish hauntings in St James’s Park and The Green Park on this magical yet eerie night walk. We will bring to life enchanting stories of walking statues, sentient trees, secret tunnels, headless women, shapeshifting rats and more.
When: Thursday 21 October
Where: St. James’s Park, The Green Park
3. Cheer on runners at the Royal Parks Half Marathon
We are excited to welcome the Royal Parks Half Marathon, presented by Royal Bank of Canada back to the parks on Sunday 10 October.
We look forward to welcoming thousands of runners on race day who will start their 13.1 miles on The Mall. Welsh rugby player Gareth Thomas is starting the race on behalf of the charity. The race will finish in Hyde Park where friends and family are invited to join their runners to celebrate at the Finish Festival.
The race made the bold step of removing all water stations from the racecourse, asking all participants to be self-sufficient with their hydration. With this change, we’ll eliminate 165,000 plastic bottles from the course and 70,000 compostable cups while also reducing vehicle movements and travel that was previously necessary to recycle and compost this waste.
Find a spot along the route to cheer on participants and celebrate the beauty of the Royal Parks here.
When: Sunday 10 October
Where: Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, The Green Park, St. James’s Park
4. Discover the hidden history of Hyde Park and its secret pet cemetery
For centuries, this famous space covering 350 acres has provided royals and members of the public with a green oasis to escape the hustle and bustle of the city.
Join our guided walk that brings the park’s history and culture to life with stories from Tyburn Tree, The Great Exhibition, Rotten Row and Peter Pan.
In the lead up to Halloween you will also have a special chance to explore the rarely-opened Victorian Pet Cemetery in Hyde Park dating back to the 1800’s with over 300 tiny headstones marking beloved pets.
When: Friday 15 October
Where: Hyde Park
5. Fire up the kids’ imaginations in Greenwich and The Regent’s Park
From dressing up to making up games, from constructing cardboard space-ships to knocking down towers of teddy bears – Our Play in the Park team will ensure that the possibilities are endless.
Our free play sessions run from April to October complimented by events and mini play projects inspired by the parks.
Bring your family along to one of our fun and creative play days in and around The Regent’s Park, Gloucester Gate and Greenwich Park playgrounds.
Find out more about nature play and it’s benefits here.
Newly refurbished Gloucester Gate Playground, The Regents Park
Sign up for Wednesday 6 October play session
Sign up for Wednesday 20 October play session
Sign up for Friday 15 October play session
6. Get Fit for Free with Our Parks
Have you ever heard of the phrase “Summer bodies are made in winter”? Although it may be colder and darker and you feel your motivation slipping, there are still plenty of perks for staying fit in Autumn, for example how amazing does it feel to have the crisp autumn air cooling you down after an intense workout or run?
Another exciting bit of motivation for staying fit in Autumn is ‘Our Parks’, a brand-new initiative allowing you to participate in quality group exercise classes, outdoors in one of your favourite parks all for free.
When:
Free classes on various days of the week
Where:
Kensington Gardens, The Regent’s Park, Richmond Park
7. Get ready for Winter Wonderland
Although it is not quite winter yet, why not be prepared for the much-loved mid-November wonderland spectacular and get your tickets now?
Yes, you heard correctly – Winter Wonderland is back this year and better than ever! The UK’s most iconic festive event is back with a wondrous list of attractions, new themes and returning favourites including the UK’s largest outdoor Ice Rink, new Magical Ice Kingdom and Bar Ice experiences, new Zippos Christmas Circus and Cirque Berserk shows, the Giant Wheel, and more.
When:
Friday 19 November – Monday 3 January 2022
Where: Hyde Park
8. Go bird spotting on a walking trail
Walking is a wonderful way to experience the changing seasons as well as the exotic and native birds on migration over autumn.
Our parks have miles of paths for you to explore as well as a wealth of different bird species.
The seven-mile-long Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Walk passes through St James’s Park, Green Park, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens and if you live further out of London then Bushy Park’s five self-guided walks are a perfect mixture of woods, gardens, ponds and grassland for you and the variety of birdlife to enjoy.
With help from our bird spotter sheets, you can have a go at identifying some of the wonderful creatures in your favourite Royal Park on your next walk or join the Friends of Greenwich Park as they go for their monthly bird watching ramble.
9. Visit the world-famous Meridian line and Royal Observatory in Greenwich Park
There’s so much to explore at Royal Observatory Greenwich, from historic objects, to cutting edge astronomy.
This autumn you can look forward to starry-eyed events where you and your family can take a voyage across the solar system and explore its many moons or have an evening with the stars with the rare chance to look through the 130-year-old Great Equatorial Telescope in return of this popular live planetarium event.
When:
Open daily, 10am to 5pm
Where:
10. Treat yourself to an elegant breakfast or decadent afternoon tea
When it comes to food and drink in the Royal Parks, you are spoilt for choice. There is something for every occasion from the convenient ever-necessary cup of coffee and croissant to a lush fancy day out with champagne, scones, and all.
If feeling like a royal floats your boat then visit The Orangery, located next to Kensington Palace. The beautiful airy space has huge windows allowing for an unrestricted view of the autumnal trees while you enjoy a lavish breakfast.
Richmond Park’s Pembroke Lodge is another must if you are looking for that picture perfect afternoon tea. The magnificent listed Georgian Mansion is set in 13 acres of landscaped grounds, situated at the highest point in Richmond Park, boasting spectacular views over the Thames Valley in autumn.
