Hampstead has a free stately home with an art collection in it, and the thing nobody tells you is the deadline. Kenwood House is free, but the free online tickets for a given day stop at 8.45am that morning. After that you are on walk ups, subject to availability.
Book the night before and the house is guaranteed. Decide over breakfast and it is not.
Kenwood House
Free to visit, seven days a week, with no charge for adults, children, concessions or families. English Heritage lists every ticket type at zero, with or without the optional donation. Some temporary exhibitions may charge separately.
Three sets of hours, and the first is the useful one:
The grounds open 7am to 6pm, every day. That is a two hundred acre estate available before most of London is awake.
The house and shops open 10am to 5pm, every day. The cafe opens 9am to 5pm, every day.
Groups of more than ten should email the house in advance, and Kenwood reserves the right to stagger the entry of large groups that turn up unbooked.
If you are going to visit more than one English Heritage site in a year, membership covers over 400 of them and admits up to six children, which is worth the arithmetic before you pay for the next one.
The Heath, which is the reason to come
Kenwood sits on the northern edge of Hampstead Heath, so the two are one visit rather than two.
The swimming is the headline: three natural bathing ponds and a 60 metre lido, with the ponds at 5 pounds and the Lido at 5 to 8.80 depending on the session. Our Hampstead Heath page sets out the prices, the booking rules and which pond is open in which month.
And at the far end, in Golders Hill Park, there is a free zoo with ring-tailed lemurs and wallabies in it, open from 7.30am.
The Spaniards Inn
On Spaniards Road, NW3 7JJ, at the top of the Heath.
Built in 1585 by two Spanish brothers and Grade II listed, with Dickens and Keats both attached to its history and Dick Turpin attached to its ghost stories.
The hours have one trap in them. Monday it opens at midday. Tuesday to Saturday it opens at 10am. Sunday runs 11.30am to 10.30pm, and every other night it closes at 11pm.
The telephone number is 020 8731 8406. It has a garden, which is the point of it after a walk, and it does a Sunday roast. Our Sunday roast page covers how the city’s roasts compare.
How the day fits together
The geography is simple once you see it. The Heath runs north from Hampstead village. Kenwood is on its northern edge, the Spaniards Inn is just beyond that on Spaniards Road, and Golders Hill Park is further west again.
The early version: grounds at Kenwood from 7am, cafe at 9, house at 10, pub at midday.
The swimming version: ponds or Lido first, then the pub, then Kenwood before it shuts at five.
The free version: Kenwood, the Heath and Golders Hill Park Zoo, which costs nothing at all beyond the fare to get there.
Getting there
Hampstead on the Northern line and Hampstead Heath on the Overground both put you at the southern end of the Heath. Golders Green, also on the Northern line, is the stop for Golders Hill Park, a 14 minute walk, with the 210 and 268 buses serving the area.
Kenwood is most easily reached on foot across the Heath, which is part of the point, or by bus along Spaniards Road.
The best pubs page covers the rest of London’s old pubs, and the parks cover the rest of the green space.
Kenwood House
- Address
- Hampstead Lane, London NW3 7JR, on the northern edge of Hampstead Heath
- Nearest
- Golders Green or Archway, then a bus, or walk across the Heath from Hampstead Heath Overground
- Hours
- Grounds 7am to 6pm daily. House and shops 10am to 5pm daily. Cafe 9am to 5pm daily
- Booking
- Free day tickets can be booked online until 8.45am on the day. After that, walk up tickets subject to availability. Groups of more than ten should email in advance
- Price
- Free, for every ticket type, with or without the optional donation. Some exhibitions may charge
- Standing
- A free English Heritage house with an art collection, in its own grounds on the Heath
How to get in
Kenwood reserves the right to stagger the entry times of large unbooked groups. English Heritage membership covers over 400 sites and admits up to six children.
The Spaniards Inn
- Address
- Spaniards Road, Hampstead, London NW3 7JJ
- Nearest
- Hampstead or Golders Green, then a bus or a walk across the Heath
- Hours
- Monday midday to 11pm. Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 11pm. Sunday 11.30am to 10.30pm
- Booking
- Online, or 020 8731 8406
- Price
- Pub food, cask ales and a Sunday roast
- Standing
- Built in 1585 by two Spanish brothers, Grade II listed, with a garden at the top of the Heath
How to get in
The Monday opening is midday, two hours later than the rest of the week. Associated with Dickens, Keats and the Dick Turpin legend.
Where to go next
Hampstead Heath covers the swimming prices, the booking rules and the free zoo in detail.
The best pubs cover the rest of London’s old rooms, and the parks page covers the rest of the green space.
Questions we get asked
Is Kenwood House free?
Yes. Every ticket type is free, including adults, children, concessions and families, with or without the optional donation. Some temporary exhibitions may charge separately.
Do you need to book Kenwood House?
It is recommended. Free day tickets can be booked online only until 8.45am on the day of your visit, after which entry depends on walk up availability. Groups of more than ten should email the house in advance.
What time does Kenwood House open?
The grounds open at 7am and close at 6pm, every day. The house and shops run 10am to 5pm and the cafe 9am to 5pm, also seven days a week.
What is there to do in Hampstead?
Kenwood House, which is free; Hampstead Heath, with three bathing ponds and a 60 metre lido; Golders Hill Park Zoo, which is also free and opens at 7.30am; and the Spaniards Inn, a pub built in 1585 at the top of the Heath.
What time does the Spaniards Inn open?
Midday on Monday, 10am Tuesday to Saturday, and 11.30am on Sunday. It closes at 11pm Monday to Saturday and 10.30pm on Sunday.
How do you get to Hampstead?
Hampstead on the Northern line and Hampstead Heath on the Overground both reach the southern end of the Heath. Golders Green, also on the Northern line, is the stop for Golders Hill Park, about 14 minutes on foot, with the 210 and 268 buses nearby.
Written by Robert J Wills, no. 220 in the guide.
Last checked 5 October 2026 against the venues' own published information. Nobody pays to appear here and we take no bookings.
