Hampton Court — The Federation on the ground

Hampton Court Palace — Henry VIII's residence on the Thames, the most architecturally layered royal palace in England, combining Tudor brick with Wren's baroque east front — is fifty minutes from Mayfair. The State Apartments, the Great Hall with its hammer-beam roof, the Tudor kitchens, the Baroque gardens and the famous maze form an extraordinary cultural half-day. The Federation arranges pre-opening palace access, dinner on the terrace overlooking the Privy Garden, and the summer Hampton Court Palace Festival (June, classical concerts).