Halloween at Kew: after-dark trail

What it is

Kew after dark is a different garden. A lit trail runs through the glasshouses and the arboretum with live performers along it, and the headless horseman is the one children talk about afterwards. It is theatrical rather than frightening, pitched at families rather than at anyone hoping to be scared.

The run is in two halves

From 16 to 24 October it opens at 6pm. From 25 October to 1 November, which is half term, it opens at 4pm. Both close at 10pm and last entry is 8.30pm, strictly. The walk is about two miles on gravel, so an 8pm arrival is tighter than it sounds.

What it costs, and the ticket nobody mentions

Non-member adults pay from 19.50 off peak and 24 at peak; Kew members from 16.75 and 20.55. Anyone on Universal Credit or Pension Credit can get in for 1 pound, which Kew publishes and almost no roundup repeats.

Which session to book

Twilight sessions run 6pm to 7.30pm and the scare level goes up a notch. Moonlight is anything after 7.30pm and is as dark as it gets, though still aimed at families. The early slots are partly daylight and half the trail is lighting, so book the latest you can face.

Getting there

Kew Gardens station is on the District line and the Overground, five minutes from Victoria Gate. The car park fills long before the last slots.

Nearby

Richmond has the nearest stations and everything else on in the same part of town. The Kew Gardens page collects every listing we hold for that address. Filed under Seasonal.