In 2024, Buckingham Palace opened its East Wing to the public for the first time in 175 years, and the result was record-breaking. The 2024 summer opening was the most visited in the history of Buckingham Palace’s summer programme, with almost 6,000 people combining their State Rooms visit with the newly launched East Wing Highlights Tour alone. For the thousands of visitors who made the royal palace a centrepiece of their London trip that summer, one logistical decision shaped the experience more than almost any other: where they were staying relative to the Palace.
Hotel location and a major attraction like Buckingham Palace have a relationship most visitors underestimate until they are paying for multiple tube journeys daily or walking longer distances than planned because their accommodation sat at the wrong end of the city.
The Geography of Staying Close
Buckingham Palace sits at the meeting point of three of London’s royal parks: Green Park to the north, St. James’s Park to the east, and the western boundary of Hyde Park beyond that. This park corridor is the key to understanding why hotels close to Buckingham Palace are often not immediately adjacent to it, but connected to it through one of the most pleasant walking routes in any capital city in the world.
Paddington, located at the northern tip of Hyde Park, sits at the other end of that corridor. From the hotels in Paddington area, Buckingham Palace is reachable on foot in approximately 30 to 35 minutes through Hyde Park and Green Park, without a single road crossing of note. For visitors who plan to spend meaningful time around the Palace, the Changing of the Guard, the State Rooms during summer opening, or simply the views from The Mall, that walk becomes a daily pleasure rather than a transit obligation.
The alternative, taking the underground from a hotel in a cheaper but less well-connected area, typically involves two changes and rarely saves any real time once the walk to and from the station is factored in.
What the Walk Actually Covers
Leaving the Paddington accommodation district and heading south through Hyde Park puts visitors on a route that passes the Diana Memorial Fountain, the Serpentine Lake, and the Albert Memorial before emerging at Hyde Park Corner. From there, Green Park and St. James’s Park lead directly to the Palace forecourt. That same route, done in reverse after a visit, turns a necessary journey back to the hotel into something worth doing.
This is what proximity to a park corridor delivers that proximity to a tube station alone does not: the kind of London experience that feels genuinely different from navigating a city through underground tunnels.
Paddington as a Base for the Royal Quarter
Beyond the walk to Buckingham Palace, the Paddington area gives visitors access to a broader band of West and Central London that suits both first-time and returning visitors.
Paddington Station’s connections via the Elizabeth line and multiple underground services reach Westminster, the South Bank, the city, and Canary Wharf quickly, without requiring changes at congested central hubs like Leicester Square or Oxford Circus. For visitors splitting their time between the royal and cultural quarter and other parts of London, that flexibility has real daily value.
Sussex Gardens and the streets surrounding it offer accommodation at rates noticeably below what equivalent standards cost in Mayfair or Belgravia, despite the walking access to the same attractions. Budget hotels in this area regularly price 30 to 50 percent below comparable properties nearer the Palace itself.
Accommodation Distance and Cost Comparison
| Area | Walk to Buckingham Palace | Estimated Hotel Rate (per night) | Underground Required |
| Mayfair / Green Park | 10 – 15 min | £200 – £450+ | No |
| Victoria / Pimlico | 10 – 20 min | £130 – £280 | No |
| Paddington / Sussex Gardens | 30 – 35 min (through parks) | £75 – £180 | No (walkable via Hyde Park) |
| Bayswater / Notting Hill | 35 – 40 min | £90 – £200 | Optional |
| Marble Arch / Edgware Road | 35 – 45 min | £100 – £220 | Optional |
Source: Rates based on general London hotel market pricing data (2025–2026) researched by The Walking Street. Walk times are approximate and route-dependent.
Practical Notes on Timing a Palace Visit
Buckingham Palace’s State Rooms open each summer, with 2026 dates running from 9 July to 27 September. Tickets sell out well in advance for peak summer weeks, particularly since the East Wing tours introduced in 2024 operate in limited numbers. Visitors planning to include a State Rooms visit should book tickets as soon as they become available rather than hoping for availability on arrival.
The Changing of the Guard, which is free to watch, takes place daily during summer months on the Palace forecourt and is viewable from the railings on Buckingham Palace Road. It requires no booking and remains one of the most genuinely impressive ceremonies visible for free anywhere in the city.
A Property That Understands the Balance
For visitors specifically thinking about hotels close to Buckingham Palace within a sensible budget, Abbey Court Hotel London Paddington sits on Sussex Gardens in the heart of Paddington’s accommodation district, representing exactly the kind of base that makes the park walk to the Palace an option every morning rather than an occasional indulgence. Its location within the Paddington area gives travellers ready access to both the royal quarter and the wider city.
What the Record Summer Tells Travellers
The fact that 2024 was Buckingham Palace’s most visited summer ever is not just a piece of royal tourism trivia. It signals that demand for the royal quarter of London, already among the city’s most visited, is growing. Visitors who plan their accommodation around that reality, rather than defaulting to whatever comes up first in a search, will find that the right base makes the entire experience more connected and less effortful from the first day to the last.
