Two Kent castles in one day, from your London hotel door.
Moat, maze and Anne Boleyn’s Hever.
- From £500 · whole car · 8–9 hours
Licence PHOP950A Leeds Castle and Hever Castle day trip from London takes eight to nine hours door to door. Your private driver allows 90 minutes down the M20 to Leeds Castle and an hour across Kent to Hever. The drive home takes 90 minutes. From £500 for the whole car. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before pickup.
How does a Leeds Castle and Hever Castle day trip from London run?
Your chauffeur collects you at the time you choose, usually between 8:00am and 9:00am. Leeds Castle opens its grounds at 10:00 and Hever its castle rooms at 12:00; the castles fix the order.
Leeds Castle first, Hever after lunch
- 08:30Pickup at your London hotel; the A2, M25 and M20 south-east, 45 miles.
- 10:00Leeds Castle grounds open; the castle rooms follow at 10:30.
- 10:30The castle: Lady Baillie’s 1930s rooms and the story of six medieval queens, 75 minutes.
- 11:45The maze of 2,400 yew trees and the grotto beneath it, then the gardens, 45 minutes.
- 12:30Lunch at the Castle View Restaurant or a picnic by the lake; the car waits in the main car park.
- 13:30Across the Weald of Kent to Hever, 33 miles, about an hour.
- 14:30Hever Castle: the Boleyn family home and its panelled rooms, 75 minutes.
- 15:45The Edwardian yew maze and the lake walk, one hour.
- 16:45Depart; the M25 north-west, 37 miles.
- 18:15Back at your London hotel, inside nine hours.
The whole day at one castle
Castle, maze, gardens and the 2pm falconry display, home by 16:30: eight hours door to door at the same price.
Churchill’s home, 5 miles from Hever
Chartwell is 17 minutes from Hever. A 90-minute visit makes a ten-hour day: one extra hour on the booking.
Leeds Castle sits 45 miles south-east of Mayfair at junction 8 of the M20, 7 miles east of Maidstone. The estate asks drivers to follow the brown signs from the A20; our chauffeurs use the main entrance, not the private one.
From Heathrow Terminal 5 the castle is 67 miles, so an arrival day can start there.
What is there to see at Leeds Castle and at Hever Castle?
A moated Norman castle restyled as a 1930s country house, then a Tudor manor with a hundred-year-old maze.
- Leeds Castle — the first stone castle rose in 1119 on two islands in the River Len; six medieval queens lived here, Eleanor of Castile among them.
- Lady Baillie’s rooms — the Anglo-American heiress restyled the interiors in the 1930s; the route runs library, dining rooms, games room and bedrooms.
- The maze and grotto — 2,400 yew trees, circular from the mound and square from the ground; the centre drops into an underground grotto.
- Falconry and parkland — a free-flying display at 2pm daily from April to September, 500 acres of grounds, and the Black Swan ferry across the lake.
- Hever Castle — twelve families have owned it since 1383; the Boleyns made it the family home in which Anne Boleyn grew up.
- Hever gardens and mazes — laid out between 1904 and 1908 for William Waldorf Astor; the yew maze is 80 feet square with 8-foot hedges, and the water maze soaks the unwary.
What is included in the price of the day?
The car, the chauffeur and every road cost, in one figure agreed by email before the day.
Door-to-door pickup
Any London hotel, apartment or airport terminal; on arrival days the driver waits inside arrivals with a name board.
Fuel, parking and tolls
All mileage, the Dartford crossing if we use it, and both castle car parks are ours; nothing to pay on the day.
The driver waits at both castles
Three hours at Leeds Castle and two at Hever while the car sits by the entrance; no meter runs.
Stops on the way at no charge
Chartwell, Sevenoaks or a vineyard in the Kent Downs add nothing if they fit the day’s hours.
Child seats and pushchairs
Child seats fitted on request at no charge. Pushchairs cannot enter the Leeds Castle rooms; a buggy park waits at the door.
Not included
Admission and meals. Leeds Castle adult tickets are £34.50 online and Hever adult tickets £25.50 online; you book, we advise.
Which vehicle suits the two-castle day?
The Mercedes V-Class for a family or friends, the E-Class for two. The car is yours for the whole day.
Mercedes E-Class
3 passengers · 3 suitcases
£500
Mercedes V-Class
7 passengers · 7 suitcases · the family choice
£570
Mercedes S-Class
3 passengers · rear-seat comfort
£850
Range Rover
3 passengers · the high seat on Kent lanes
£990
One fixed price per car for the day, return — fuel, parking and tolls included; extra hours from £55 each.
Six adults with day bags travel comfortably in a V-Class; seating and boot details are on the Mercedes V-Class page. Two travellers are best served by the E-Class in the photo at the top.
When are Leeds Castle and Hever Castle open, and what should we know?
Leeds Castle opens 364 days a year. Hever opens daily from mid-February to late October, then Wednesday to Sunday until 19 November, then for Christmas.
- Leeds Castle hours:castle rooms 10:30 to 17:00 from April to September (last entry 16:30); 10:30 to 15:30 from October to March; grounds from 10:00.
- Hever hours:grounds from 10:30 and castle rooms from 12:00; last castle entry 17:00 from 28 March to 25 October, 15:30 in late October and November.
- Tickets:buy online before travelling on each castle’s own site. Both charge less online than at the gate, and Leeds Castle needs no timed slot. We do not sell tickets.
- On site:no dogs at either castle except assistance dogs; picnics are welcome in the grounds; pack a towel for Hever’s water maze.
- Winter:castle rooms close by 15:30 from November, so we leave London at 8:00 and keep Leeds Castle first.
- Hever closed on your dates?the Windsor Castle day trip runs all year, and Leeds Castle alone fills a full day.
Can we combine this with Canterbury and Dover, or add Chartwell?
Chartwell, yes. Canterbury and Dover, only as a swap: Leeds Castle is 24 miles from Canterbury, but Hever is 60 miles from Dover.
- ChartwellWinston Churchill’s family home, a National Trust house 5 miles from Hever; 90 minutes there adds one hour to the booking.
- Canterbury and the White Cliffsbook the Canterbury and Dover day trip instead; it offers Leeds Castle as a homeward stop and costs the same.
- Two days, one driverthe castles on day one, the cathedral and the cliffs on day two; the same chauffeur at your door both mornings.
How do I book a Leeds Castle and Hever Castle day trip from London?
Send us the date and the group
Use the contact form with your date, London pickup address and number of travellers; tell us if you want Chartwell or Leeds Castle alone.
We confirm the fixed price
We reply by email with the figure for your vehicle class and a written plan for the day.
Confirm and relax
Pay by card, or cash to the driver; your driver’s name and number arrive the evening before.
Or book online now. Choose the date, a departure between 8:00am and 12:00 noon and your car — the fixed price for the whole car appears before you pay.
Frequently asked questions about the two-castle day
Do you sell Leeds Castle or Hever Castle tickets?
No. Each castle sells its own tickets online, and both charge less online than at the gate. Leeds Castle tickets stay valid for a year and need no timed slot; Hever’s castle rooms open at noon. Our part is the door-to-door drive, the wait at both entrances and the journey home.
How long is the drive from London to Leeds Castle?
About 90 minutes from central London in normal traffic: the A2 or M25, then the M20 to junction 8. Leeds Castle is 45 miles from Mayfair and 67 miles from Heathrow Terminal 5. Hever is 33 miles further west, about an hour across the Weald.
Why Leeds Castle first and Hever second?
Because the castles set the hours. Leeds Castle opens its rooms at 10:30; Hever opens its grounds at 10:30 and the castle rooms at 12:00. Leeds first gives you the rooms before lunch and Hever at 14:30. Prefer the 2pm falconry display? Take Leeds Castle alone for the day.
Which car suits a family of five?
A Mercedes V-Class at £570 for the day. It seats seven with seven suitcases, has three rows and space for a pushchair. Child seats are fitted on request at no charge. Couples usually take the E-Class; the S-Class and Range Rover are the executive options.
Can we add Leeds Castle to the Canterbury and Dover day instead?
Yes. That day trip lists Leeds Castle as a 40-minute stop on the way back from Dover, at the same price. This page covers the two mid-Kent castles together; Hever is 60 miles from Dover and does not fit that day.
Is the day suitable for young children?
Yes. Leeds Castle has playgrounds, the maze and grotto, adventure golf and the lake ferry; Hever has play areas and the water maze, where under-5s go in with an adult. Pushchairs wait outside the Leeds Castle rooms in a buggy park; a spare one fits in any boot.
Where do the facts on this page come from?
Opening hours, ticket prices, visitor rules and history come from the two castles’ own websites; Chartwell from the National Trust. Checked 11 September 2026.
- Leeds Castle — pricing and tickets
- Leeds Castle — opening times and directions
- Leeds Castle — history of the castle
- Leeds Castle — the maze and grotto · falconry displays · visitor FAQs
- Hever Castle — prices · opening times and directions
- Hever Castle — the Boleyn family · the gardens · the mazes
- National Trust — Chartwell
One price for the whole car, London to two castles and back.
Send the date and we reply with the fixed figure and the plan for the day. More destinations are under day trips from London by private car.
Tripyana Ltd is a UK-licensed company — private hire operator licence PHOP950 · Company No. 16308293.