ROYAL HOSPITAL, CHELSEA and RANELAGH GARDENS 24 ha
Plan your visit
🦉 Wildlife🦅 Birds🦋 Insects
Dogs welcome 24 ha
Places › England › London › Kensington and Chelsea Getting here
51.48719, -0.15639
Open directionsv
About ROYAL HOSPITAL, CHELSEA and RANELAGH GARDENS The Royal Hospital Chelsea is an old soldiers' retirement home and nursing home for some 300 veterans of the British Army. Founded as an almshouse — the ancient sense of the word "hospital" — by King Charles II in 1682, it is a 66-acre (27 ha) site located on Royal Hospital Road in Chelsea, London. It is an independent charity and relies partly upon donations to cover day-to-day running costs to provide care and accommodation for veterans.
Read more on Wikipedia → Hospital Grade II listed park and garden c. 1682
Visiting this summer
Seasonal nature notes and what to look for now
▾ ☀️ June — long evenings and clear skies; one of the most rewarding months for a late visit ✦ Historic character is a year-round quality here — summer brings its own atmosphere to the setting ☕ Kat Coffee — a good base for a longer summer day out 🌤️ Visiting this summer
☀️ June — long evenings and clear skies; one of the most rewarding months for a late visit ✦ Historic character is a year-round quality here — summer brings its own atmosphere to the setting ☕ Kat Coffee — a good base for a longer summer day out 🚲 Bike parking☕ Café🅿️ Parking· Paid
🦉 Wildlife
Very strong match
Multi-group wildlife — Amphibians, Birds, Mammals; Multi-group wildlife — Amphibians, Birds, Mammals
Free
🦅 Bird watching
Very strong match
Birds — Magpie, Robin, Black-headed Gull +53 more · last seen 2026; Birds — Magpie, Robin, Black-headed Gull +53 more · last seen 2026
Free
🦋 Insect spotting
Strong match
Insects — Harlequin Ladybird, 7-spot Ladybird, Marmalade Hoverfly +46 more · last seen 2026; Insects — Harlequin Ladybird, 7-spot Ladybird, Marmalade Hoverfly +46 more · last seen 2026
Free
Deciduous woodland — fungi, berries and wild garlic
Varies
🍂 Seasonal nature
Good match
Plants — Crescent-cup Liverwort, Grey-cushioned Grimmia, Silver-moss · last seen 2026; Plants — Crescent-cup Liverwort, Grey-cushioned Grimmia, Silver-moss · last seen 2026
Free
Trails nearby Within roughly 5 km 33 signed routes nearby
Signed route nearby
Wandle Trail Walking route ▾
Named route Local walking route
Show on map Peter's Hill pedway Walking route ▾
Named route Local walking route
Show on map Capital Ring link to Balham station Walking route ▾
Named route Regional walking route
Show on map link to West Dulwich station Walking route ▾
signposted link from West Dulwich station to the Green Chain Walk
Named route Ref G-C link Regional walking route
Show on map Jubilee Walkway (Camden Loop) Walking route ▾
Named route Round trip Regional walking route
Show on map 418 signed routes nearby
Signed route nearby
Cycleway 3 Cycling route ▾
Named route Ref C3 Regional cycle route
Show on map Route ■ Cycling route ▾
Named route Ref ■ Local cycle route
Show on map Route (C27) Cycling route ▾
Named route Ref (C27) Regional cycle route
Show on map Route ■ Cycling route ▾
Named route Ref ■ Local cycle route
Show on map Route Q Cycling route ▾
Named route Ref Q Regional cycle route
Show on map Route C Cycling route ▾
Named route Ref C Regional cycle route
Show on map
Weather for this location Next 14 days Nearby places Useful places within 5 km
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id: 2a51f652-e5ce-4441-a535-afcdff7f3eb2
UK green spaces mapped from open public data — so anyone can find the woodland, trail, or nature reserve closest to them.
© 2026 Glade · Made with care for UK green spaces
Wildlife to spot
57,710 records · National Biodiversity Network
▾
Wildlife to spot 57,710 records · National Biodiversity Network 🐦 Birds 40 species
winter spring
2026 ▾
Magpie · Greylag Goose · Mallard · Woodpigeon · Black-headed Gull +35
Magpie Pica pica Greylag Goose Anser anser Mallard Anas platyrhynchos Woodpigeon Columba palumbus Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus Robin Erithacus rubecula Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula Grey Heron Ardea cinerea Gadwall Mareca strepera Canada Goose Branta canadensis Wren Troglodytes troglodytes Mute Swan Cygnus olor Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus Coot Fulica atra Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus Great Tit Parus major Blackbird Turdus merula Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major Moorhen Gallinula chloropus Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo2025 Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca2025 Little Owl Athene noctua Coal Tit Periparus ater Jay Garrulus glandarius Jackdaw Coloeus monedula Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus2025 Starling Sturnus vulgaris2025 Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea2025 Herring Gull Larus argentatus2025 Goldcrest Regulus regulus2025 Rock Dove Columba livia2025 Mandarin Duck Aix galericulata2025 Carrion Crow Corvus corone2025 Common Gull Larus canus2025 Pied Wagtail Motacilla alba yarrellii2025 Kingfisher Alcedo atthis2025 Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis2025 Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis2025 🦌 Mammals 2 species
winter spring
2026 ▾
Grey Squirrel · Red Fox
Grey Squirrel Sciurus carolinensis Red Fox Vulpes vulpes 🐸 Amphibians 2 species
spring
2026 ▾
Smooth Newt · Common Frog
Smooth Newt Lissotriton vulgaris Common Frog Rana temporaria 🐝 Insects 12 species
winter spring
2026 ▾
Meliscaeva auricollis · Water Scorpion · Hairy-footed Flower Bee · Eristalis pertinax · Epistrophe eligans +7
Meliscaeva auricollis Meliscaeva auricollis Water Scorpion Nepa cinerea Hairy-footed Flower Bee Anthophora plumipes Eristalis pertinax Eristalis pertinax Epistrophe eligans Epistrophe eligans Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus Crescent-cup Liverwort · Silver-moss · Grey-cushioned Grimmia
Crescent-cup Liverwort Lunularia cruciata Silver-moss Bryum argenteum Grey-cushioned Grimmia Grimmia pulvinata Species observations from the last 10 years via NBN Atlas
Wildlife to spot 57,710 records · National Biodiversity Network 🐦 Birds 40 species
winter spring
2026 ▾
Magpie · Greylag Goose · Mallard · Woodpigeon · Black-headed Gull +35
Magpie Pica pica Greylag Goose Anser anser Mallard Anas platyrhynchos Woodpigeon Columba palumbus Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus Robin Erithacus rubecula Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula Grey Heron Ardea cinerea Gadwall Mareca strepera Canada Goose Branta canadensis Wren Troglodytes troglodytes Mute Swan Cygnus olor Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus Coot Fulica atra Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus Great Tit Parus major Blackbird Turdus merula Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major Moorhen Gallinula chloropus Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo2025 Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca2025 Little Owl Athene noctua Coal Tit Periparus ater Jay Garrulus glandarius Jackdaw Coloeus monedula Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus2025 Starling Sturnus vulgaris2025 Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea2025 Herring Gull Larus argentatus2025 Goldcrest Regulus regulus2025 Rock Dove Columba livia2025 Mandarin Duck Aix galericulata2025 Carrion Crow Corvus corone2025 Common Gull Larus canus2025 Pied Wagtail Motacilla alba yarrellii2025 Kingfisher Alcedo atthis2025 Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis2025 Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis2025 🦌 Mammals 2 species
winter spring
2026 ▾
Grey Squirrel · Red Fox
Grey Squirrel Sciurus carolinensis Red Fox Vulpes vulpes 🐸 Amphibians 2 species
spring
2026 ▾
Smooth Newt · Common Frog
Smooth Newt Lissotriton vulgaris Common Frog Rana temporaria 🐝 Insects 12 species
winter spring
2026 ▾
Meliscaeva auricollis · Water Scorpion · Hairy-footed Flower Bee · Eristalis pertinax · Epistrophe eligans +7
Meliscaeva auricollis Meliscaeva auricollis Water Scorpion Nepa cinerea Hairy-footed Flower Bee Anthophora plumipes Eristalis pertinax Eristalis pertinax Epistrophe eligans Epistrophe eligans Marmalade Hoverfly Episyrphus balteatus Crescent-cup Liverwort · Silver-moss · Grey-cushioned Grimmia
Crescent-cup Liverwort Lunularia cruciata Silver-moss Bryum argenteum Grey-cushioned Grimmia Grimmia pulvinata Species observations from the last 10 years via NBN Atlas
Back-Swimmer Notonecta
Back-Swimmer Notonecta
Water Measurer Hydrometra stagnorum
Water Measurer Hydrometra stagnorum
Orange Ladybird Halyzia sedecimguttata
Orange Ladybird Halyzia sedecimguttata
2-spot Ladybird Adalia bipunctata
2-spot Ladybird Adalia bipunctata
7-spot Ladybird Coccinella septempunctata
7-spot Ladybird Coccinella septempunctata
Birch Catkin Bug Kleidocerys resedae
Birch Catkin Bug Kleidocerys resedae Events & activities nearby Switch provider to compare local events, tours and bookable activities.
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