Some 20 mi from central London, on a loop of the Thames upstream from Richmond, stands one of London's oldest royal palaces, more like a small town in size and requiring a day of your time to do it justice. It's actually two palaces in one -- a Tudor residence and a late-17th-century baroque one -- as well as a renowned garden. The magnificent Tudor brick house was begun in 1514 by Cardinal Wolsey, the ambitious and worldly lord chancellor (roughly, prime minister) of England and archbishop of York. He wanted it to be the absolute best palace in the land, and in this he succeeded so effectively that Henry VIII grew deeply envious, whereupon Wolsey felt obliged to give Hampton Court to the king.

The palace, steeped in history and hung with priceless paintings, is full of echoing, cobbled courtyards, not to mention the ghost of Catherine Howard screaming her innocence of adultery to an unheeding Henry VIII. Six walking routes -- Henry VIII's State Apartments, the Tudor Kitchens, the Wolsey Rooms and Renaissance Picture Gallery, the King's (William's) Apartments, the Queen's Apartments, and the Georgian Rooms -- help you organize your time and take in centuries of changing taste in architecture and decoration. Some highlights are Henry's Great Hall and the Chapel Royal (with its fan vaulting and azure ceiling), and the regal King's Apartments. Be sure to look outside as you explore the baroque apartments. The gardens were designed to please anyone gazing out the windows, as well as people strolling outside. Throughout the palace, costumed interpreters and special programs, such as cooking demonstrations in the cavernous Tudor kitchens, make history fun.

The site beside the slow-moving Thames is idyllic, with 60 acres of fantastic ornamental gardens, lakes, and ponds, including William III's Privy Garden on the palace's south side. Its parterres, sculpted turf, and clipped yews and hollies -- a hybrid of English and Continental gardening styles -- brilliantly set off Wren's addition. Other highlights are Henry VIII's Pond Garden, the enormous conical yews around the Fountain Garden, and the daffodil-lined paths of the Wilderness. On the east side of the house, 544 lime trees were replanted in 2004 along the Long Water, a canal built during the time of Charles II. The Great Vine, near the Banqueting House, was planted in 1768 and is still producing black Hamburg grapes. Perhaps best of all are the almost half mile of paths in the celebrated maze, which you enter to the north of the palace. It was planted in 1714 and is truly fiendish. COST: Palace, gardens, and maze £11.80, gardens £4, maze alone £3.50, park grounds free. Joint tickets available with Kensington Palace and the Tower of London. Tube: National Rail, South West: Hampton Court Station from Waterloo. Tube: Richmond, then bus R68.