At last River Hill gardens are open once again! With a reduced entry price of just £6.50 the gardens are a delight to visit. Although it is too late to see the rhododendrons The Pyrenees are looking beautiful and indeed the garden is full of interesting corners and colour. We especially liked the new rock garden that has only just opened. One of the special things about River Hill gardens is the personal welcome by the owner’s wife, Sarah and the fact that autos kitchen have installed a takeaway cafe there serving coffees teas cakes and nibbles. The prices are reasonable and there are plenty of places in the garden to sit down and enjoy your takeaways or even to share your own picnic. The garden has lovely views over the Weald of Kent, an interesting wooded area where children can build dens and even its own Yeti who appears during school holidays and at weekends. The owners have done a really good job making the place safe with hand sanitizers, very clean toilets but you do need to book ahead using their website. We were so impressed by the place and because we live locally, have decided to extend our ticket to annual membership. River Hill is a nice place for children to run around and for adults to get some peace and quiet. Do go and enjoy it

Our first trip out of Essex was to help support a beautiful garden in Kent after their lockdown. For a bargain price of £6.50 each my daughter and I had a really delightful afternoon. Firstly - you must book online. You have to go in a particular half hour time slot and visits should be limited to around two hours. You can't get in if you just turn up - but booking is really easy online! The staff were incredibly friendly, from the lovely lady on the gate to the staff in the Cafe. All facilities are open (cafe is take away only but there are places nearby in the gardens to sit and enjoy a drink) and the toilet is accessible to all. However the gardens are in places quite steep and tough on the old knees and thighs. I think the elderly or the smaller people might have a bit of a hard time. However there were woods (with an unseen yeti!) to build dens, a lovely maze and lots of places for hide and seek. Picnic and normal benches dotted around and the gazebo in the formal garden was somewhere to shelter if the rain started. We easily made it round in the two hours required, including a treat of a tea and a hot chocolate from the cafe. The panoramic views as the sun broke through was as much a highlight as the beautiful trees and plants. Really smashing.

These are lovely gardens, although I should declare that I am no horticulture expert. The entry to Riverhill is well signed but would still be easy to miss as it is on the apex of a bend in a fairly fast road out of Sevenoaks. I was here with elderly relatives who require disabled spaces and there are several close to the main entrance to the gardens and right by the house. The main parking lot is further a way and requires a walk that is on a slope, as is the whole garden, so be aware if you have folks with you for whom walking is an issue. As one enters, everything is well signposted and there is a kiosk to pay - we actually reserved entry times which may be worth doing at busy times. To the right of the entrance is an excellent small cafe and tables outside which is great for refreshments either before or after experiencing the gardens. The gardens themselves are delightfully presented and are, apparently, in the throes of a long term restoration and renovation to reclaim their former glories but don't let that worry you. Everything that you can see is completed and there is plenty of it. We engaged one of the volunteer gardeners who told us a bit of the history and the plans to reclaim all the former areas in due course. What you can see is extremely well kept and the plants are labelled so those, like me, of a less botanical bent know at what they are looking. There are wonderful views across southern Kent and it pays to walk down to the summer house (just past the washrooms) to get the best vistas. The paths are largely gravel, and one of our party was in a wheelchair. As I mentioned, the garden is on a hillside so there are some slopes to go up and down. It is perfectly doable in a wheelchair, at least the main areas, but it does take some pushing! All in all a great garden to spend a couple of hours and they have regular displays of sculpture etc. although we were a little early to see this season's exhibits which run June through August I understand. We were there in spring so a great many plants were in flower and delightful they were. Well worth a visit