This weekend Craig and I found ourselves unexpectedly free on Saturday. It was pegged by the weather forecast to be a nice day, and so we decided it was about time I went to explore the picturesque land of Richmond for a day trip. 

Getting to Richmond

We had a look on Citymapper and our route was pretty convoluted, but we got 3 trains to Wimbledon, Clapham Junction and then finally to Richmond. I love living in London but it you are going between different areas that are outside of central it can be an absolute pain to go just a few miles away! But we set out anyway and arrived in sunny Richmond. 

What to do in Richmond

We decided in advance that we would head to the park first and have a picnic lunch, since we had arrived around 12. There is a Sainsburys and a Tesco pretty close to the station so we went in and picked up some bits and a few beverages to enjoy. 

Richmond Park

The walk to the park from the station goes through the town then veers along some residential streets (wasn’t jealous of the beautiful houses at all…). It’s pretty uphill, so brace yourself for a climb! But it was good, felt like we were earning our picnic treats for sure. When we got to the park we followed the path and walked for about 15 minutes in towards the small lake. This seemed like a pretty good spot to set up shop, so I cracked out the dinosaur picnic blanket and we were ready to go. 

We sat by the edge just past the trees in the sun to make the most of the nice weather. It was really sunny all the way there and for the first hour it was glorious sun, but then the clouds rolled in. We had a nice afternoon watching all the wildlife on the pond and even made friends with a runaway dog, but no sign of the famous deer, who are free to roam the huge parklands as they wish. Little disappointing but I am sure we will be back one day to find them! 

It was also interesting as avid travellers to watch all the planes coming across in front of us to land at Heathrow. The residents may not be a fan, but it was fun to wonder where the planes had all come from. And to remember that at that point it was only 18 days until our next trip on one woo! Maybe not an activity for everyone’s ideal Richmond day trip but we had fun. 

Whilst enjoying the last of the drinks we noticed it was getting very windy and a bit chilly. I was wildly underdressed for this turn of events, I should know better by now but no I thought a kimono-type shrug would be a perfectly suitable jacket for the day. So we decided to head back into the town and venture to some pubs. 

Richmond pubs

First we stopped at the Roebuck, which is at a super cool location overlooking an awesome view of the river. They have a load of park benches across the road that look out onto that view, and you can take your drink there which is cool! 

It was very windy though, and so we decided to head back down through the terrace fields and along the riverfront towards the town. 

We walked until we hit the Pitcher and Piano, which has a really great outdoor space where you can enjoy your drinks and watch the world pass by. It looked a little stormy outside which was quite a dramatic backdrop, but did force us to move inside when the heavens opened. But I definitely intend to go back when it is sunny to enjoy it fully! 

Then, Liverpool were playing and Craig wanted to watch the match so we headed to the Angel and Crown, a cosy pub down a narrow side street off the high street, as they show sports. The bar staff were really nice and very attentive, we didn’t even have to go to the bar to order! It was also pretty reasonably priced which was great, we have an expensive month coming up! I had a great ‘dirty’ milkshake for only £6! 

Richmond day trip thoughts

It was a lovely day trip, and I am definitely keen to visit again and explore a bit more. It’s so nice to have such a wide range of places within nearby distance of London. Richmond is only in zone 4 as well so nice and cheap to get to! If you live in London and you’ve never checked it out you should definitely stop by.

I would love to go back in autumn season as Richmond Park would be the perfect setting for a crunchy leaf walk!