MAPS: Div 1 Start/Finish | Division 1 Course
Division 2 & 3 Start/Finish | Division 2 & 3 Course

Where to View the Race

The Tiffin Small Boat Head can be viewed from a number of locations along its 5300 metre course.

The start and first 500 metres can be viewed from Barge Walk in front of Hampton Court Palace on the Middlesex side of the river. This is a paved road with access for pedestrians from the Middlesex side of Hampton Court Bridge. Parking is available in a car park on the Hampton Road or in the Hampton Court Station car park.

From Barge Walk to Kingston Bridge the course can be viewed from the towing path on the Middlesex side of the river. This path can be used both on foot and on bicycles but from Barge Walk until 750 metres upstream of Kingston Bridge it is a gravel path which in adverse weather conditions can become quite muddy, especially the path closest to the river. The 750 metre section above Kingston Bridge is a paved road and is accessed from the Middlesex side of Kingston Bridge. Apart from the last 500 metres upstream of Kingston Bridge the view from this path can be obscured by trees and bushes along the water front.

The section from Raven’s Ait to Kingston Bridge can also be viewed from the Promenade on the Surrey side of the river. This is a hard walkway which can be accessed either from Portsmouth Road or from the Surrey side of Kingston Bridge. Parking is restricted on Saturdays along Portsmouth Road and in the side roads off it until Anglesea Road on the Surbiton/Esher side of Kingston.

Either side of Kingston Bridge is a superb place to view the race, either looking upstream towards Raven’s Ait or downstream towards Kingston Railway Bridge. The footpaths on both sides of the bridge are now quite extensive.

The section between Kingston Bridge and Kingston Railway Bridge can also be viewed from Thames Side on the Surrey side of the river.

The last 500 metres of the course can be viewed from the riverside walkway in Canbury Gardens which can be accessed from Lower Ham Road. Parking here is pay and display on Saturdays and is limited.

The finish can be viewed from The Boathouse in Canbury Gardens where refreshments will be available all day and where results will be available after each division and where prizes will be presented at 4.00 p.m.

Parking is difficult in Kingston on Saturdays especially around Canbury Gardens, but free parking might be available in Albany Park Road or in the roads on the Richmond Park side of Richmond Road. Parking will also be available in Tiffin School playground which is accessed via London Road, but this is a ten to fifteen minute walk through Kingston to Kingston Bridge or a twenty-five minute walk to the boathouse.