Kenwood House
A free neoclassical mansion on the edge of Hampstead Heath with a Rembrandt, a Vermeer and a Turner on the walls, plus a walled garden and a cracking cafe.
The lowdown
Most stately homes charge you a fortune to look round. Kenwood, a beautiful cream neoclassical house sitting at the top of Hampstead Heath, is run by English Heritage and free, including the art on the walls, which is the astonishing part.
The Iveagh Bequest hangs here, and it is no minor collection. There is a Rembrandt self-portrait, one of only a handful of Vermeers in Britain, plus Turner, Gainsborough and Reynolds, all free to stand in front of in elegant Robert Adam rooms, the library among the prettiest in the country.
Outside there is a walled flower garden, a lake, sweeping lawns dotted with sculpture and the wild Heath rolling away below. The old coach house is now a good cafe. It is one of the best value free half days anywhere in London, art and countryside in one.
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