5 Top Tips For An Accessible Chelsea Flower Show | Congestion Charge Exemption
Britain is Blooming! The Chelsea Flower Show is always a wonderful event. It is also very accessible so Blue Badge Co have 5 top tips for people with disabilities and access issues to make the most of your visit to London and claim congestion charge exemption!
Before setting off for a trip to London, it pays to be well prepared, especially if you have accessibility needs. Here are our top 5 tips for an Accessible Chelsea Flower Show and a bloomin' marvellous trip!
1) Book Your Tickets Now!
The legendary Chelsea Flower Show begins at 8am on Tuesday 22nd May and goes on til 5.30pm on Saturday 26th May. It is truly a feast of flowers and there are so many gardens to explore! From the Poetry Lover's Garden to the Welcome to Yorkshire Garden, the Walkers Warf to the Mind Trap. The whole show is accessible apart from a few of the catering facilities. Visit their website for further details of
Accessibility at the Chelsea Flower Show. If you want to experience this fabulous celebration of horticultural expertise, you'd better
Book Your Tickets Now! 
2) Claim Congestion Charge Exemption
If you are a Blue Badge holder, you can apply for 100% discount of the congestion charge. It costs £10 to register for the discount which lasts as long as your Badge does. You will need your Blue Badge and one other piece of ID from their list. More information is available on
Useful Information Page
3) Plan your Parking
Disabled parking is available on the site, Ranelagh Gardens. You must book this in advance when purchasing your ticket to the Chelsea Flower Show and costs £21.50 for the day. Their
website informs me that disabled parking parking is also available at Battersea Park via the Rosery Gate entrance, SW11 4BY, and may also be pre-booked when buying your ticket. A mobility shuttle bus to the site is included in the price of parking for the day, £25 maximum according to
Parkopedia. You will need to alert a parking steward on arrival should you wish to use the mobility bus. The car park there closes at 5pm but it is possible that the car park and its opening times are extended during the show, I advise you to double check on arrival to avoid being locked out! All locations can be seen on this map:
4) Staying overnight? Find Accessible Acommodation
If you are planning an overnight stay or longer, you can use our
Accessible Accommodation Guide to help you find disabled friendly hotels. Through the DisabledGo website, I have found
10 accessible hotels within 5 miles of the Celsea Flower Show My favourite is the
Coach and Horses on Kew Green not least because it has great reviews on Trip Advisor from their disabled visitors. It also looks great, I'd like to stay there myself!
5) Staying Longer? Find More Accessible Things To Do!
If you're planning to stay longer, I recommend looking at the Vist London
Accessible London guide. They list everything from venues and museums to restaurants and shopping centres with details about accessibility and contact details for further information. Finally, if you can't get enough of flowers or didn't manage to book in time to get into the Chelsea Flower Show, visit the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew. Most of their gardens are accessible with good provision of facilities. They have wheelchairs to borrow on the day, mobility scooters to book in advance and a specialised adult changing facility equipped with hoist and changing bench. They also have provision for sensory loss and learning difficulties through their Community and Access programmes which include Sensory Tours, Health Walks and Discovery Bus Tours. Find out more in their
Disability and Access Guide. 
If you are a Blue Badge holder, you can apply for 100% discount of the congestion charge. It costs £10 to register for the discount which lasts as long as your Badge does. You will need your Blue Badge and one other piece of ID from their list. More information is available on Useful Information Page
If you are planning an overnight stay or longer, you can use our Accessible Accommodation Guide to help you find disabled friendly hotels. Through the DisabledGo website, I have found 10 accessible hotels within 5 miles of the Celsea Flower Show My favourite is the Coach and Horses on Kew Green not least because it has great reviews on Trip Advisor from their disabled visitors. It also looks great, I'd like to stay there myself!
If you're planning to stay longer, I recommend looking at the Vist London Accessible London guide. They list everything from venues and museums to restaurants and shopping centres with details about accessibility and contact details for further information. Finally, if you can't get enough of flowers or didn't manage to book in time to get into the Chelsea Flower Show, visit the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew. Most of their gardens are accessible with good provision of facilities. They have wheelchairs to borrow on the day, mobility scooters to book in advance and a specialised adult changing facility equipped with hoist and changing bench. They also have provision for sensory loss and learning difficulties through their Community and Access programmes which include Sensory Tours, Health Walks and Discovery Bus Tours. Find out more in their Disability and Access Guide. 