Richmond Park is almost 1000 hectares, or nearly 4 square miles. It is bounded by Richmond town to its northwest, Sheen to its north, Roehampton to its west, the A3 road and Wimbledon Common to its southwest, Kingston to the south, and Ham to the southwest. There are many entrances, including entrances at principal road junctions and near town centers. Some of these are open to private cars. .
Richmond Park is the largest park in Greater London. Much of the landscape is picture-book English landscape; undulating grassland or bracken, with copses and woods set in it. To set it off, visitors can usually and without too much trouble find herds of deer grazing in the park.Much of the land was originally common grazing land, and some of it was farmland. The farms have long since vanished.
Much of the park is open grassland and bracken. It is broken up by wooded areas. Some are areas of dense woodland. Most of the woodland is deliberately planted. Wide areas of the grassland have been taken over by bracken and these have to be artificially managed. There are also many more open stands of mature trees with a grazed sward below them.Many of the trees in the park are ancient oaks, mostly pollards, and some of them are thought to predate the enclosure of the park.
Several ponds and lakes exist in the park, some as a result of quarrying.There is a protected view to the City of London, over 10 miles away, as well as many features of central and inner London, from the tops of some of the hills in the park.
The park is encircled by a wall, and it is reputed to be the largest enclosed park in Europe.Within the park there is the garden of the historic house of Pembroke Lodge. These also include King Henry's mound, an ancient burial mound. It is now a viewing platform, and has excellent views west, including Ham House in the near distance, and Twickenham and many places beyond. To the east, there are good views toward the city of London.
There is also the relatively recent woodland garden of the Isabella Plantation.. This garden provides some of the best shows of rhododendrons and azaleas in the south of England, and it also holds a NCCPG national collection of some azaleas.White Lodge, formerly a hunting lodge for George II, now houses the Royal Ballet School.
Pembroke Lodge, in the west of the park, was originally the home of Lord Russell, (grandfather of Bertrand Russell). It now houses restaurants, and may be hired out for events.There are gatehouses at each of the principal entrances; these are mostly staff quarters.
To many people the park is best known for the herds of red and fallow deer. These can often be seen grazing on the meadows from the adjacent roads. They are reasonably used to people, and can be approached to within camera range, though visitors are expected not to disturb them.
The park is also a national nature reserve, and contains an Site of Special Scientific Interest. Its other importance includes its populations of stag beetles, which is dependent on the presence of rotting timber.Originally it was a royal hunting park, but with agriculture practised on parts of it. It was expropriated and walled in by Charles I, partly to enforce royal ownership, and partly to contain the deer. Grazing by deer has stopped any return to woodland, and most traces of the original cultivation have now vanished.
Some woodlands have been created in the 19th century. Some of the original oak trees from the time of Charles I still remain.Several roads cut through the park, allowing drivers through during opening hours. Some parking places are provided. The park really needs to be visited on foot or by bicycle (bicycles are restricted to certain routes however.)
The park is managed by the Royal Parks Agency.