The message
from "robert" contains these words:

hello,
I have just won a ticket to Chelsea,as I have never been before what is it
like?can you buy plants, what is the best times to go,how much is the food
can I take my own food? thanks for any help,

Lucky you. It's wonderful, but very busy, so arrive as early as
possible..preferably by public transport (Sloane Sq tube) as there's no
nearby parking. More top quality plants, gardens,fruit, veg, flowers,
advice, displays, and garden equipment, buildings, machinery, furniture,
pots, decorations, books, etc etc than you could dream of. If you have
the stamina, you could spend an entire day there and still not see
everything :-). I used to do the tents first before they got jam packed.

Food is expensive, and queues long, so take your own sarnies and drink
and sit by the bandstand to rest and enjoy the music, while the very
busy mid-day period calms down. Wear comfy shoes, and take a bag to hold
a pencil and notebook, and all the freebies, catalogues and useful
leaflets you're going to collect. It can be very hot in the large tents,
and you'll be walking a lot outside, so wear cool comfy clothes, very
comfortable shoes (preferably not sandals in case your feet get
trampled), and carry in your bag a light raincoat if rain looks
possible.

At Chelsea, unlike other shows, there are no direct plant sales but
you can buy plants from the displays at the very end of the very last
day. A mad scrum and the days of getting a rare plant at a near giveaway
price are long past; so given a choice of days I'd rather go to an
earlier one when the displays will be at their very best. However, you
can place an order for almost anything at the show, often at a discount.

Leave no later than half an hour before closing time, before crowds
swamp the tube.

Have fun :-) My favourite part is the outside show gardens, don't miss
those.

Janet.