Birkheads Secret Gardens, Coffee Shop & Nursery
ENTRY
from £6
WHERE
Newcastle upon Tyne
What it’s like
A sloping, gravel-pathed garden near Stanley with a coffee shop and tea terraces, open Thursday to Sunday until mid-October.
This is a wander-round garden rather than a play-and-go one: gravel paths, borders, terraces, and a slope that means you feel it in your legs by the top. There's a coffee shop and tea room for a sit-down with tea and cake, and tea terraces to have your drink outside if the weather's playing along.
Entry is £6 for adults and children alike, which is fair for an afternoon out. If you're likely to come back more than once, the season tickets make sense, £30 for one person, £55 for two, or £60 for two adults and two children. RHS members get in free on Thursdays and Fridays, and if you hold a Gardeners' World ticket it's £1 those same two days, so it's worth timing a visit around that if either applies to you.
It's open Thursday to Sunday, 11am to 3pm, until 11th October, so this isn't a rock-up-any-day spot, check which days fall in your week before you set off. Parking's free with room for about 22 cars, and one family dog is welcome on a lead in the coffee shop gardens, though not the wider grounds. If you're coming by bus, the X30 or X31 runs half-hourly from Newcastle to Stanley; get off at Tanfield Steam Railway and it's a mile along the Bowes Cycle Path to Birkheads Lane, about 20 minutes on foot.
The gravel and slopes are the catch for wheelchairs and mobility scooters, the coffee shop, nursery and tea terraces are accessible but scooters are too wide for the garden paths themselves. Baby change and accessible toilets are on site, and picnics are allowed if you'd rather bring your own food than rely on the coffee shop.
Facilities
Need to know
- Parking
- Free parking for customers, approx 22 cars/minibuses
- Food
- Coffee shop and tea room with refreshments
- Wheelchairs
- Coffee shop, nursery and tea terraces accessible
- Dogs
- One family pet welcome on a short lead in the coffee shop gardens
- Getting there by bus or train
- Buses X30/31 half-hourly Newcastle to Stanley
- Worth knowing
- RHS members free entry Thursdays & Fridays
- RHS members get in free on Thursdays and Fridays; Gardeners' World ticket holders pay £1 those days
- The dog-friendly area is limited to the coffee shop gardens, not the full grounds
- Baby change and accessible toilets are on site
- Coaches need a prior appointment to park
Plan your visit
How much does it cost?
£6 for adults and children. Season tickets run from £30 for one person to £55 for two, or £60 for two adults and two children.
What days is it open?
Thursday to Sunday, 11am to 3pm, until 11th October.
Is there parking?
Free parking for about 22 cars and minibuses. Coaches need to arrange it in advance.
Can we bring the dog?
One family pet is welcome on a short lead, but only in the coffee shop gardens, not the wider grounds.
Is it OK for a wheelchair or mobility scooter?
The coffee shop, nursery and tea terraces are accessible. The gardens themselves have a slope and changing surfaces, and mobility scooters are too wide for the gravel paths.
Is there anywhere to eat?
There's a coffee shop and tea room on site, or you can bring a picnic.
How do we get there without a car?
The X30 or X31 bus runs half-hourly from Newcastle to Stanley. Get off at Tanfield Steam Railway and follow the Bowes Cycle Path about a mile, roughly 20 minutes on foot, to Birkheads Lane.
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