Hever Castle & Gardens
ENTRY
from £14.05
SETTING
Outdoors
WHERE
Edenbridge
What it’s like
A moated Tudor castle with yew mazes, a lake to walk round and rowing boats to hire in the grounds.
The castle itself is the headline, all turrets and a real moat, but the grounds are where a family day actually gets spent. There's a maze to get lost in, play areas for the smaller ones, and a Lake Walk that's flat enough for a buggy. Older kids who fancy themselves as archers or Anne Boleyn scholars have got archery and the KSY Military Museum to poke around, and if the weather's playing along you can hire a rowing boat and pretend you know what you're doing with an oar.
Book online and it's £25.50 for an adult, £14.05 for a child, or £66.60 for a family of five, which stings less than turning up on the day and paying £28.40 and £15.60 instead. If you only want the grounds, the mazes and the lake, a Gardens Only ticket is a fair bit cheaper. The castle doesn't open till midday even though the grounds open at 10.30, so mornings are for the mazes and the lawns, castle after lunch.
Food-wise there's the Moat Café for sandwiches, soup and fish and chips with children's portions, and picnics are properly welcomed on Horse Shoe Lawn, Half Moon Lawn or Two Sisters' Lawn if you'd rather bring your own and save the money for ice creams. Dogs are allowed on leads across the grounds, including on the rowing boats oddly enough, but they have to stay outside the castle, mazes and play areas, with an unsupervised tie-up point in the courtyard if you want to nip in without them.
One faff worth knowing about: no bikes or scooters anywhere in the gardens, so if your kids have just learned to ride, this isn't the place to bring it along. Parking's free and staff meet you on arrival, and wheelchair users are best sticking to the hard shingle paths, with four manual chairs available if you book ahead.
Facilities
Need to know
- Best for
- Fits families with primary-age kids keen on mazes and boats
- Last entry
- Castle 15:30 or 17:00 or 17:45 depending on season
- Parking
- Free parking, accessible parking available
- Food
- Moat Café (hot and cold meals, baguettes, sandwiches, quiche, soup, fish and chips, children's portions)
- Picnics
- Allowed in grounds. Picnic areas at Horse Shoe Lawn (sun/shade, castle views), Half Moon Lawn (moat/bridge views)
- Wheelchairs
- 4 manual wheelchairs available, £25 refundable deposit, advance booking essential, call Shop 10am-3pm +44 (0)1732 861718
- Dogs
- Welcome on leads in grounds (Lake Walk, Woodland Walk, jousting field, Rowing Boats)
- Getting there by bus or train
- Edenbridge Town Station 3 miles (taxi recommended)
- Book online rather than on the day, it's several pounds cheaper across the board.
- The castle opens later than the grounds, so do the mazes and lawns first.
- No bikes or scooters allowed anywhere in the gardens.
- The dog tie-up point in the courtyard isn't supervised, so it's at your own risk.
- You need at least a Gardens Only ticket to book the restaurant.
Plan your visit
How much does it cost?
£25.50 for an adult and £14.05 for a child if you book online, or £66.60 for a family of five. Turning up on the day costs more, £28.40 for an adult and £15.60 for a child.
Is there a cheaper ticket for just the gardens?
Yes, Gardens Only is £19.95 for an adult online, £12.50 for a child, and skips the castle itself.
What time does everything open?
Grounds open at 10.30, but the castle doesn't open till midday. In peak season the grounds run till 6pm and the castle till 5.45pm, shorter in winter.
Do we need to book ahead?
There's an online booking option and it works out cheaper than paying on entry, so it's worth sorting before you go.
Is there parking?
Parking's free and staff meet your car on arrival.
Can we bring a picnic?
Picnics are welcome across the grounds, with spots at Horse Shoe Lawn, Half Moon Lawn, Two Sisters' Lawn and along the Lake Walk.
What food is available if we don't bring our own?
The Moat Café does hot and cold meals, sandwiches, soup and fish and chips, with children's portions on the menu.
Can we bring the dog?
Dogs are welcome on leads throughout the grounds, including the Lake Walk and even on the rowing boats, but they can't go into the café, castle, mazes or play areas.
Are bikes or scooters allowed?
They're banned from the gardens because of health and safety and the Grade I listed status, though there are bike racks at the entrance.
Is it wheelchair accessible?
There are four manual wheelchairs available with a refundable deposit if you book ahead, and users are advised to stick to the hard shingle paths. They're not available for Festival Theatre shows.
Can you row on the lake?
Rowing boats are available in the grounds if you fancy a go.
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