Visiting the garden

Planning a trip to the Walled Garden in 2024 couldnt be easier

OPEN WEDNESDAYS

1st May – 25th september 2024 – 10.30am to 4.00pm

Your ticket is for entry all day – Pop out for lunch and come back to take your time to smell the roses!

£7.50 entrance includes a fascinating guided tour

Children: Under 5’s free – over 5 £1

Season Ticket – £15 allows unlimited visits throughout the season

Repeat visits – Alternative tours available and our displays will change throughout the season (along with plants and produce in the garden)

Pre book: Tickets

individuals and groups under 10 can pay at the garden gate

Payment in cash is preferred.  Although we accept card payments the signal in the garden is dependent on prevailing conditions – Cash is also preferred for the garden shop.

The Woodyard Cafe is a short walk through the garden gate (Check opening times at 01582-879863)

GROUP VISITS: Bring your club, society or group to the Walled Garden at Luton Hoo Estate – Chose from the following options – or speak to our team to discuss how we can accommodate you:

 All open day activities are led by members of the Walled Garden Project.

  • Group visits are available on Wednesdays during our open hours of 10.30 – 4.00.
  • All Groups of 10+ should pre-book
  • Group sizes are limited to 20 per guide.  For larger groups of 21+ members will be split into 2 groups with a guide each. (Max 40 for garden tour, but 30 for talk).
  • Payment is required in one amount, preferably in advance. Payments from individuals cannot be accepted on group bookings.

Garden Tour

  • A pre-booked tour of the garden, including a visit to the tea house and dairy lasts 1.5 – 1.75 hours.  However, members may remain in the garden as long as they wish during opening hours.
  • Some of the tour is over solid paths, but by no means all and some of the route may be rough underfoot, therefore visitors are requested to wear suitable footwear.
  • Rain/sun protection is advised, when appropriate as there are limited opportunities to go undercover.
  • We should be advised if any of the group have mobility issues as the route may not be suitable for all.  There are some seating opportunities around the garden.
  • Not all areas are wheelchair accessible however every effort has been made to accommodate those with mobility issues.  This year we are adjusting the area around the sundial to enable wheeled access.
  • Depending on availability we may be able to offer an extra volunteer to assist the group.
  • On request a tour may be adapted if a shorter tour would be preferable due to mobility.
  • £7.50 per person – Book here: Tickets

Tea, Tour and Talk

  • Talks are held in a first- floor lecture room.  Regretfully there is no lift.  However, the stairs are wide and there is a sturdy handrail.
  • Maximum capacity for a talk is 30 (in comfort, 35 is a squash!)
  • Talks last approximately 1 hour with time for questions.
  • Tea/coffee and biscuits are served prior to the talk
  • The talk is normally based on a short history of the walled garden together with the development of the walled garden project.  For returning groups an alternative subject can be offered, subject to an appropriate speaker being available.
  • If taking a talk and a tour, a lunch break can be taken in between, if required.
  • Groups travelling by coach can be accommodated.
  • £15 per person – book here: Tickets

 Woodyard Café

  • The café is a 5 minute walk from the walled garden, and it has its own car park if required.
  • It serves hot and cold drinks, snacks, cakes and light lunches .
  • The café does get busy during the open season.
  • The café closes at 3.00 on Wednesdays

ARTISTS IN THE GARDEN: A great opportunity to gather inspiration from the plants, structures and wonderful ambience of the Walled garden.  Every year we welcome artists to the garden; their entry fee of £7.50 is for all day access to the garden (bringing their own seating and art supplies) with multi entry enabling artists to take their time to smell the roses (perhaps lunch at the Woodyard?) Pre book or pay at the garden gate on the day

These gardeners undertake the seasonal tasks incumbent with a Walled Garden, breathe life back into wider areas of the garden, utilise our historic potting shed and propagation houses, and ensure the ever-changing garden provides new areas of interest alongside its existing beauty each year.  In 2022 a rose arbour was installed in the garden to commemorate the 21st anniversary of the Walled Garden Volunteer Project. The roses  have already began their steady climb to cover the structure.  Within a few years we hope the new arbour will begin to mirror an earlier arbour that existed in the garden, of which a single grainy photograph remains.

This year the water container in front of the Mackenzie and Moncur has been removed and the original weather vane has been installed (at a safer spot) within the garden.

Volunteering at the Walled Garden Volunteer Project

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