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Lyveden
Leicestershire & NorthamptonshireIntriguing Elizabethan lodge and moated garden
Lyveden, near Oundle, Northamptonshire, PE8 5AT
Important notice
Access to the lodge's interior is temporarily closed due to necessary maintenance. The Manor, Cafe, and Gardens all remain open as normal.
Opening times for 31 August 2025
Asset Opening time Lyveden 10:00 - 17:00 Lyveden manor café 10:00 - 16:30 Last entry is one hour before the closing time. Last orders in the café are 30 minutes before the café closes.
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Ticket type With Gift Aid Without Gift Aid Adult (18+) £12.10 £11.00 Child (5-17) under 5s free £6.10 £5.50 Family (2 Adults and up to 3 children) £30.30 £27.50 Family One Adult £18.20 £16.50 Group (Adult 18+) £10.45 Group (Child 5-17) £5.23 Become a member and discover more than 500 places
- Audio guide
- Café
- Car park
- Dogs allowed
- Toilet
Accessible parking: 100 yards. Partly accessible grounds, grass and uneven paths, limited benches around the site. Accessible toilet located at the manor. Designated accessible parking available close to visitor reception. Limited availability of mobility scooter hire.
- Accessible route and/or map
- Accessible toilet
- Braille (guide or menu)
Braille guide available from Visitor Reception
- Designated parking
- Induction loop
- Level access to food outlet
- Powered mobility vehicle available
- Ramped access/slopes
- Seating available
- Steps/uneven terrain
Uneven grass paths throughout the site
- Wheelchairs available
Powered mobility vehicle and manual wheelchair available for visitors
- By road
- off A6116. From Oundle take A427Parking: free, 100 yards
- On foot
- Lyveden Way passes though Lyveden and connects with Wadenhoe and Fermyn Woods
- By train
- Kettering 10 miles
- By bus
- from Northampton train station to Peterborough train station
- Cycling
Planning your visit
Events at Lyveden
Events at Lyveden this summer
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Accessibility at Lyveden
This guide provides detailed information to help you plan your visit and make the most of your time at Lyveden.
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Family-friendly things to do at Lyveden
From making friends with a bug to adventures in the great outdoors, there's something for everyone at Lyveden.
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Visiting Lyveden with your dog
Lyveden is a three pawprint rated place. Dogs kept on short leads are welcome throughout the garden at Lyveden and on the ground floor of the Manor. Share your day with your dog as you explore woodland and the Northamptonshire countryside together.
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Highlights
Lyveden manor
Step inside the manor to discover Lyveden's intriguing story in the exhibition space or relax with a book in the 'Common Room'.
Garden lodge
Lyveden's unfinished Elizabethan lodge is filled with symbolism that only Tresham's Catholic contemporaries would have understood.
Elizabethan garden
A rare Elizabethan relic and one of the country’s oldest garden landscapes. Complete with terraces, spiral mounts, moats and orchard.
Lyveden manor café
Light lunches, sandwiches, drinks and homemade cakes are available in the café. There is seating both inside and outside. Dogs are welcome.
Meadows
The garden and lodge are surrounded by restored hay meadows. Providing food and shelter to pollinating insects, birds and small mammals.
Second-hand bookshop
Lovingly curated by our volunteers, you're bound to find your next page-turner nestled on the shelves of our second-hand bookshop.
Spotlight events
The Secret Garden - Outdoor Theatre by The Plandits
Join Mary, Colin and Dickon as they tell you the story of their favourite place in the world - The Secret Garden. Following their success in 2024, The Plandits are bringing their re-imagining of the classic Frances Hodgson Burnett book back for a second summer season. This heartfelt, energetic production is full of original music, puppetry, interaction and laughs. As the three characters discover the transforming power of being active, the magic of nature and the joy of play, we’re sure you’ll leave this performance with a renewed enthusiasm for the world around you! Click this link to get your tickets.
Things to see and do
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Things to do at Lyveden manor
With a manor house to see, plan your visit here, with historical talks, information on the garden design and our temporary exhibition space there's plenty to see and do.
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Family-friendly things to do at Lyveden
From making friends with a bug to adventures in the great outdoors, there's something for everyone at Lyveden.
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Exploring the grounds at Lyveden
With a garden to explore, seasonal highlights to discover and an audio guide to learn the story of Tresham’s unfinished house, there’s lots to do at Lyveden.
Eating
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Eating and drinking at Lyveden
The café in the Grade I-listed manor serves a range of hot and cold drinks, light meals, snacks and cakes to keep you refreshed during your visit. Take a seat indoors or enjoy your cuppa in the outdoor seating area.
Places to stay
Lyveden Cottage
Mystery, beauty, and the peace of forgotten places surround this cottage in the Northamptonshire countryside.
Upcoming events
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Clay Conversations at Lyveden
Join practitioner Ruth for a session of calming and mindful creativity, designed to support wellbeing and encourage personal empowerment.
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Monthly Guided Walk at Lyveden
Join our Guided Walk leaders for a monthly social walk, beginning at Lyveden and then heading off into the beautiful Northamptonshire countryside.
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Apple and Ale Fayre | Heritage Open Days
Join us a celebration of the fruitfulness of apple season.
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The Manor House Murder; A Murder Mystery Evening
Join us for an evening of murder, mystery and intrigue in this exciting new dinner/theatre experience at Lyveden.
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Foraging workshop
Discover seasonal wild foods and learn to forage safely while still leaving plenty of Mother Earth's bounty for nature.
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Introduction to Watercolour day course
Discover the fundamentals of watercolour painting with Something Less Boring.
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Gunpowder, Tresham and plot | Exhibition
Remember, remember the fifth of November? But how about the part the Treshams played in the plot?
About Lyveden
Set in the heart of rural Northamptonshire, Lyveden is a remarkable survivor of the Elizabethan age.
Begun by Sir Thomas Tresham to symbolise his Catholic faith, Lyveden remains incomplete and virtually unaltered since work stopped on his death in 1605.
There are tranquil moats, viewing terraces and an Elizabethan orchard to explore, as well as an enigmatic garden lodge covered in religious symbols. The full extent of Sir Thomas's symbolic design remains unexplained to this day.
Our audio guide describes Sir Thomas’s dream and how it all ended in a nightmare for the Tresham family with their involvement in the Gunpowder Plot.
Lyveden is also the perfect starting point to explore the Lyveden Way, a circular path through beautiful meadows, woodland and villages.
History
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History of Lyveden
Discover how religious persecution, treason and debt stopped Tresham’s vision from being fulfilled and why Lyveden stands as a reminder of his act of quiet and creative rebellion.
Our work
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Our work at Lyveden
Find out more about our work at Lyveden, from restoring lost areas of the garden to using archaeology to reveal Lyveden’s secrets.
Support us
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Volunteer opportunities at Lyveden
Find out more about volunteering at Lyveden. By joining the team, you'll help bring to life the stories of this intriguing Elizabethan lodge.
