A colourful mosaic of blooming heather and gorse, braided wetlands and ancient woodland pasture
More than 135 gardens and parks are now open through advance booking, as well as hundreds of coast and countryside places. A number of houses are also open in England and Northern Ireland. Read this article to find out what's open and what to expect from your visit.
A wide open, boundary-less landscape containing exposed plateaux, leading gently through a mauve haze of heather and woodland to miniature valleys, swollen with bouncy bogs and gravel streams. A place for ground-nesting birds, rare reptiles, a myriad of insects and diverse plant life.
Cross the cattle grid to a diverse landscape, shaped and sustained by traditional commoning practices since time immemorial, a tamed wilderness. Deeply ingrained and continued, the use of the New Forest by local people is a way of life, rather than a leisure pursuit. The commoners’ ponies, donkeys, cattle, pigs and sheep are the architects of the forest, exploiting rights that are centuries old. To this day the Verderers' Court, an ancient thirteenth century assembly, meet to ensure forest law is upheld.
Rockford car park: Off Ellingham Drove/Highwood Lane, Rockford, Hampshire 10 miles west of Lyndhurst, access from A337. 3 miles north-east from Ringwood and 5 miles south from Fordingbridge on A338. (Grid ref: SU163083. Latitude 50.873998 Longitude: -1.7693679)
Hale car park: Lady Mile, off High Street, Hale, Hampshire, 5 miles north-east of Fordingbridge, access from A338. 12 miles north-west of Lyndhurst via A337/B3078. (Grid ref: SU188176. Latitude: 50.957524, -1.7337023)
Hightown car park: Hightown Hill, near Ringwood, Hampshire, 10 miles south-west of Lyndhurst, access from A31. 3 miles east of Ringwood and 9 miles from Fordingbridge, travelling south on A338. (Grid ref: SU180055. Latitude: 50.8487058 Longitude: -1.7460536)
Public bus network details available from: Bluestar - Southampton 023 8061 8233; Wilts & Dorset - Salisbury 01722 336855; Poole 01202 673555 and Transdev Yellow Buses - Bournemouth 01202 636060.
Most of our places run the Gift Aid on Entry scheme at their admission points.
Under this scheme, if you're not a member you have the choice of two entry tickets:
If the place runs Gift Aid on Entry, we'll offer you a clear choice between the Gift Aid Admission prices and the Standard Admission prices at the admission point. It's entirely up to you which ticket you choose.
Gift Aid Admission includes a 10 per cent or more voluntary donation. Gift Aid Admissions let us reclaim tax on the whole amount paid - an extra 25 per cent - potentially a very significant boost to our places' funds.
An extra £1 paid under the scheme can be worth over £3 to the National Trust as shown below:
| Gift Aid | Standard | |
|---|---|---|
| Amount paid by visitor | £11.00 | £10.00 |
| Tax refund from Government* | £2.75 | £0.00 |
| Total received by the National Trust | £13.75 | £10.00 |
*Gift Aid Admissions let us reclaim tax on the whole amount paid - an extra 25 per cent - potentially a very significant boost to our places' funds.
For your safety we recommend you leave the New Forest between dusk and dawn.
