Visiting Petworth House and Park: What you need to know

Visiting Petworth House and Pleasure Garden 

We’re open seven days a week, 363 days of the year and you don’t need to book your visit in advance. Closed 24/25 December.

• Face coverings are required to be worn in indoor spaces, unless exempt.

• During the winter some rooms in the house are closed on a rotation for conservation cleaning. Please see below for more details.  

• Entry is free for members, but please bring your membership card with you. Non-members will need to pay to enter.  

• Parking for the house and garden is at the main car park. Parking is free for members, and £4 (not included in the ticket price) for non-members. This can be paid by cash at the pay machines, via card at visitor reception or using a PayByPhone contactless service (location number 803377). Instructions are on a sign in the car park.   

• Dogs on short leads are welcome in the Pleasure Garden.

• Assistance dogs only in the House and Historic Kitchens.

Petworth House and Park, Petworth, West Sussex, GU28 9LR 

Changes to our usual opening hours

Wednesday 2 February The Pleasure Garden and Main Visitor Car Park will be closed all day for safety reasons due to essential tree work. If you are visiting on this day, please park in one of Petworth town’s car parks and enter via the Church Lodge entrance (located near St Mary's Church). Thank you.

What rooms are open this winter?

Wednesday 5 January – Sunday 27 February 10:30am-3:30pm. Last entry 3pm.

Rooms open to view: Oak Hall, Somerset Room, Square Dining Room, Marble Hall, Beauty Room and the Grand Staircase.

North Gallery and Chapel opening are subject to volunteer availability.

From Monday 31 January – Sunday 27 February 2022 

Additional rooms in the private apartments of Petworth House will be open along with the rooms in the mansion. These include the Stone Hall, Cambridge Bedroom and Chamber Landing.  

Sharing information about the collection

Unfortunately, we aren’t able to share information in the same ways we were before the pandemic as the safety of our visitors, staff and volunteers is our priority, which means we are not able to have our room information folders out currently. However, we have introduced a free downloadable house tour, which shares highlights from the collection, and there are free highlight leaflets that visitors can pick up when entering the house and keep. In each room there is also an introductory panel giving an overview of that space and there are Room Guides throughout the house who are able to share information on the collection. Our Petworth House guide book is also available to purchase from the shop which lists the collection room by room.

Visiting Petworth Deer Park 

The Deer Park is open seven days a week and you don’t need to book your visit in advance.

• The deer park is open from 8am-6pm daily, and there is no entry fee.  

• Parking is at the North Car Park, located further north along the A283 from the main car park for Petworth House. Please be aware that the car park is small and can fill up early on sunny weekend days. If it is full on arrival then we ask people to return at a quieter time or to park in one of the town car parks and enter the park via one of the pedestrian gates. 

• Parking in the North Car Park is free for members, and £3 for non-members. This can be paid by a PayByPhone contactless service (location number 803378). Instructions are on a sign in the car park.  

• Please note there are no facilities in the park, such as toilets, but there are some in the town car park.  

• Dogs are welcome in the park and may be let off the lead as long as they remain under close supervision. Please be aware and mindful of the large number of fallow deer that live in the park.  

• Please follow the Countryside Code when you visit. 

Eating and Shopping 

The Audit Room Café is open from 10:30am-3:30pm (4pm from 1 Feb), and serving a selection of hot and cold food and drinks, along with light snacks. Petworth's shop and second-hand bookshop are open from 10:30am-3:30pm (4pm from 1 Feb). Payments by card is preferred but cash is accepted.

Staying Safe

To help keep everyone safe, please follow the latest guidance on your visit. And look out for signs while you’re here which will explain any changes to how you can access different parts of the site. Face coverings are required to be worn in indoor spaces, unless exempt.

If you’re showing any of the symptoms of coronavirus, or if you've been in contact with anyone that has the virus in the last 14 days, please don’t visit.

Accessibility 

• The Pleasure Garden is partly accessible, with some slopes and undulating terrain. There are benches available in the garden, but please be aware they are spread across the 50 acres.
• Disabled parking spaces are available in the main car park, please note it is a distance of approximately 700m to the house. 
• A mobility vehicle is in operation transporting visitors when required from the car park to the house courtyard.
• Accessible toilets are available in the car park and Servants' Quarters toilet blocks. Please do ask a member of the visitor reception team upon arrival if you have any queries. A few manual wheelchairs are also available to borrow.
• Rooms open to visitors in Petworth House are on the ground floor.
• Assistance dogs are welcome in the House and Historic Kitchens.