Discover the magnificent beech woods and flower-filled meadows that inspired Gilbert White
Our gardens, parks, cafés, shops and countryside locations are open. Many houses are also open to visit. Advance booking for visits helps us keep everyone safe and socially distanced. At quieter times such as weekdays, booking shouldn't be necessary, but to guarantee entry we recommend booking in advance, especially at weekends and bank holidays.
We look after 267 acres of countryside around Selborne. The largest area, Selborne Common, lies on the hill to the west of the village, while the valley meadows and woodlands of the Lythes lie beyond St Marys Church to the east.
Rev. Gilbert White (1720-1793), the pioneering naturalist, lived for most of his life in a house in Selborne called ‘The Wakes’. His book - ‘The Natural History of Selborne’ - published in 1789 and inspired by the landscape, provided an invaluable record of its wealth of wildlife, including descriptions of many now rare plants and animals.
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.
