Easter days out at Sheffield Park and Garden

Join in the fun of a Cadbury Easter Egg Hunt

This Easter follow in the footsteps of the great plant hunters of the early 20th century. Go on an adventure around the world as you explore the garden and discover where some of our exotic species come from. Find the lost notebook pages of Arthur the plant hunter and copy the details into your own notebook to see what he found.

There’ll be tasks to complete along the way, from finding your way through the maze to testing your balance or bug spotting skills. Enjoy the garden as you go, spotting signs of spring bursting through, then once you've completed the hunt, you can claim your delicious Cadbury chocolate treat (whilst stocks last).

How will you get on?  Will you be a natural born plant hunter? There's only one way to discover!

The Cadbury Easter Egg Hunt will be running everyday from Saturday 6 April to Monday 22 April, 10am to 4pm. Normal admission charges will apply, plus £3.50 for the hunt.

What else can I see and do?

Once you’ve finished exploring the world around the garden, why not explore the parkland and take a walk down to Ringwood Toll where our natural playtrail offers opportunities to climb, jump, see-saw and build dens in this woodland dedicated to playful imagination. You'll probably need your wellies to get down there as it is a bit muddy at the moment.

Visit Walk Wood

Or why not pay a visit to Walk Wood? Tucked away at the back of the garden, this hidden gem of the Sheffield Park and Garden estate is a peaceful area of historic woodland to explore with a wide variety of flora and fauna whatever the season. The bluebells may well be starting to carpet the floor with shades of blue as you take in the wider landscape or go looking under fallen branches for bugs and fungi. You can also pick up a leaflet from reception about the series of sculptures in the woods, produced by local artist Keith Pettit. His use of natural materials and forms add some surprising interventions and help tell the story of the woodland. 

Don't forget you could also ask at reception for one of our ’50 Things to do before you’re 11 and ¾’ booklets and start ticking off your list of fun activities to do outdoors.

Planning ahead to visit during the Easter holidays

Sheffield Park can get very busy during the Easter holidays, particularly over the bank holiday weekend. On occasion, weather permitting, we may provide additional parking on the parkland.  As the Easter trail runs every day from 6-22 April, you may find less crowds (but just as much fun) on a mid-week visit.

Compass Travel operate a bus route to Sheffield Park and Garden on certain dates during the year. For specific dates and to see the timetables, click here - https://www.compass-travel.co.uk/ If you're planning to visit on a Saturday, take a look at route 121 which runs from Lewes to Sheffield Park.

Come along whatever the weather

The Cadbury Easter Egg Hunt will take place along the paths in the garden but you may wish to bring your wellies to go off the paths to explore Walk Wood, the parkland or East Park. Rain shelters in the garden offer you the chance to escape a passing shower, but come dressed for the weather and you’re sure to have a good time.  If you’ve been caught out, just ask at reception to borrow one of our umbrellas.  Don’t forget that some of your 50 Things can only be achieved in the wet weather.

Bringing your four-legged friends

Well behaved dogs on short leads are welcome in the garden after 1.30pm daily.  There are other areas of the estate you can take your dog in the mornings, please see the link at the bottom of this page for more information. As the Cadbury Easter Egg Hunt will be taking place in the garden, please bear this in mind when planning your visit.

Feeling peckish?

There's a good selection of family-friendly and seasonal choices on the menu in the Coach House tearoom.  Light snacks, kids pick and mix lunch boxes, sandwiches, cakes and biscuits are available all day with hot lunches served from 12pm to 2.30pm. Take a look at the seasonal menu to see what's on offer, there's always a soup or stew, baked potatoes and a vegetarian dish to choose from, all of which are freshly prepared in our kitchen.

For a seasonal treat, why not try the simnel cake, a nest cake or a chocolate and orange scone? These will be available during the Easter holidays and certainly look tempting.

If you're in the garden and don't want to tear yourself away, then stop by The Shant for a quick refreshment stop. You can find this behind Ten Foot Pond along Shant Path and it's marked no.8 on the map in your welcome leaflet. Here you will be able to purchase a reduced selection of hot and cold drinks, sandwiches and snacks, either to take-away or to sit down outdoors or under shelter to enjoy there.

Something to take home

With two gift shops and a secondhand bookshop, there are plenty of opportunities for browsing at Sheffield Park and Garden. Take a look at our Easter selection of food and gifts, as well as pocket money toys and new seasonal lines now on display, or browse for a secondhand book to take home as a memento of your day with us. 

Wherever the adventure takes you at Sheffield Park and Garden, we hope you have a great day. Please tag us in any pictures you share on Facebook or Instagram. Dont forget there will be other properties nearby running different Cadbury Easter Egg Hunts too. You can find out all about them in the link below.