Family days out at Blickling

Planning your family visit

Here's some information to help make your family day out at Blickling as easy to enjoy as possible:

• There are plenty of buggy-friendly paths around the garden and parkland, just grab a map from visitor reception.
• Baby changing can be found at the Estate Barn in the main car park, near East Wing visitor reception and in the Farmyard area.
• Bottles and baby food can be warmed up in our cafés.
• We welcome breastfeeding everywhere at Blickling.
• High chairs, activity lunch boxes, cups and water jugs are available in the Stables café.
• If you fancy a picnic, you'll find picnic benches under and around the parade in the garden, with a big grassy space for kids to play. More can be found in the Farmyard and near the Estate Barn visitor reception at the main car park. You're welcome to bring a picnic blanket and find a spot to eat surrounded by nature.
• You'll find new family trails or fun things to look out for in the House throughout the year.
• The cycle hire hub has a variety of bikes for all ages, including electric bikes, trailers and balance bikes so the whole family can explore the parkland.
• In warmer months, enjoy a game of croquet out in the garden.

Top tips for rainy days and shady spots for hot days

Bristish summer weather can be changable, so here's how to have a fantastic family day out come rain or shine! 

Rainy Day? Step inside the House
Take shelter from the showers and step back in time. Inside the House, you’ll find fun spotter trails and interactive experiences that let you see, hear, touch and smell what life was like at Blickling in days gone by.

Too Hot? Find shade in the gardens
Wander up to the wilderness area at the top of the Parterre, on both sides of Temple Walk. With dappled shade and winding paths, it’s the perfect place to cool off. Keep your eyes peeled – can you discover the secret garden?

Picnic with a view — rain or shine
Enjoy your lunch under the shelter of our stretch tent on the Parade. Bring your own picnic rug or use the tables provided.

Stay cool with Cycle Hire
Exploring the estate by bike is a brilliant way to catch a breeze on hot days. With shady woodland trails and gentle routes, it’s a fun and refreshing way for the whole family to see more without overheating. Pack water and refreshing snacks to enjoy along the way. Cycle hire is open 10am - 4pm Wednesday to Sunday over the summer holidays, excluding 23 and 24 August (last hires at 3pm).

Explore the Great Wood
Whether it’s warm or a little rainy, the Great Wood is a brilliant place for a family adventure. Build dens, spot birds and insects, and discover the wildlife that calls this woodland home.

Be a 'Blickling Botanist' in the House

Head into the house between 11am - 4pm (last entry at 3.30pm) to be a Blickling Botanist and collect a notebook  to use as you explore the flowers and insects  throughout the house, and be inspired by Rebecca Stevenson's sculptures ‘Inspired by Nature: Mary, Maria, Marianne’, on display in the Upper Ante. Young visitors will also be given and can look out for Blickling Bulls hidden in each room.