Heritage Open Days at Crook Hall Gardens 2026
Enjoy free entry to Crook Hall Gardens for Heritage Open Days on 16 & 19 September.
- Booking not needed
- Free event
Wander through a series of interlinking gardens, each with its own style and character, set against the backdrop of a Grade I listed medieval hall.
Visitors can discover a maze, a secret walled garden, an orchard, a wildlife-rich moat pool, tranquil seating areas and views of Durham city and cathedral.
If you come on Wednesday 16 September, you can join in on the following tour schedule:
• 11am-12pm: history and literary links guided tour
• 1-2pm: seasonal poetry guided walk
• 2-3:30pm: horticulture guided tour with gardener volunteers
The Garden Gate Café offers seating indoors, as well as on an outdoor terrace. You could browse in the second-hand bookshop or join one of our expert volunteers on a variety of talks and tours, from seasonal poetry walks to garden tours.
Times
The basics
- Accessibility
Please see the main page for more details
- Other
Heritage Open Day is a popular day for everyone to enjoy. Please expect busier than usual car parking. We recommend travelling by foot, bike or public transport because the car park has limited capacity. To avoid the crowds, try coming on a weekday.
Upcoming events
History of Durham city walk
A guided walk from Crook Hall Gardens delving into the history of Durham.
Crook Hall Gardens tour: history and literary links
Step into Crook Hall Gardens' past on a guided tour.
Crook Hall Gardens poetry walk
From springtime stanzas and summer sonnets to autumn anthologies and wintery works, experience a seasonal poetry walk at Crook Hall Gardens.
Crook Hall Gardens tour: horticulture
Join our gardening guru volunteers for a horticultural tour of Crook Hall Gardens.