13 gardens, 1 free
Gardens to visit in South East England
The South East is often called the garden of England, with famous gardens in Kent and Sussex, the RHS flagship at Wisley, and woodland gardens bright with rhododendrons and azaleas in spring.
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Paid entry Exbury Gardens Ltd (registered charity)
Exbury Gardens
Exbury, Hampshire
Lionel de Rothschild's 200 acre woodland garden on the Beaulieu River, known for rhododendrons and azaleas in spring and strong autumn colour, with a narrow gauge steam railway.
Adults £14.50, children (3 to 15) £6.50, family £39.90 when booked online in advance, 2 September to 31 October 2026; on-the-day tickets cost more. Steam railway extra
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Paid entry Great Dixter Charitable Trust
Great Dixter
Northiam, East Sussex
Christopher Lloyd's famous garden around a medieval house near Rye, known for bold, ever-changing planting in the Long Border, meadows and yew-hedged rooms.
Adults £17.75, children (5 to 15) £5.50 (2026 day tickets, from 1 April)
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Paid entry Leonardslee Ltd (privately owned)
Leonardslee Gardens
Lower Beeding, West Sussex
A 240 acre Grade I listed woodland valley garden in West Sussex, famed for Loderi rhododendrons, seven lakes and a small wallaby colony, reopened in 2019 after a decade of closure.
Adults from £15.50, children (2 to 16) from £8.50 when booked online (2026); family tickets from £31.50. Car parking £4.80
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Paid entry National Trust
Nymans
Handcross, West Sussex
A plant collector's garden near Handcross, made by the Messel family from the 1890s, set around the picturesque ruins of a house partly lost to fire in 1947.
Adults £23.10 with Gift Aid or £21 without; children 5 to 17 £11.60 with Gift Aid or £10.50 without; under 5s free (prices from 1 March 2026)
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Paid entry University of Oxford
Oxford Botanic Garden
Oxford, Oxfordshire
Founded in 1621, the University of Oxford's botanic garden sits by Magdalen Bridge in the city centre, with a historic walled garden, seven glasshouses and more than 5,000 plant species.
Adults £9, concessions £7.20 (students, alumni, over 65s); under 16s free with a paying family member; disabled visitor and carer £1 (2026 standard prices; £1 booking fee per online transaction)
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Paid entry Painshill Park Trust (independent charity)
Painshill
Cobham, Surrey
An 18th century landscape garden in Cobham created by Charles Hamilton and restored since 1981, with a circuit of follies including the Crystal Grotto, Ruined Abbey and Turkish Tent around a lake.
On the door: adults £15, children (5 to 16) £7.50, under 5s free (£16.50 and £8.25 with Gift Aid). Online: adults £12.50, children £5.50, plus £1 booking fee per transaction (2026)
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Paid entry Royal Horticultural Society
RHS Garden Wisley
Woking, Surrey
The RHS's flagship garden near the M25, with a large Glasshouse, rock garden, rhododendrons on Battleston Hill, plant trials and the Hilltop science gardens.
Adults £20.50 on the day, or from £15.20 booked online in advance; children 5 to 16 £6; under 5s free; car-free adults £14.40
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Paid entry National Trust
Sheffield Park and Garden
Uckfield, East Sussex
A Grade I listed landscape garden near Uckfield, laid out around four lakes in the 18th century and planted with trees for autumn colour in the early 1900s.
Adults £20.90 with Gift Aid or £19 without; children 5 to 17 £10.50 with Gift Aid or £9.50 without; family £52.30 with Gift Aid (prices from 1 March 2026)
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Paid entry Hampshire County Council (as sole trustee, run as a charity)
Sir Harold Hillier Gardens
Romsey, Hampshire
A 180 acre garden and arboretum near Romsey begun by plantsman Sir Harold Hillier in 1953, with a vast tree collection, a large Winter Garden and the 250 metre Centenary Border.
Adults £18.25, concessions £17, children (5 to 16) £5.50, under 5s free (Gift Aid prices, April 2026 to March 2027); standard adult price £16.59
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Paid entry National Trust
Sissinghurst Castle Garden
Cranbrook, Kent
Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson's garden of hedged rooms around a Tudor tower, famous for its White Garden and roses, set in a 450-acre Wealden estate.
Adults £22, children (5 to 17) £11, family £55 (Gift Aid prices; £20, £10 and £50 without Gift Aid); parking £4.50 for non-members
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Paid entry The Crown Estate
The Savill Garden
Englefield Green, Surrey
A 35-acre garden in Windsor Great Park, created from 1932 by Eric Savill for King George V, known for spring magnolias, summer roses and autumn colour.
Adults £18.95 on the day or £14.95 booked online in advance; children 5 to 15 £8.50 on the day or £6.50 in advance; ages 2 to 4 free (2026 peak season prices, from 28 March; off-peak prices before then were lower)
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Free entry The Crown Estate
The Valley Gardens, Windsor Great Park
Virginia Water, Surrey
A free, 250-acre woodland garden on the slopes above Virginia Water, begun in the 1940s by Eric Savill and known for its rhododendrons, azaleas and the Punch Bowl.
Free entry; car parks in Windsor Great Park charge from £3.20 for up to an hour to £16 for four hours or more
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Paid entry Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (on National Trust land)
Wakehurst
Ardingly, West Sussex
Kew's wild botanic garden in the High Weald, with woodland valleys, water and walled gardens, nature reserves, an Elizabethan mansion and the Millennium Seed Bank.
Adults £18.50; young people 17 to 25 £9.25; children 16 and under free; late entry from 3.30pm £9.25 (2026)
Prices and entry in South East England
A side by side summary. Prices and opening times change, so follow the link to each guide for details and sources.
| Garden | County | Entry | Price | Run by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exbury Gardens | Hampshire | Paid entry | Adults £14.50, children (3 to 15) £6.50, family £39.90 when booked online in advance, 2 September to 31 October 2026; on-the-day tickets cost more. Steam railway extra | Exbury Gardens Ltd (registered charity) |
| Great Dixter | East Sussex | Paid entry | Adults £17.75, children (5 to 15) £5.50 (2026 day tickets, from 1 April) | Great Dixter Charitable Trust |
| Leonardslee Gardens | West Sussex | Paid entry | Adults from £15.50, children (2 to 16) from £8.50 when booked online (2026); family tickets from £31.50. Car parking £4.80 | Leonardslee Ltd (privately owned) |
| Nymans | West Sussex | Paid entry | Adults £23.10 with Gift Aid or £21 without; children 5 to 17 £11.60 with Gift Aid or £10.50 without; under 5s free (prices from 1 March 2026) | National Trust |
| Oxford Botanic Garden | Oxfordshire | Paid entry | Adults £9, concessions £7.20 (students, alumni, over 65s); under 16s free with a paying family member; disabled visitor and carer £1 (2026 standard prices; £1 booking fee per online transaction) | University of Oxford |
| Painshill | Surrey | Paid entry | On the door: adults £15, children (5 to 16) £7.50, under 5s free (£16.50 and £8.25 with Gift Aid). Online: adults £12.50, children £5.50, plus £1 booking fee per transaction (2026) | Painshill Park Trust (independent charity) |
| RHS Garden Wisley | Surrey | Paid entry | Adults £20.50 on the day, or from £15.20 booked online in advance; children 5 to 16 £6; under 5s free; car-free adults £14.40 | Royal Horticultural Society |
| Sheffield Park and Garden | East Sussex | Paid entry | Adults £20.90 with Gift Aid or £19 without; children 5 to 17 £10.50 with Gift Aid or £9.50 without; family £52.30 with Gift Aid (prices from 1 March 2026) | National Trust |
| Sir Harold Hillier Gardens | Hampshire | Paid entry | Adults £18.25, concessions £17, children (5 to 16) £5.50, under 5s free (Gift Aid prices, April 2026 to March 2027); standard adult price £16.59 | Hampshire County Council (as sole trustee, run as a charity) |
| Sissinghurst Castle Garden | Kent | Paid entry | Adults £22, children (5 to 17) £11, family £55 (Gift Aid prices; £20, £10 and £50 without Gift Aid); parking £4.50 for non-members | National Trust |
| The Savill Garden | Surrey | Paid entry | Adults £18.95 on the day or £14.95 booked online in advance; children 5 to 15 £8.50 on the day or £6.50 in advance; ages 2 to 4 free (2026 peak season prices, from 28 March; off-peak prices before then were lower) | The Crown Estate |
| The Valley Gardens, Windsor Great Park | Surrey | Free entry | Free entry; car parks in Windsor Great Park charge from £3.20 for up to an hour to £16 for four hours or more | The Crown Estate |
| Wakehurst | West Sussex | Paid entry | Adults £18.50; young people 17 to 25 £9.25; children 16 and under free; late entry from 3.30pm £9.25 (2026) | Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (on National Trust land) |