Goodnestone Park

Over het museum

Goodnestone Park is a Queen Anne country house in the Kent countryside that was built in 1704 by Brook Bridges soon after he bought the estate. The estate stayed in the same family, and through the marriage of Sir Brook Bridges, 3rd Baronet, to Fanny Fowler it became linked to the Fitzwalter peerage. It is still owned and run by the family, today by Julian Fitzwalter, the 22nd Baron, and his son. The house is Grade II* listed and was once visited by Jane Austen.

The gardens cover about fifteen acres and have been open to the public since the 1970s. They include formal terraces, a walled garden of linked garden rooms, woodland walks, arboreta and wildflower meadows, and the walled garden looks towards the Norman church. The surrounding estate is about 2,000 acres of arable land, woodland and parkland.

Under a long-term heritage management plan the mansion is opened for pre-booked guided tours on 28 days each year. The collection at the house includes many historical objects, and a list of them can be read in the mansion. The rest of the year the house is let for stays and events. In the restored 19th-century stables the estate also runs Goodnestone Contemporary, a gallery with changing exhibitions of contemporary art.

Hoogtepunten

• Grade II* Queen Anne mansion of 1704 with pre-booked heritage tours on 28 days a year
• Fifteen acres of historic gardens with a walled garden and Norman church backdrop
• Goodnestone Contemporary gallery in the 19th-century stables
• Old Dairy Café and shop

Vaste collectie

• Gardens – Fifteen acres of terraces, a walled garden, woodland walks, arboreta and meadows around the Queen Anne mansion.
• Heritage tours of the mansion – Pre-booked guided tours of the Grade II* listed house and its collection on 28 days a year.

Opgericht

1704

Toegangsprijzen & kortingen

Winter 2026 prices; charity days and events are excluded. Holders of CPRE, Historic Houses or Gardeners’ World cards get free entry or two for the price of one, and RHS members get free garden admission on Wednesdays and throughout April and September.

Toegankelijkheid

• Deels rolstoeltoegankelijk
• Lift: geen informatie
• Aangepast toilet
• Gehandicaptenparkeerplaats
• Hulphonden welkom
• Tastmodellen / voelbare objecten: geen informatie
• Rondleidingen in gebarentaal: geen informatie
• Informatie in eenvoudige taal: geen informatie
• Audiodescriptie: geen informatie

There is level access from the car park to the café, ticket area, shop, toilets and the gardens. Disabled parking spaces are next to the main entrance, on compacted gravel. In the gardens, wheelchair access is limited to the area around the house and the walled garden; the woodland, pond area and arboreta are unsuitable for visitors with limited mobility. There is a unisex accessible toilet in the café and another at the end of the stable block. Assistance dogs are welcome.

Kinderen & gezin

A family ticket covers 2 adults and 2 children, and child tickets are for ages 6 to 16. Workshops and events for children are held on selected days.

Bereikbaarheid & parkeren

By car it takes about 90 minutes from London and under 30 minutes from Dover. The only vehicle access to the gardens is through Goodnestone village, past the school, the pub and the church. Postcodes: gardens CT3 1PJ, house CT3 1PL.

Service & horeca

• Café
• Museumwinkel

The Old Dairy Café serves lunch and refreshments, the Old Dairy Shop sells gifts, and plants can be bought in the nursery.

Evenementen & zaalverhuur

• Ruimtes te huur
• Privéfeesten
• Zakelijke evenementen
• Bruiloften / trouwceremonies

The estate offers the manor house and gardens for weddings, corporate events and private celebrations, and the house sleeps up to 24 guests.

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