Photo: DeFacto, CC BY-SA 4.026 children's activities at 10 National Trust places in Sussex, in one list, and all 25 places on a map. Entry is free for members at most places; where an activity costs extra, the price is on it.
Bateman's (National Trust), Burwash · 23 May to 1 November 2026
A family trail through Bateman's garden and the ground floor of the house, based on Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's Monkey Puzzle. Children help Little Monkey find his mum, with games such as hook-a-bat, giant noughts and crosses and jungle hide and seek. The trail finishes at the end of half term.
Bateman's (National Trust), Burwash · 23 May to 1 November 2026
Four prints of Axel Scheffler's illustrations for Monkey Puzzle, the picture book written by Julia Donaldson, hang in the kitchen at Bateman's. They are reproductions of the originals, close enough to show the detail in each scene. It makes a short indoor stop alongside the Monkey Puzzle trail in the garden.
Standen House and Garden (National Trust), East Grinstead · 3 October to 1 November 2026
A Halloween trail around Standen's garden that is spooky without being frightening. Look out for crows, bats and magic meetings along the way, peek into the Spookiful Bothy and make something in the Witchard den. Each trail comes with a small gift.
Sheffield Park and Garden (National Trust), Uckfield · 3 October to 15 November 2026
A folklore game on the free Stranger Folk app, played around the gardens at Sheffield Park. The Old Crone guides teams through silly and magical tasks to track down goblins and other creatures and seal the rift between worlds. It continues after half term into mid November.
Bodiam Castle (National Trust), Bodiam · 10 October to 1 November 2026
Young witches and wizards choose a magical path and work through games, potions and spells around Bodiam Castle. Children are encouraged to come in costume. On weekend afternoons there is a free best dressed competition in the castle courtyard.
Nymans (National Trust), Handcross · 10 October to 1 November 2026
A garden trail based on the We're Going on a Ghost Hunt books, following the Bunnies of Hoppity Hill as they look for hidden ghosts. Children pick a bunny name, play Halloween hoopla, race on broomsticks and cross stepping stones before a party and a sticker at the end. On 27 October there are also short storytelling sessions.
Petworth House and Park (National Trust), Petworth · 10 October to 1 November 2026
Petworth's take on the We're Going on a Ghost Hunt books sends young children after the Bunnies of Hoppity Hill to find hidden ghosts. Along the way there is Halloween hoopla, broomstick racing and stepping stones, with a party and sticker at the finish. The route is buggy friendly.
Bodiam Castle (National Trust), Bodiam · 17 October to 1 November 2026
Children who come to Bodiam in Halloween costume can enter a best dressed competition in the castle courtyard, held at 1pm each weekend of the Spell Quest trail. There are spooky photo opportunities around the castle too. Entry is free.
Bodiam Castle (National Trust), Bodiam · 17 October to 1 November 2026
A drop-in craft table in the education room opposite the castle. Children choose a Halloween item to decorate, such as a wizard hat tealight, a ceramic pumpkin, a cauldron or a wooden hanging bat. Places are first come, first served.
Petworth House and Park (National Trust), Petworth · 17 October to 18 October 2026
Short storytelling sessions in the Battery House studio based on We're Going on a Ghost Hunt. Expect stories, music and mild spookiness about ghosts, pumpkins, bats and owls. Each session lasts about half an hour.
Nymans (National Trust), Handcross · 27 October 2026
A half-term storytelling session for little ones based on We're Going on a Ghost Hunt. Children join the Bunnies of Hoppity Hill as they look for hidden ghosts and meet pumpkins, bats and owls, with music and some gentle spookiness. There are three sessions on the day.
Alfriston Clergy House (National Trust), Alfriston · 30 October to 31 October 2026
A display of carved pumpkins at the thatched Clergy House over the Halloween weekend. As you look round, you can learn about the pumpkin's place in myth, folklore and everyday life. It suits a short visit while in Alfriston village.
Bodiam Castle (National Trust), Bodiam · 31 October 2026
Spooky face painting at Bodiam Castle on Halloween itself. Children pick a design to go with their costume before setting off on the Spell Quest trail. It is a drop-in, served in order of arrival.
Bodiam Castle (National Trust), Bodiam · 16 October to 30 October 2026
A guided walk around Bodiam's moat led by a guide dressed and speaking as a medieval character. They stop along the way to explain why and when the castle was built, how it sits in the landscape and who lived there. These are the last tours of the season.
Monk's House (National Trust), Rodmell · 16 October to 31 October 2026
Monk's House, Virginia and Leonard Woolf's country home, joins the Big Draw festival with art activities around the garden. Visitors can try different kinds of mark making, build pictures from natural objects or draw a still life. It is not Halloween themed but falls across the half-term weekends.
Bateman's (National Trust), Burwash · 24 October to 1 November 2026
Drop-in Diwali crafts in the kitchen at Bateman's, Rudyard Kipling's former home, during half term. Children can make henna-style scratch art, Indian block-printed cards or a ceramic lantern. It is part of a wider Diwali celebration in the house and garden that runs to 8 November.
Bateman's (National Trust), Burwash · 14 November to 3 January 2027
Rudyard Kipling's home brings The Jungle Book to life for Christmas. Inside, families follow Baloo the sleepy bear through rooms set as scenes from the story, and in the garden children use a free spotter sheet to find festive Jungle Book characters. Bateman's Christmas displays are known for their craftsmanship.
Nymans (National Trust), Handcross · 21 November to 4 January 2027
The rooms of Nymans house are turned into a make-believe Christmas wonderland for the festive season. Outside, a family adventure trail runs through the garden and is free with admission. The garden is open until 4pm and the house closes a little earlier.
Nymans (National Trust), Handcross · 21 November to 17 January 2027
Twelve giant Gruffalo sculptures, each painted by a different artist with nature-inspired designs, are placed around the garden at Nymans this winter. Look out for Gruffalo games and challenges on the way round. Until 4 January the house is also dressed for Christmas with a winter woodland theme.
Standen House and Garden (National Trust), East Grinstead · 21 November to 5 January 2027
A playful Christmas trail around Standen's garden where a family of mischievous mice have caused festive chaos. Children follow the map to sort things out, with sing-along stops and family games along the route. Everyone who buys a trail gets a small gift.
Petworth House and Park (National Trust), Petworth · 28 November to 3 January 2027
Petworth's grand state rooms are filled with a nature-themed Christmas display, turning the house into a woodland scene under a starry sky and a glowing moon. Visitors wander through winter scenes made from natural materials. The state rooms are on one level with step-free access.
Bodiam Castle (National Trust), Bodiam · 28 November to 3 January 2027
Bodiam's medieval castle is decked out for Christmas, with decorated trees in the tower rooms and twinkling lights. Children can write a letter to Father Christmas, climb aboard his sleigh in the courtyard for a photo, and hunt for presents left by a naughty elf on a family trail. Hot chocolate from the Wharf tea-room helps on a winter walk.
Sheffield Park and Garden, Sheffield Park, near Uckfield · 28 November to 10 January 2027
Ten hand-painted Snowdog sculptures inspired by The Snowman and The Snowdog are hidden around the winter garden at Sheffield Park. Game stops and activities along the way keep younger children moving between the lakes.
Petworth House and Park (National Trust), Petworth · 2 December 2026
A Christmas edition of Petworth's Little Antlers toddler session. Families look round the Magical Christmas display in the house, then settle in for story time and festive activities designed for under 5s. It lasts about an hour.
Lamb House (National Trust), Rye · 5 December to 3 January 2027
Lamb House in Rye becomes 'Mallards', the festive home of Miss Mapp and later Lucia from E.F. Benson's novels. Expect a warm Tilling welcome, a decorated Oak Parlour and a reading nook tied to Henry James's family.
Uppark House and Garden (National Trust), South Harting · 6 December to 22 December 2026
Uppark's Georgian mansion is dressed for a lavish Christmas party, with towering trees, garlands, heaps of presents and a feast laid out in the dining room. Outside, the Repton garden and meadow give long views to the South Downs and the Isle of Wight. It opens on nine days only in December.
Sussex places in colour and activities in orange, with Kent in grey so you can plan further afield. Tap a pin for details and directions.
Gardens, houses, castles and countryside worth a visit any time, with opening times and what to see.
Image: National TrustA thatched, timber-framed Wealden hall-house built for the village priest in the early 15th century, and the first building the National Trust ever bought, in 1896. It sits beside the church on The Tye with a cottage garden looking over the Cuckmere Valley.
Image: National TrustRudyard Kipling's 17th-century Jacobean home, with his study and rooms kept much as he left them. Outside there is a quiet garden, a working watermill he wrote about and 300 acres of High Weald countryside to walk.
Image: National TrustBirling Gap is where the South Downs meet the sea at the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs, one of the longest undeveloped stretches of the south coast. Walk the clifftop downland, or take the steps down to the shingle beach for rock pools and fossil hunting. The National Trust café, shop and visitor centre sit on the cliff top.
Image: National TrustThe highest point in the South Downs National Park, a heather-covered hill with one of the best views over the Weald from the Temple of the Winds. Easy tracks lead from free car parks through heathland and woods that inspired Tennyson.
Photo: Chris Heaton, CC BY-SA 2.0A 623-acre stretch of the South Downs ridge just west of Lewes, with views north across the Weald and south towards the coast. Sunken droveways, burial mounds and the route Simon de Montfort is said to have taken to the Battle of Lewes in 1264 give it plenty of history. Bracky Bottom, a secluded coombe, is a lovely spot on a summer evening.
Image: National TrustA moated 14th-century castle in the Rother valley that looks exactly like a child's drawing of a castle. Inside the walls it is an open ruin, so you can climb the towers and explore the courtyard, then walk the grounds and parkland around the moat.
Photo: Simon Burchell, CC BY-SA 3.0The largest hill fort in Sussex, with ramparts enclosing about 65 acres on a chalk spur just north of Worthing and a story going back more than 5,000 years, including Neolithic flint mines. On a clear day the views reach the cliffs beyond Brighton and the Isle of Wight. Grazed downland makes it one of the best butterfly spots in the county.
Image: National TrustThe National Trust land around the meandering Cuckmere River, from the downland at High and Over down to Cuckmere Haven with classic views of the Seven Sisters cliffs. Riverside and hilltop trails link farmland, saltmarsh and chalk grassland.
Image: National TrustThe longest, deepest and widest dry valley in Britain, cut into the South Downs just north of Brighton. Walk the Iron Age ramparts for the view Constable called the grandest in the world, then drop into the valley itself.
Image: National TrustAt 248 metres, Ditchling Beacon is the highest point in East Sussex, with views to the sea in one direction and across the Weald in the other. The South Downs Way runs along the ridge past the remains of an Iron Age hillfort.
Photo: Chris Gunns, CC BY-SA 2.0A quiet working estate in the folds of the South Downs above Singleton, with beech and oak woods, old pasture and flint cottages and barns. Hat Hill, the high point, looks over Goodwood racecourse and down to Chichester. A disused railway tunnel on the estate is a winter roost for 12 of the UK's 17 bat species.
Photo: David Smith, CC BY-SA 2.0A sand and shingle spit at the mouth of Chichester Harbour, one of the last stretches of natural coastline in West Sussex. Shifting dunes give way to salt marsh, with a sandy beach for walking and playing and yachts anchored off the northern tip, where seals sometimes appear. It sits at the end of West Wittering beach.
Photo: N Chadwick, CC BY-SA 2.0One of the largest areas of ancient chalk downland in the Trust's care, on the South Downs Way just east of Uppark. From the brow of the hill the views run north over the Weald and south to the Isle of Wight. Iron Age earthworks and the site of a Napoleonic telegraph station on Beacon Hill add some history to the walking.
Image: National TrustA red-brick Georgian house at the top of West Street in Rye, home to the novelists Henry James and later E.F. Benson. Behind it lies one of the largest walled gardens in the old town.
Photo: N Chadwick, CC BY-SA 2.0Mixed broadleaf woodland and open heath on the Sussex and Surrey border near Haslemere, and one of the Trust's oldest countryside sites. Belted Galloway cattle are helping the heath recover after mid-century fires, and chestnut coppice glades draw butterflies such as the brimstone in late spring. It is now part of the Wealden Heaths National Nature Reserve.
Image: National TrustThe weatherboarded cottage that was Virginia and Leonard Woolf's country home, with rooms kept as they lived in them and a much-loved cottage garden. It is small and visits are by pre-booked time slot, so plan ahead.
Image: National TrustA romantic garden wrapped around a house that is part home and part dramatic ruin. Rare plant collections fill the garden, and beyond it ancient woodland leads down to a lake and cascades.
Image: National TrustA grand 17th-century house holding one of the National Trust's finest art collections, including Turner, Van Dyck and Gainsborough. Outside, a 700-acre deer park by 'Capability' Brown gives big South Downs views and room for a long walk.
Photo: AndyScott, CC0A working farm hamlet on the South Downs Way near Devil's Dyke, recorded in the Domesday Book and once held by the Knights Templar. Look for the well-preserved donkey wheel that once drew water from a 50-metre well, then climb Newtimber Hill for ancient woodland, chalk grassland and views to the sea.
Image: National TrustA Grade I listed landscape garden built around five lakes linked by cascades, shaped by 'Capability' Brown and Humphry Repton. The wider parkland and East Park suit a longer walk with the dog.
Photo: Dave Spicer, CC BY-SA 2.0A 3,500-acre estate of woodland, farmland and downland around an unspoilt village between Arundel and Chichester. More than 25 miles of paths cross it, taking in a stretch of the Roman Stane Street, the bank of a medieval deer park and Bronze Age barrows on Bignor Hill. Spring woodland flowers and autumn colour in Park Wood are the seasonal highlights.
Image: National TrustAn Arts and Crafts family home designed by Philip Webb in 1891 and furnished throughout with Morris & Co. wallpapers and fabrics, dressed as if for a 1925 weekend stay. The 12 acre hillside garden looks out over the High Weald, and woodland paths lead on towards Ashdown Forest and the Bluebell Railway.
Image: National TrustA 17th-century house crowning the South Downs ridge near South Harting, with views stretching to the Solent. Its Georgian interiors show the comfort of life upstairs alongside the servants' world below, and past residents include the Fetherstonhaugh family, Emma Hamilton and a young H.G. Wells.
Photo: Chris Thomas-Atkin, CC BY-SA 2.0A large estate in the Rother valley just west of Midhurst, running from open heathland on Woolbeding Common down to parkland and riverside pasture along the River Rother. The heath is home to nightjars and woodlarks, and Belted Galloway cattle graze it. It is separate from Woolbeding Gardens, which has its own ticketed visits.
Image: National TrustA 26 acre garden on the edge of Midhurst, with distinctive garden rooms and colourful borders that flow into the Rother valley landscape. Follies include a classical Tulip Folly, a ruined abbey, a gothic summerhouse and a river-god grotto, alongside a striking ten-sided glasshouse and Silk Route garden.
To Do in Sussex is independent and not connected to the National Trust. Activities are checked against the Trust's own event pages; for membership and opening details see nationaltrust.org.uk.
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