Visitor Information

Great Dixter Shop

Our shop is open from the beginning of April until the end of October and offers a selection of high quality gardening tools and workwear, tried and tested in the garden, as well as books by Christopher Lloyd and other authors, handmade and locally sourced products and wooden products made at Great Dixter. The online shop is available all year round.

Nursery

The Plant Nursery is open all year round and stocks a range of plants and seeds from the garden. The nursery was established by Christopher Lloyd in 1954 and has specialised in plants that he deemed garden worthy.

Café

We serve home-cooked meals, incorporating the produce grown in the vegetable garden as well as local food producers, alongside tea, freshly ground coffee and delicious cakes.

There is outdoor seating in the café garden and under the cover of green-roofed shelters.

Picnics may be eaten on the grassy car parks where there are picnic tables, we kindly ask you not to eat picnics within the garden.

Great Dixter Location

Great Dixter House and Gardens is in the village of Northiam, which lies in the Sussex Weald, 9 miles from Rye and 12 miles from Hastings. Great Dixter is approximately three quarters of a mile off of the A28, which runs through Northiam. Follow the brown tourist signs once in the village. Google Map.

To improve your visit, please take the time to browse these pages regarding planning your visit, as well as the general information below.

General Information

With the exception of guide dogs, no dogs are permitted in the garden. Please note that dogs must be kept on leads in the car park. 

Guide books are available at the Ticket Office, Shop and Nursery in English, French and German.

Families

In this section:

Accessibility

Opening Times

Tickets

Group Visits

How to Find Us

Café

Visit the Nursery

Visit the Shop

We very much welcome families to Great Dixter.

Part of the ethos of the place is dedicated to the nurturing of young minds with respect to nature and the beauty of their environment. We offer a family annual ticket (for 2 adults and 2 children), which can be purchased at the ticket office.

Families with young children should be aware that pathways are narrow and use of pushchairs may be difficult in places. We recommend use of baby carriers. Pushchairs may be left in the Barn Garden under the barn at your own risk. Baby changing facilities are available in the disabled toilets and at Dixter Farm buildings.

Narrow Paths

Due to the historic layout of the garden and the style of planting some paths are narrow and difficult to navigate, particularly in a wheelchair or with a push chair. While there is step free access to most of the garden, the paths are a mixture of gravel and dirt and can be difficult to access with a wheelchair. We cannot do much about this without a fairly significant change to the ethos behind the planting, so this is likely to remain a problem. We recommend that families with pre-walking children should be prepared to carry their child in the garden rather than expect to use a pushchair.

Garden Map 

Download our garden map

Health and Safety Information

Great Dixter Charitable Trust works hard to manage risk to visitors both in the garden and the wider estate, through regular monitoring, and systems of incident and accident reporting. There are a few areas that visitors should be aware of:

Paving Stones

Paving stones in the garden may be uneven or slippery when wet. Please take care when walking on the paths.

Poisonous Plants and Allergies

Some plants are poisonous and some may lead to an allergic response if touched. Parents and carers should be careful to supervise children and dependents in the garden at all times.

Open Water

For your safety, please be warned that there are a number of unfenced ponds in the garden. It is not advisable to leave children or dependents unsupervised. The location of these ponds is shown on the garden plan and within our leaflet.

Weil’s Disease

Weils disease can be caused by contact with water infected with rat urine. Some of our educational activities involve pond dipping and care should be taken to cover any cuts or abrasions prior to taking part in these activities, and to thoroughly wash hands afterwards.

Lyme Disease

Lyme disease is transmitted by ticks which can be carried by deer and other animals, which are prevalent in the East Sussex countryside. Long trousers and sleeves are recommended particularly for educational activities where a visit to our woodland is included. Early symptoms can be a characteristic ‘bullseye’ rash and flu like symptoms. It is important to visit your doctor early if you suspect you may have Lyme disease as the symptoms can be serious if untreated.