Parkland at Cambridgeshire's Wimpole Hall and Anglesey Abbey to reopen

Published: 09:35, 29 May 2020

| Updated: 09:36, 29 May 2020

Wimpole Hall and paprterre Picture: National Trust/Andrew Butler (35510118)

Cambridgeshire's Wimpole Hall and Anglesey Abbey will be among the National Trust properties reopening their gardens and parkland to the public from next week.

The trust has announced that from Wednesday (June 3) it will begin a phased reopening of some outdoor areas in England and Northern Ireland.

Visitors will need to book in advance as numbers will be restricted to maintain public safety, the trust has said. And the trust’s website warns that people who have not booked cannot simply turn up at the venues - they will be turned away.

In the East of England, four trust properties will be reopening in the first phase - Anglesey Abbey and Wimpole in Cambridge, and Ickworth and Sutton Hoo, both in Suffolk.

Take a walk into the parkland at Wimpole Hall Picture: National Trust

The trust’s car park is also open at Wicken Fen Nature Reserve, but must also be booked in advance.

Visitors to trust properties will need to book one ticket per person (except for children aged five or under) and choose a 30-minute arrival time for the day of the visit.

New times slots will be released on Fridays for the following week. Bookings will also be limited to one a week and will be free for trust members, while other visitors will have to pay an admission fee.

All the trust’s houses, shops, holiday cottages and campsites remain closed.

The announcement of the openings comes after the UK government updated its advice on ticketed garden venues on May 23, confirming that people in England can now visit gardens and land maintained for public use.

View of Anglesey Abbey - the gardens were created by Huttleston Broughton, the 1st Baron Fairhaven

Director general of the trust, Hilary McGrady, said: “We want to provide safe, local, welcoming spaces for people, and wherever possible we will open our gardens and parks, and coast and countryside car parks.

“The fresh air, bird song, big skies and open spaces people have missed will be there, but things will be very different, particularly at first. We want to thank people for their patience and support while we gradually begin reopening and welcoming our visitors.”

Further information on how to book is available on the property websites.

The full list of National Trust properties reopening is:

South West