Tree-mendous
From the apple tree that sparked a scientific discovery to the giant redwood that broke a Guinness World Record, find a special tree near you to visit this season. Just watch out for falling apples …
Our top picks for...
October
events
Heritage Open Days
11–20 September
Heritage Open Days returns this September, celebrating history and culture across England. This year’s theme of ‘Everyday Histories’ shines a light on the routines, crafts and trades that defined our ancestors’ lives. Lots of heritage sites open their doors – free of charge.
Many Trust places are taking part, including Petworth in West Sussex (12–13 Sept) where visitors can explore the house’s extraordinary art collection and current exhibition Expressions in Blue: Monumental Porcelain by Felicity Aylieff. Or be transported back 500 years at the moated manor house of Baddesley Clinton in Warwickshire (13 Sept), before exploring the walled gardens and estate, set in the peaceful Forest of Arden.
Heritage Open Days is brought to you by the National Trust with funds raised by Postcode Lottery players.
Activities
Stranger Folk
Head out on a spooky quest this autumn with Stranger Folk, an app-based interactive game for kids (and their grown-ups!) designed especially for National Trust places. Inspired by the folklore of the British Isles, it features sneaky goblins, scary boggarts and the wise Old Crone. Search ‘stranger folk’ on your device’s app store to download the game for free.
Visit the website to find your nearest ‘crack’ to the spirit world
Activities
Apple days
Celebrate the apple harvest and sample some heritage varieties at a Trust orchard near you
last chance to see …
Journeys exhibitions
Until 1 November
Created with collector Karun Thakar, Journeys traces the global stories woven through textiles. Blickling Estate in Norfolk showcases Japanese kimonos, Punjabi baghs and French toiles that highlight Blickling’s global connections. At Osterley in Middlesex, textiles exploring migration and trade prompt reflections on the estate’s links to empire. And Dyrham Park in South Gloucestershire is transformed by West African Asafo flags, celebrating heritage, symbolism
and identity.
Our top picks for...
november
Activities
Diwali
Corfe Castle, Dorset
25 October
Join Corfe Castle’s after-dark Diwali celebrations, with a light trail, rangoli artworks, live music and dance, lndian food stalls and craft activities. Co-created with the Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch Indian Community, the night will culminate with a diya-lighting ceremony, with visitors invited to light clay oil lamps, symbolising the triumph of light over darkness. Booking essential.
Dunstable Downs, Bedfordshire
See website for dates
This year’s Diwali celebrations will be brighter and more colourful than ever. Everyone is welcome to come and join in making rangoli art, making and lighting diya oil lamps and crafting marigolds, which are traditional decorations for festive occasions in India. There’ll also be music, dancing, henna and special Diwali treats available from the café.
East Riddlesden Hall, West Yorkshire
6–11 November
Run in partnership with Bradford Hindu Council, the lower floor of the hall will be decorated with lamps and hand-made paper flowers. Listen to traditional Indian music played on the flute and tabla hand drums. There’ll also be puppet shows and storytelling led by the local Hindu community.
last chance to see …
Meet Rembrandt
Upton House, Warwickshire
Until 8 November
Have a seat and take time to absorb Rembrandt van Rijn’s masterpiece, Self Portrait Wearing a Feathered Bonnet (1635). The audio description encourages viewers to linger over the painting’s details in a ‘slow looking’ experience and hear from the conservators and curators who have taken the artwork on its conservation journey. After Upton House, the painting returns to its usual home of Buckland Abbey in Devon.
fungi spotting
Look out for some of these weird and wonderful fungi on your next autumn walk
Never touch, pick or eat any fungi you find. As well as supporting important ecosystems, many fungi are poisonous.
Amethyst deceiver
Spot the vibrant amethyst deceiver in leaf-litter and wet moss during autumn. It’s one of about 400 species of fungi you can find at Sheringham Park in Norfolk.
Chicken of the woods
Look out for the orange or yellow tiers, named for their cooked-chicken-like appearance, if you’re walking through the Big Wood at Erddig in Wrexham.
Our top picks for...
december
events
Festive cheer
Polesden Lacey, Surrey
The 12 Days of Christmas
21 November–3 January
Lavish immersive displays and sparkling trees decorate the house at Polesden Lacey, themed on the 12 Days of Christmas. Admire the six metre (20ft) Christmas tree, follow the children’s trail around the grounds and pick up a festive treat in the café.
Longshaw, Derbyshire
A Longshaw Christmas
See website for dates and booking info
Enjoy a nature-based Christmas at Longshaw, with a children’s deer trail around the woods, crafts and wreath-making. Take your little elves to meet Father Christmas, and buy a Christmas tree to take home.
Activities
Winter lights
Light up the dark winter nights at a Christmas illumination event. At Stourhead in Wiltshire, light installations including a ‘sea of light’, ‘fire garden’ and ‘winter cathedral’ will be set against the backdrop of the Palladian gardens. Step into a winter wonderland at Wimpole in Cambridgeshire, with its illuminated trail and festive food and drink. And at Belton in Lincolnshire, expect twinkling lights and immersive seasonal sounds. Find winter lights near you on the website.
Activities
Walks for all
Our top picks for...
january
Activities
Snowdrop spotting
Don’t miss our snowdrop displays! They’re at their best in January and February and are a reminder that spring is not far away
Baddesley Clinton, Warwickshire
Baddesley Clinton’s gardeners began planting a new snowdrop woodland last winter thanks to a kind donation from the Southeast Staffordshire National Trust Association. Over the next 10 years, hundreds more bulbs will be planted here.
Bodnant Garden, Conwy
Bodnant’s display of snowdrops gets more impressive each year thanks to their annual planting of new bulbs. They first appear in early January, and by the end of February thousands blanket the Old Park.
Kingston Lacy, Dorset
Find a bench along the twisting paths of the Fernery to enjoy views of the rustic raised beds, which burst with 35 different varieties of snowdrop in January and February. Continue on to the Lime Avenue for more snowdrops.
Wallington, Northumberland
Towards the end of winter, Wallington’s woodlands become a carpet of delicate white snowdrops – one million of them, no less – which dedicated gardeners, volunteers and visitors have planted over the last 10 years.
This month in History
In January 1901, in a little hut on the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall, Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi received a radio transmission from the Isle of Wight over 180 miles (290km) away. The signal proved radio could work over the horizon – something many scientists thought impossible at the time – helping pave the way for today’s instant wireless communication. The Lizard Wireless Station at Bass Point has been restored to look how it would have in Marconi’s day. It reopens in April 2027, at times dependent on volunteer availability.
Exhibition
Lacock by Martin Parr exhibition
Fox Talbot Museum,
Lacock, Wiltshire
Until 27 June 2027
Lacock by Martin Parr wittily captures everyday life in the village of Lacock in a new exhibition by the renowned photographer. Parr completed the portraits shortly before his death last year, making this his last major commission. The exhibition reflects Parr’s deep appreciation for Lacock’s history and the work of Henry Fox Talbot.
Exhibition
At the Bend in the River
Beningbrough, North Yorkshire
10 October–4 April (on open days)
Discover evocative riverscapes and moments of stillness in Beningbrough’s Reddihough Galleries with an exhibition of works by British artist Nancy Cadogan, many painted on-site. Her expressive paintings offer new perspectives on the natural world and human connections.
Nature is our future. It is the air we breathe, the water we drink. Nature helps us feel connected, at peace, and replenished.
But nature is disappearing at an alarming rate.
This is a human crisis.
When nature is thriving, people flourish. Communities are better protected from floods and heat; places become healthier, more beautiful and hopeful.
We can restore nature. But we need to do it together.
By showing your support, your donation will help restore nature.
It will plant trees. Save species. Connect habitats. Protect wildlife.The National Trust protects and cares for the nation’s coast, historic sites, countryside and green spaces. Generations of people have stepped up to help people and nature thrive.
Will you stand with us today and build a brighter tomorrow?
©National Trust 2026. Registered charity no. 205846.
©National Trust Images/Paul Harris
Map illustration: National Trust Images/Olivia Waller, Fungi illustrations by Ella Sienna, National Trust Images x18, Desmond Brambley, © Martin Parr / Magnum Photos, Justin Piperger
Contact us
General enquiries, including changing membership details:
0344 800 1895
Supporter Service Centre, National Trust, PO Box 7083, Stratford-upon-Avon, CV37 1XE
Leaving a lasting gift
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Find out how to write or update your will using our free guide.
For everyone, for ever
