Local Attractions
ARTS & CULTURE
Penshurst Place & Gardens
Penshurst, Kent, TN11 8DG
www.penshurstplace.com
35 minute car journey
One of England's great medieval manor houses, Penshurst was already centuries old when Elizabethan courtier-poet Sir Philip Sidney was born here in 1554. The huge Baron's Hall dates from 1341 and the state rooms feature portraits, tapestries and splendid furniture. Surrounded by 11 acres of formal Tudor gardens.
Wakehurst Place
Ardingly, West Sussex, RH17 6TN
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-wakehurstplace
25 minute car journey
Laid out in a steep, secluded valley in the Sussex Weald covering 170 acres. The creation of Gerald W.E. Loder, later Lord Wakehurst, in 1963 Wakehurst Place was bequeathed to the National Trust. The Trust leased it to the Royal Botanic Gardens in 1965 and the garden is an addition to Kew's Thames-side acres.
Sheffield Park
East Sussex, TN22 3QX
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/
SheffieldPark/
15 minute car journey
A magnificent landscaped garden, laid out in the 18thC by 'Capability' Brown and further developed in the early years of the 20thC by its owner, Arthur G. Soames. The centre piece is the original 4 lakes.
Royal Pavilion
Brighton, BN1 1EE
www.royalpavilion.org.uk
45 minute car journey
The Royal Pavilion is the former seaside residence of King George IV and is lavishly decorated in Chinese style with an Indian exterior. Built for King George IV, the Pavilion was also used by William IV and Queen Victoria.
Bateman’s
Burwash, East Sussex, TN19 7DS
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/
main/w-batemans
40 minute car journey
The home of Rudyard Kipling from 1902-36. The interior of this beautiful Jacobean house reflects the author’s strong association with the east. There are many oriental rugs and artefacts, and most of the rooms, including his book-lined study, are much as Kipling left them.
