There are so many amazing things to do and explore around Ticehurst, East Sussex, from artisan distilleries and farm shops, to bushcraft, llama trekking and heritage treasures. Choose a category to start discovering our favourites:⁣⁣

Food & Drink

Culture & Heritage

Walks & Nature

Activities & Days Out

Food & Drink

Weald Smokery, Flimwell

As well as its own superb smoked fish, meats and cheeses, this award-winning deli just off the A21 carries a huge range of local, British and international fine foods. The Kiln Room cafe serves light lunches, coffees and afternoon teas.

Anno Gin, Marden

Artisan gin distillery producing Anno Kent Dry Gin in a small batch copper pot still called Patience, using a blend of traditional botanicals with local hops, lavender from Downderry Nursery, samphire from Romney Marsh and wildflowers. Book a distillery tour and tutored tasting.

Fuller's Farm Shop, Eridge

Family-run farm shop stocking a full range of locally sourced meats from Sussex beef, local lamb and free-range pork. Alongside the butchery you will find a mouth-watering array of local artisan cheeses, seasonal fruit and vegetables, plus wines and beers from the vineyards of Kent and Sussex.

Cellar Head Brewery, Flimwell

Cellar Head Brewing Company is an award-winning independent microbrewery based just down the road from the Bell. They have regular tours on Saturdays at 3pm costing £10 per person.

Chapel Down Vineyard, Tenterden

With celebrity supporters, including Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver, Chapel Down is widely regarded as England’s leading wine producer, with award-winning still wines, sparkling wines and craft beers produced amongst the 22 acres of vineyards at Tenterden. The winery and restaurant are open all year round, with guided tours offered between April and November.

Eggs to Apples Farm Shop & Café, Hurst Green

Popular farm shop chock full of local artisan goodies, from fruit and vegetables from local growers, freshly baked bread, plants and flowers, and an excellent fishmonger/deli counter. Cool little café and terrace serving great coffee, cakes and light lunches.

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Culture & Heritage

Pashley Manor Gardens, Ticehurst

Romantic English landscaping and planting framed by lovely old trees, fountains and ponds, with the unusual Grade I-Listed, timber-framed Tudor/Georgian manor house as a backdrop.

Bateman’s, Burwash

Built of sandstone in 1634, Bateman’s was where the writer Rudyard Kipling found real peace and contentment. A tour of the house, now owned by the National Trust, reveals the book-lined study where the author wrote on a French walnut draw-leaf table. Kipling’s beloved garden is well worth a stroll.

Great Dixter House & Gardens, Northiam

For many years the much-loved home of the renowned gardener and writer Christopher Lloyd who spent many years helping to establish one of the most exciting, colourful and constantly changing gardens of modern times. One of Great Dixter’s most striking features is the magnificent Great Hall, the largest surviving timber-framed hall in the country.

Charleston Farmhouse, Firle

Virginia Woolf spotted this remote settlement on the South Downs while out walking one day in 1916 and Charleston became the home and country meeting place for the writers and artists of the Bloomsbury group. The Bloomsbury artists painted furniture, ceramics, and murals, which can be seen at the house from March to November, along with a collection of paintings by Picasso, Derain, Sickert and Delacroix.

Scotney Castle, Lamberhurst

Medieval and moated Scotney Castle is a mix of ancient stronghold and romantic Victorian folly. Its 19th-century owner partially demolished the old castle to create a new house. Expect splendid formal gardens and far-reaching views.

Sissinghurst Castle Garden, Sissinghurst

Sissinghurst’s wonderful garden is the enduring legacy of Vita Sackville-West and her husband Harold Nicolson who laboured long and hard to complete this horticultural work of art. Don’t miss Vita’s tower writing room and explore the nearby lakes and bluebell woods.

Rye

The charming East Sussex town of Rye is filled with picturesque, cobbled streets and clay-tiled roofs. Exploring the town really does convey the impression of visiting the set of a period costume drama or film and climbing to the top of the church tower you are rewarded with far-reaching view across Romney Marsh and Rye Bay. The National Trust-owned Lamb House, the former home of the American writer Henry James, is located in Rye and open to the public.

Groombridge Place

Regarded as one of the finest 17th-century classical mansions in the country, Groombridge Place was built to a design partly drawn up by Sir Christopher Wren. The gardens are full of colour and interest all year round – from carpets of bluebells and spectacular wisteria to roses, herbs and cherry blossoms. The Apostle Walk features twelve drum yews, thought to have survived from the original 1674 planting. There’s a fabulous herbaceous border with traditional English perennials, an oriental garden with Japanese maples, and more.

Tunbridge Wells

From the Victorian feel of the High Street to the historic, handsome Pantiles, Tunbridge Wells is not short of shopping opportunities. The Pantiles, which is a colonnaded walkway dating back to the 17th century, consists of almost entirely independent shops – from fashion and jewellery to home and garden.

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Walks & Nature

Bedgebury Pinetum, Goudhurst

Managed by the Forestry Commission, Bedgebury Pinetum extends to 350 acres of Wealden countryside. The collection was started in the 1840s, its main function ‘to further our understanding of trees and, specifically, conifers. Superb walking and mountain biking trails through the surrounding forest.

Rye Harbour Nature Reserve

Explore the seashore, saltmarsh, shingle and gravel pits of Rye Harbour Nature Reserve via a network of level footpaths and discover a wealth of birdlife - four hides offer the chance to see summer and winter migrants at close quarters.

Bushcraft Wilderness, Etchingham

Founded in 1983 by well-known bushcraft expert Ray Mears, Woodlore offers in-depth courses on a wide range of bushcraft and survival subjects. Discover a very different world deep in the East Sussex countryside.

Ashdown Forest

6,000 acres of Ashdown Forest are freely accessible to the public, making it a much sought-after walking destination, with stunning views of the South Downs. Make sure to find Pooh Sticks Bridge (Winnie the Pooh).

Walking

Ticehurst lies at the heart of a unique landscape blessed with great scenery. The Weald of Kent and the rolling High Weald boast countless walks of varying lengths and themes and not far away are beautiful Rye and evocative Romney Marsh, both with great routes to sample on foot.

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Activities & Days Out

Bewl Water, Lamberhurst

Bewl Water, just 3 miles from Ticehurst, offers a multitude of things to do. There are walks and cycle rides, fishing, water sports and many family-friendly activities, plus a range of great events throughout the year.

Trekking with llamas, Cousley Wood, Wadhurst

Yes, you really can enjoy a llama adventure in the middle of the East Sussex countryside. There’s a range of llama-trekking options to enjoy, including various themed walks with cream tea or, for a special occasion, champagne and chocolates.

Camber Sands, Rye

For a breezy, invigorating beach walk, head to magnificent Camber Sands near Rye and let your dog run wild as the expanse of sand is vast at low tide. It's the only sand dune system in East Sussex and lies east of the estuary of the River Rother at Rye Bay, stretching some 3 miles (4.8 km) to just beyond the Kent border, where shingle and pebbles take over again.

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Last updated: 15.01.21

Photo credit: Shutterstock (Martin Charles - Pashley Manor Gardens/Gordon Bell - Great Dixter House/Hannah Denski - Scotney Castle); Unsplash