Our tailored tours offer an extra element to your day at Beaulieu, depending on your area of interest; they are designed to inform and to entertain.
Explore the Gardens with one of Beaulieu’s Gardening Team
Beaulieu has extensive gardens to explore including the fragrant Victorians’ Garden, the informal Wilderness Garden dating back to the 1770s, and the Victorian Ornamental Vegetable Kitchen Garden. Discover the gardens throughout the seasons with one of Beaulieu’s Gardening Team on the following select dates:
Spring Bulbs Garden Tour - 1 hour
A feature in the gardens in spring is the colourful mass of snowdrops, crocuses, daffodils and bluebells in the Wilderness Garden and in the moat around Palace House to announce the arrival of a new season.
Dates: Tuesday 19th April and Thursday 21st April
Summer Garden Tour - 1 hour
See the Victorian Ornamental Vegetable Kitchen Garden, from which home produce is sent to the Montagu’s kitchen. It mirrors major features in the adjacent Victorian Flower Garden which include a pond and fountain, an archway of apple and pear trees and hedges of yew and purple beech which frame the garden.
Dates: Tuesday 120h July, Thursday 26th July, and Wednesday 8th August
Explore Beaulieu’s Gardens with Ruben Moore - 1 hour
Join the Victorian gardener, Ruben Moore, as he tends the Kitchen Garden during the summer months. Accompany him on a tour of the garden and hear how, over a century ago, the team of ten gardeners grew food for the Montagu family residing in Palace House. This tour is available throughout the summer.
Please note that the maturity of some of the plants is subject to seasonal variation.
Dates of the garden tours are limited, please book early to avoid disappointment.
This tour can accommodate a maximum of 30 people.
Vineyard Tour (seasonal - April to October) - 1 hour
Learn the history of how grapes have been grown at Beaulieu since medieval times. Walk through the vineyard and learn techniques of vine growing before enjoying a tasting in the open air. Please note that the ground is uneven and appropriate clothing and footwear should be worn. There are no lavatory facilities during this tour. During inclement weather, talks and tastings take place indoors with the option to accompany the tour guide around the vines afterwards.
Tour subject to a minimum charge of £100.
Victorian Kitchen Talk - 45 minutes
Join the Victorian Kitchen Maid and learn about her daily tasks in the Palace House kitchen. The Victorian household hours were long and the work physically demanding as staff prepared the popular dishes of the day for the Montagu family and their guests.
This tour can accommodate a maximum of 20 people.
Christmas Palace House Soirées - 1 hour
To bring seasonal cheer to a pre-Christmas visit in November and December. Palace House has an especially ‘country house’ atmosphere at this time of year and includes a glass of homemade fruit punch on arrival followed by an old-time sing song around the piano in the Drawing Room of Palace House.
National Motor Museum Tours
The Story of Speed* - 1 hour
Discover the quest for speed and man’s desire to be the fastest person on land. Get up close to famous World Land Speed Record Breaking cars, including Donald Campbell’s famous ‘Bluebird’. Hear about the progress of technology and the bravery of the men who continue to challenge the boundaries.
Tours can accommodate a maximum of 20 people.
To the Chequered Flag* - 1 hour
Join a fascinating tour of motor racing history, from its inception in the early 1900s, with vehicles such as the iconic 1903 ‘Gordon Bennet’ Napier, through to Graham Hill’s Lotus 49 and more modern twenty-first century F1 cars.
Tours can accommodate a maximum of 20 people.
Falconry* - 1 hours
Set in the historic and atmospheric Cloisters of 13th century Beaulieu Abbey, meet the hunting birds that would have flown across these ancient walls hundreds of years ago. See the elegant and still, much prized, Peregrine Falcon, the fastest bird in the sky and from the largest of the owl family meet European Owl, Amber, who can stalk her prey effectively, relying on stealth alone. Listen to the fascinating stories of these amazing birds from your presenter, Paul Manning. Learn about their history, their strengths and weaknesses and even the words in common use today, whose origins stem from this most ancient of sports. Finally, you will have a unique opportunity to watch these beautiful birds in flight, from a closer vantage point than many have the privilege to experience.
Dates: Every day from Tuesday 1st May through to Friday 13th July, and Tuesday 4th to Sunday 30th September. (Subject to availability).
*Please note that these tours must be booked with at least 4 weeks notice.
