Blickling Hall Christmas 2026: no Garden of Lights, but 11 late openings to 7pm from 28 Nov and a Shaun the Sheep trail from 14 Nov. No booking needed.

Blickling’s Garden of Lights will not run this Christmas. The National Trust has now published its 2026 festive programme for the estate, and says plainly that “our big Garden of Lights event won’t be returning this year”.

In its place are three things, none of which needs booking: a Shaun the Sheep sculpture trail in the garden, a decorated house, and eleven late-opening evenings with the drive, house and parterre lit up until 7pm (Christmas at Blickling Estate).

The quick answer

  • No Garden of Lights in 2026. The ticketed evening trail, which cost up to £24 an adult last year, is not returning this year.
  • Late openings to 7pm on 11 evenings: 28 and 29 November, 5 and 6 December, 12 and 13 December, and every day from 16 to 23 December.
  • No booking, free to members. Non-members pay normal admission on arrival.

Late opening evenings

On these dates the front drive is lined with lit Christmas trees, the house is illuminated and the parterre has fairy lights and traditional family games. The shop and Stables Café stay open from 10am to 7pm. The house opens from 11am, with last entry 30 minutes before closing.

Dates Days
28 and 29 November Saturday and Sunday
5 and 6 December Saturday and Sunday
12 and 13 December Saturday and Sunday
16 to 23 December Wednesday to Wednesday, every day

The Trust says it is “retaining much of that Christmas magic” for members without the need to book. One catch: parts of the garden close at 4pm for safety, so to see all of the Shaun the Sheep trail, go into the garden earlier in the day.

Shaun the Sheep: Find the Flock garden trail

Saturday 14 November 2026 to Sunday 17 January 2027, from 10am. Twelve Shaun the Sheep sculptures, each 160cm tall and decorated by a different artist, are placed around the garden with Wild in Art and Aardman. Pick up a free trail map from the visitor welcome hut at the garden entrance. There are extra activities for younger children on the parterre.

The trail is free, but normal admission applies, and members get in free. Sculptures sit on grass or gravel, and ear defenders can be borrowed from the welcome team (Find the Flock event listing).

So the “baa-rilliant winter adventure” the Trust trailed in September was the sheep all along.

A Woolly Winter Adventure in the house

Saturday 28 November 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027, from 11am. The rooms are decorated for Christmas with woolly creations, and the mice from last year’s trail are back. There is a reading nook and hands-on activities.

No booking. Members free; non-members pay standard admission on arrival, and under-fives go free. Quiet hours run in the house every Tuesday and Saturday from 2pm to 3pm. Only assistance dogs are allowed inside. Lift access in the house is limited, and there is a photo album of the upper floors for anyone who would rather not take the stairs. Check the estate’s opening times before you go, as house, garden, shop and café hours differ.

What last year’s Garden of Lights was, for comparison

In 2025 the Garden of Lights ran from 6 to 21 December, 5pm to 8pm. Everyone, including National Trust members, had to book, and adult tickets cost £16 on Monday to Thursday, £20 on Fridays and Sundays and £24 on Saturdays, with children £9 to £13. The house was closed during the evening event (the Trust’s Christmas page as archived on 7 December 2025).

This year’s late openings are the reverse: free to members, no booking, and the house open.

Other Christmas days out nearby

Getting there

Blickling sits north west of Aylsham, inside Broadland: the estate postcode NR11 6NF resolves to the Broadland 001D area on the ONS postcode lookup. If you are stopping in Aylsham first, all the district council’s car parks are free, including Burgh Road and The Buttsland. See parking in Broadland and check Broadland roadworks and travel before a late visit, because the lanes around Blickling are narrow.

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