Things To Do
Here we have chosen some of the wonderful things to see and do in the area.
You can also click here to visit the Experience West Sussex website which showcases the best active days, new experiences, back-to-nature family outings and cultural encounters in the county.
The Priest House
The Priest House can be found in our village, it sits on the western edge of Ashdown Forest in the historic and picturesque village of West Hoathly. A timber-framed hall house built in the 15th Century for the Priory of St Pancras in Lewes. It was seized by Henry VIII in 1538 and belonged in turn to Thomas Cromwell, Anne of Cleves, Mary I and Elizabeth I. Central chimneys and a Horsham stone roof were added in the 16th century to create a substantial yeoman farmers house.
The house opened as a museum in 1908 and contains a varied collection of 17th and 18th century furniture, ironwork, textiles and other domestic bygones, displayed in furnished rooms.
Visit WebsiteHever Castle
This was the childhood home of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second wife. The castle was later given to Henry VIII's fourth wife, Anne of Cleves. In 1903, the estate was bought by the American millionaire, William Waldorf Astor who spent an immense amount of time, money and imagination in restoring the castle.
Visit Website
Standen
Dating from the 1890s and containing original Morris & Co furnishings and decorations, Standen survives today as a remarkable testimony to the ideas of the Arts and Crafts movement.
Visit Website
Penshurst Place
One of England's greatest family owned stately homes with a history going back six and a half centuries. A marvellous mix of paintings, tapestries and furniture from the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries can be seen throughout the house. The gardens were first laid out in the 14th century and have been developed over successive years by the Sidney family who first came to Penshurst in 1552.
Visit Website
Leeds Castle
The site of a saxon royal manor, a Norman fortress and a royal palace to the Kings and Queens of England, the chequered history of Leeds Castle continues well into the 20th Century.
Visit Website
