Southampton Weather

Our estimate: Low-moderate - a short dry spell. Still take care with any fire.

Based on 2 consecutive dry days and today's forecast high of 15°C at Lyndhurst.

The main car park for Bolderwood Deer Sanctuary and Arboretum Ornamental Drive - the Knightwood Oak is a short walk/drive from here.

Right on the edge of Lyndhurst village itself - handy for the New Forest Centre & Museum and Lyndhurst's shops and cafes.

The first car park reached heading south off the A35 onto Rhinefield/Bolderwood Ornamental Drive - a good access point for that scenic route.

A large car park right on the edge of Burley village - shops, tea rooms and the village's well-known "witchcraft" gift shops are a short walk away.

A little north of Sway village, on Burley Road - a good starting point for walks toward Wilverley Plain.

Car park for the free New Forest Reptile Centre (adders, grass snakes, sand lizards and more) just off the A35.

A large former WWII airfield car park near Fritham - open heathland with some of the Forest's widest views.

Popular walking and cycling base within Wilverley Inclosure, between Brockenhurst and Burley.

A wooden viewing platform sits a short walk from the main Bolderwood car park, overlooking a large meadow where a resident herd of fallow deer regularly gathers. A New Forest keeper feeds them daily between April and September, usually between noon and 3pm, so the herd stays close to the meadow and is well used to visitors - though seeing them is never guaranteed outside those months. Several of the animals here are white, an unusual colour for fallow deer. Free to visit and park, with three graded circular walks of half a mile, one mile and two miles, all easy going and suitable for families. A large picnic area sits among tall conifers, with a New Forest information cabin (staffed by a Ranger when open) and toilet facilities alongside. The arboretum itself, planted from the 1860s onward, adds an impressive backdrop of mature exotic conifers to the walk.

Known as the "Queen of the Forest", the Knightwood Oak is the largest and most celebrated oak in the New Forest, with age estimates ranging from 450 to 600 years old and a girth of 7.38 metres - and it is still growing. It was pollarded (traditionally cut back above grazing height to harvest wood without killing the tree) when about 200 years old, most likely for the last time in the mid-19th century, which is part of why its trunk has such an unusual, spreading shape. It became a fashionable attraction in Victorian times, when visitors travelled from far and wide to see it, and it has kept that reputation ever since. The tree stands around 2.4 miles west-south-west of Lyndhurst, just north of the A35, with its own small car park and a short, level, wheelchair-suitable gravel path leading to and around it - one of the easiest ancient trees in the Forest to reach.

A forest worker planted this stretch with sequoia redwoods, other conifers, azaleas and rhododendrons in the mid-1800s, with 1859 the main year for many of the trees still standing today. The drive includes towering coast redwoods, Douglas firs and two giant sequoias that are the tallest trees anywhere in the New Forest - remarkable given none of them are native species. A waymarked walk along the drive also takes in Blackwater Arboretum, a small clearing with benches surrounded by trees gathered from around the world, making a good rest stop partway round. Several car parks sit right on the drive itself, so it works equally well as a slow scenic drive or as the start of a walk. It's one of the most photographed roads in the Forest, especially in autumn when the redwoods and beeches change colour together.

Also known as the New Forest Heritage Centre, this is Lyndhurst's own museum and gallery covering the Forest's unique commoning tradition, its ponies, deer and woodland history, right through to today's conservation work. Admission is free, though donations are welcomed, and it sits inside the main Lyndhurst car park, so it's an easy stop before or after exploring further afield. It's open every day: 10am-5pm from April to October, and 10am-4pm from November to March, with last entry 30 minutes before closing. Alongside the museum and gallery, the centre has a library and archive for anyone researching the Forest in more depth, plus a café and gift shop. It makes a natural first stop for context on everything else covered on this page - the ponies, fire risk and the working landscape all trace back to the commoning system explained here.

One inclusive ticket covers the National Motor Museum, Palace House and its gardens, the ruins of Beaulieu Abbey, the "We Had One Of Those" exhibition, the Secret Army exhibition and unlimited rides on the on-site monorail - a full day out rather than a quick stop. Beaulieu is open daily from 10am (closed only on Christmas Day). Prices vary by season: a Great British Summer Savings promotion runs 25 June-1 September 2026 (adult advance around £19.69), with standard pricing (adult advance around £22.50) applying from 2 September. The National Motor Museum itself houses one of the world's most significant collections of cars and motorcycles, spanning early motoring to modern land-speed-record holders. Palace House, still the Montagu family's home, began life as the gatehouse of the medieval Beaulieu Abbey, and the abbey ruins and grounds are included in the same visit. Beaulieu also hosts regular themed motoring events through the year - see the Events section below.

This tiny shipbuilding village on the Beaulieu River dates back to the early 18th century, when the second Duke of Montagu planned it as a free port for trade with the West Indies. That venture failed, but the river's sheltered deep water, abundant New Forest oak and skilled local workforce made it a natural naval shipyard instead, and several ships that fought at the Battle of Trafalgar were built here, including Agamemnon, reputedly Nelson's favourite. Walking into the village itself is free; a small charge applies for parking and for the Maritime Museum, which includes the Shipwright's Cottage, St Mary's Chapel and the Agamemnon Exhibition in the old Shipwright's Workshop (adult museum entry currently around £7.50). The preserved 18th-century cottages and workshops along the single street give a genuine sense of a working shipyard village, and a riverside walk and seasonal Beaulieu River cruise both start from here too.

Over 200 acres of woodland paths and riverside walks make up the famous Rothschild collection of rhododendrons, azaleas and camellias at Exbury, on the Beaulieu River just outside the National Park boundary proper. The gardens are seasonal, open 7 March-31 October 2026, 10am-5.30pm with last admission at 4.30pm; adult tickets currently run from around £14.50, with online booking discounts available. A separate narrow-gauge steam railway (around £7.50 per person) runs a 1.5-mile loop through parts of the gardens with a replica station, engine shed and turntable, taking in areas that can't be reached on foot. Spring (rhododendron and azalea season, roughly April-June) is by far the most popular time to visit, though the gardens are planted for year-round interest. It sits just far enough outside the Forest itself to feel like a separate trip, but is close enough to combine easily with Beaulieu or Buckler's Hard on the same day out.

New Forest & Hampshire County Show

Tuesday 28 - Thursday 30 July 2026 • Brockenhurst Showground

The Forest's biggest annual event - livestock and horse classes, countryside crafts, food halls and the famous New Forest cattle/pony judging, now in its 98th year.

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Beaulieu Supercar Weekend

Saturday 1 - Sunday 2 August 2026 • Beaulieu - National Motor Museum

The world's most exclusive and desirable supercars gather at Beaulieu for a two-day family spectacular.

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