What’s On at Hever Castle in 2026
Hever runs a real programme rather than a page of intentions, and most of it is included in the price of an ordinary ticket. These are the 2026 dates as the estate publishes them.
What is on at Hever Castle right now
Two things run for most of the year and neither costs extra: the Capturing a Queen exhibition, which is on until 2 January 2027, and Autumn Colour, which runs from late September to the start of November. Everything else is a date rather than a season.
The estate’s season ends on 19 November. After that Christmas takes the castle over on its own ticket, and then Hever shuts entirely until February.
Capturing a Queen: The Image of Anne Boleyn
11 February 2026 to 2 January 2027. Included with Castle admission.
The largest gathering of portraits identified as Anne Boleyn ever shown together, and an argument as well as an exhibition: that more likenesses made in her lifetime survive than has been thought, and that her image was not systematically erased after her fall. It is staged across the Staircase Gallery, the Book of Hours Room, the Long Gallery, the Council Chamber and a new space in what was the Astor Suite.
The research is by Dr Owen Emmerson, with Alison Palmer and Kate McCaffrey as curators, and it marks five hundred years since Henry VIII began his courtship of Anne. Visitors vote for the portrait they believe comes closest to her.
Autumn Colour, and the talks inside it
28 September to 1 November 2026, daily 10.30am to 5.30pm. Included with admission.
A self-guided route through the grounds with a map you collect on arrival, timed to the Dahlia Border and the turning trees. Inside it sits a programme of dated events, all included in the admission price:
- Steve Edney on dahlias — presentation and tour, 7 October at 2pm and 8 October at 11.30am, from the Festival Theatre and the Dahlia Border.
- Tony Kirkham MBE, former Head of Arboretum at Kew — talk and tour, 14 October at 11.30am and 2pm, at the Guthrie Pavilion.
- Fun with Fungi with the Caley Brothers — 15 and 16 October at 11.30am and 2pm, outside the Hever Shop.
- Forest Bathing question and answer sessions — 29 and 30 September at 11.30am and 2pm, meeting at the Information Hut.
- Sustainable autumn crafts with Cultivate Life — 3, 4, 10 and 11 October, 11am to 4pm at the Think Tank.
After Hours: Haunted Hever Castle Tours
29, 30 and 31 October 2026. £42.50 per person plus booking fee.
A fifty-minute theatrical tour of the castle after dark, with live actors in the historic rooms, departing hourly at 5.30pm, 6.30pm, 7.30pm and 8.30pm. A glass of prosecco or a soft drink is included and served in the Moat Cafe beforehand; arrive thirty minutes before your slot.
Recommended for fourteen and over, capped at twenty guests per departure, and not suitable for wheelchair users — there is a short outdoor section and steep stairs. It is sold by the castle itself, it is not included with standard Castle & Gardens admission, and none of the days we list includes it. Book it directly with the estate.
Christmas at Hever
20 November to 2 January 2026. Its own ticket and its own hours.
The rooms are decorated on a Nutcracker theme with log fires and trees, and the Boleyn apartment is dressed for a Tudor Christmas. A Father Christmas grotto runs on timed slots, pre-booking essential, with a named ticket for every child who wants to see him; up to four adults may go into the grotto with them.
The Hever Christmas Fair sits just before it, on 6 November, in the Guthrie Pavilion for one day only, with three pounds of every ticket going to Hever Primary School and St Peter’s Church. Ticket prices are reduced that day and there are no gardens-only or family rates.
Dates at a glance
The 2026 programme at Hever Castle, as published by the estate
| Event | When | Ticket |
|---|---|---|
| Capturing a Queen: The Image of Anne Boleyn | 11 Feb 2026 – 2 Jan 2027 | Included with Castle admission |
| Falconry Experience, selected dates | 3 Sep – 19 Nov 2026, 1pm–3pm | £66.95 per person, plus booking fee |
| Autumn Craft Fair | 10–13 Sep 2026 | Included with admission |
| Autumn Colour | 28 Sep – 1 Nov 2026, daily 10.30am–5.30pm | Included with admission |
| Wedding Showcase | 4 Oct 2026 | See the estate for details |
| After Hours: Haunted Hever Castle Tours | 29, 30 and 31 Oct 2026 | £42.50 per person, plus booking fee |
| Hever Christmas Fair | 6 Nov 2026, 10.30am–3.30pm | Adult £10, child 5–17 £5, member £3 |
| Christmas at Hever — The Nutcracker’s Christmas | 20 November to 2 January 2026 | Its own ticket, its own hours |
The season itself ends on 19 November, and the estate is shut to visitors from 3 January to 10 February. The month-by-month page sets the programme against what is actually in flower, and visitor information has the hours for each date band.
A car for any open day in the programme
Most of what is above is included with an ordinary ticket, so the day you pick matters more than the fare does.
Hever Castle Tours runs on any open day in the calendar above.
- Hever Castle: what's on — the full 2026 calendar
- Capturing a Queen — the exhibition, its rooms and its curators
- Autumn Colour — the dated talks and workshops
- After Hours: Haunted Hever Castle Tours — dates, times, price and restrictions
- Christmas at Hever Castle — the grotto, the timings and the terms
Every date here is the estate's own. Hever reserves the right to change or cancel events, and partner offers may not be valid on event days.