Beaulieu opens 10am to 5pm all winter except Christmas Day. Alice's Christmas Wonderland runs 21 November to 3 January, adults £27 off-peak advance to £33 peak.
Beaulieu does not have a winter closure. The estate opens at 10am every day of the year except Christmas Day, and from 14 September the gates shut at 5pm, which is the winter pattern until late May. The season’s event is new for 2026: Palace House Presents, Alice’s Christmas Wonderland, from 21 November to 3 January, with the house dressed as Wonderland and a 20ft tree. It comes with a peak and off-peak price split that the ordinary admission page does not show, and with a straight answer to the question most families ask: there is no Father Christmas.
The quick answer
Beaulieu is open 10am to 5pm every day this winter except Christmas Day, last admission 4.30pm (Beaulieu). Alice’s Christmas Wonderland runs 21 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, included in admission, with Palace House open 10.30am to 4pm (Beaulieu). Standard 2026 admission is £28.35 an adult and £16.65 a child in advance, or £31.50 and £18.50 on the day; during Alice’s Christmas Wonderland the advance adult price is £27 off-peak or £29.95 peak (Beaulieu). No Father Christmas meet and greet is planned.
Opening times
Beaulieu’s published closing times for 2026 are 5pm from Thursday 1 January to Friday 22 May, 6pm from Saturday 23 May to Sunday 13 September, and 5pm from Monday 14 September onwards, with last admission 30 minutes before closing. Christmas Day is the only day it shuts (Beaulieu). The 2027 table had not been published on 24 September; the 2026 one started the year at 5pm and there is no sign of that changing.
During Alice’s Christmas Wonderland, Palace House itself admits visitors from 10.30am with last entry at 4pm, half an hour earlier than the estate.
What the ticket covers
One ticket covers the National Motor Museum, the We Had One Of Those exhibition, Palace House and its gardens, Little Beaulieu, Beaulieu Abbey, the Secret Army exhibition and unlimited rides on the monorail (Beaulieu). The Motor Museum is worth seeing while it is still there: the National Motor Museum Trust announced in August that it is looking for a new home as its 60-year lease runs down, and Beaulieu says four years remain. Our report is at National Motor Museum to leave Beaulieu.
| Ticket | Standard, advance | Standard, on the day | Alice off-peak, advance | Alice peak, advance | Alice peak, on the day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult (17 and over) | £28.35 | £31.50 | £27.00 | £29.95 | £33.00 |
| Child (4 to 16) | £16.65 | £18.50 | £16.00 | £17.70 | £19.50 |
| Child (0 to 3) | Free | Free | Free | Free | Free |
| Family (1 adult, 3 children) | £65.25 | £72.50 | £68.30 | £75.99 | £83.40 |
The Alice off-peak on-the-day prices are £30 adult, £17.75 child and £75.90 family. Which dates count as peak is set when you pick a day in the booking system. Two rules matter over Christmas: standard advance tickets cannot be refunded, exchanged or moved without the flexible booking add-on, and the “return for free within six days” offer is suspended during “A Palace House Christmas” (Beaulieu).
UK taxpayers who Gift Aid their ticket get an annual pass, but it covers the National Motor Museum only, not Palace House, Little Beaulieu or events. Disabled visitors have a concessionary price and a free carer ticket.
Alice’s Christmas Wonderland, 21 November to 3 January
Beaulieu describes it as “a brand new festive experience for 2026”: tumble down a rabbit hole, see the Queen of Hearts, visit the Mad Hatter’s hat shop, with “magical installations, storytelling and plenty of surprises” through Palace House and a 20ft Wonderland-themed real tree. Character meet and greets are “only available on peak sessions”. An optional Wonderland Tea and Treats is £29.95 a person, or £34.95 with prosecco, served separately (Beaulieu).
On Father Christmas, the event’s own FAQ says: “There are currently no plans for a Father Christmas meet and greet.” The district’s grottos and Santa trains are on Father Christmas in the New Forest.
The rest of the winter calendar
- October half term, 24 October to 1 November: a folklore trail with potion-making at the Bothy, ghost stories in Palace House, and the Disney and Pixar Cars 20th anniversary display, on normal admission (Beaulieu). More on October half term in the New Forest.
- Simply Smart, Sunday 8 November, 10am to 5pm, the last of the year’s marque gatherings.
- New Forest VW Santa Run, Sunday 29 November, 8.30am to 11am (Beaulieu).
Beaulieu’s events list on 24 September showed nothing between 8 and 21 November and nothing in December beyond Alice’s Christmas Wonderland. In past years the estate has hosted the Artisan Collective Christmas Fair in mid December (Beaulieu, 2021); it is not on the 2026 list.
Getting there over the holiday
For trains and buses over Christmas and New Year, when South Western Railway and Bluestar both cut back, see Christmas trains and buses and the everyday New Forest train times.
Still to be confirmed
- 2027 opening times and prices, expected in December or January.
- Which Alice’s Christmas Wonderland dates are peak, visible only in the booking system.
- Any December fair or market: none listed for 2026.
This page will be updated when the 2027 table is published.
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