Illuminate

ILLUMINATE will transport you on a magical journey of colour, light and sound to bring festive awe and wonder to our gardens. We're truly excited to create new water features and musical accompaniments to make your 2023 journey even more special.

The natural features and views of the Landscape Garden come to life at night, with spotlights, lit trees and coloured paths drawing you up towards the Great Cascade, down past beautiful dynamic fountains in the Pear Pond and through a 'Christmas tree' grove below the Formal Garden, before finishing with a show-stopping display in front of Hestercombe House.

This stunning experience is approximately the same walking distance as the sold-out 2022 event, but even more packed with show-stopping sights and sounds to wow the entire family. Prepare to be awe-inspired at our beautiful gardens as they come to life this Christmas.

• Adult £15.00
  
• Adult member £12.00 (November only)
• Children £7.50 (under 2 are free)

Children aged under 2 receive free admission - no need to book a ticket. Tickets must be purchased for children aged 2 to 15.

Advance booking is essential and we won't be selling tickets on arrival; tickets are now on sale and sell out quickly.

We will be selling a range of hot and cold food in Bampfylde Hall, including wild boar hot dogs, vegan hot dogs, festive turkey baps, cakes, and of course hot chocolate and mulled wine! Drop in at the beginning or end of your journey.

A special two course meal will be served at 6pm (arrive for 5.45pm), allowing you and your party to eat and then enjoy Illuminate afterwards at your leisure (last entry 8pm). Please note that the dinner tickets do not include entry to Illuminate. Purchase your dinner tickets (below) in addition to Illuminate tickets. We recommend choosing a slot for Illuminate after 7pm, but don't worry, our ticket office team will be flexible to fit your meal.

• Adults £24 two courses
  
• Children £12.95 two courses
• £5 for a glass of prosecco or mulled wine (when pre-booked)

View the menu here.

Pre-booking of your table is essential as we expect to sell out.

Vegan options are available. Please email us at food@hestercombe.com with any dietary requirements you may have.

Group Bookings

A special Christmas menu is available for group bookings in November and December. All food is prepared in-house by our talented team of chefs and can be served in a variety of beautiful settings.

We will work with you to achieve the perfect team lunch or meal with friends and family.

Email juliewhite@hestercombe.com to find out more.

Good to know

Please read the following carefully before booking your tickets:

• Please check in at our Visitor Reception promptly at the time of your slot.
• All tickets are valid for a specific fifteen-minute slot on a specific day, are non-refundable and cannot be transferred to another day or person. If you’re stuck in traffic and are delayed, please don’t worry, we’ll still welcome you to the gardens up until the last entry that night.
• When you book online, you will receive a confirmation email. When you check in, please be ready with your reference number and a print out, or screenshot of your confirmation email to show at the Ticket Office. If you don’t receive a confirmation email please email info@hestercombe.com or call us on 01823 413923 to ensure that your booking is confirmed (if you have a Microsoft, Live, Outlook or Hotmail address you may not receive a confirmation email due to technical issues).
• As this is an evening event, taking place after dark, you should ensure that you wear appropriate clothing and footwear, as there may be some slippery surfaces on your route, especially when wet. There will be site lighting in place to help guide you around the trail, but please bring a torch with you if you feel you will need extra lighting.
• The illuminated trail is self-led, following a clearly marked and lit route.
• Accessibility: the ILLUMINATE route is wheelchair-friendly, however because the estate was designed hundreds of years ago, there may be issues with general accessibility around the event which are out of our control. If you are a wheelchair user and wish to visit ILLUMINATE, please call our Visitor Reception if you have any questions before booking a ticket.
  
• The Bampfylde Hall will be open for hot food, snacks, cakes and drinks throughout the evening.
• Well behaved dogs on a short lead are welcome.
• We have undertaken a full risk assessment and put adjustments in place to mitigate any risk, however you attend this event at your own risk, and Hestercombe cannot be held responsible for any injuries sustained whilst on site.
• Hestercombe is not responsible or liable for garden closure or event cancellation due to events beyond our control (a ‘Force Majeure Event’). We’ll notify you as soon as possible of a Force Majeure Event, we’ll try to re-open as soon as it’s safe for us to do so (and transfer your tickets to a new date).
• We regularly observe the weather forecast to ensure the event can safely be experienced. If the weather should reach extreme levels, we will cancel the event and this would be advertised on our website. On this occasion all tickets would be refunded by our Team.
• Refunds will only be offered where the event has been cancelled and not under any other circumstances.

View our event cancellation and refund policy.

If you experience any difficulty with booking, or have any questions, please email Visitor Reception in the first instance at info@hestercombe.com, or call 01823 413923.

*Every ticket purchased for the opening night of Illuminate (23rd November) will receive a voucher for a free adult or child's hot chocolate, tea or coffee when you check in. This voucher can be redeemed on the 23rd November only at any of our catering outlets. The voucher has no cash value and can only be used once. Not transferrable.

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