Pre-booked ticket event
All tickets must be booked in advance.
All tickets will be scanned on entry. Please be ready to present your ticket on arrival at the car park.
View an overview of availability here (opens PDF). Please note this is offered as a guide only and is updated weekly, it is not a live view.
Event details
9 November 2024 - 5 January 2025
…there’s a Christmas meal tonight
and Lion wants to go too
but Lion has no invitation,
what’s a little lion to do?
Immerse yourself in a Christmas feast for the senses as the magic and wonder of a new festive story, Henry and the Lion's Christmas Feast, created in partnership with Joseph Coelho OBE, inspires the sights, smells, and sounds of this year’s Christmas at Chatsworth experience.
Young Henry Cavendish, budding experimental scientist and grandson of the 2nd Duke of Devonshire, is searching for the legendary Chatsworth lion, while the lion is on the hunt for a delicious Christmas feast!
Join them, and a mischievous menace of mice, as you travel through over 20 rooms* in the house, each filled with festive decorations, twinkling lights, and surprises designed to ignite your imagination and encourage you to see things from a new perspective.
Watch Joseph Coelho read his new festive story here.
In the garden – entry included with your Christmas at Chatsworth ticket
Follow an interactive light trail that takes in some of Chatsworth's best-loved garden landmarks. The trail culminates in an animated projection on the house inspired by Chatsworth's history and collections, and our new festive story.
Last entry is one hour before close. Please note that the projection will finish approximately 20 minutes before the garden closing time.
On weekends from 7 December to 5 January there will be a variety of festive entertainment in the garden, including barrel organ, harpist and choirs.
During high winds, access to some areas of the garden will be restricted. This is part of our health and safety protocols, designed to help ensure the safety and wellbeing of our visitors and colleagues.
At the farmyard and woodland adventure playground – entry included with your Christmas at Chatsworth ticket
The farmyard will be dressed for Christmas with decorations and lights. Meet our friendly farm animals and take part in guinea pig cuddling sessions. There will be Christmas crafts and children can explore our woodland adventure playground.
Last entry is 4.30pm, one hour before closing.
What is included in the ticket?
Christmas at Chatsworth tickets provide entry to the house, garden, farmyard and adventure playground on the day of your visit.
One car parking space is included per transaction. If you require additional car parking spaces, please add these to your booking before you check out. Please note, every car included in your booking will need a copy of the booking confirmation and QR code to be scanned on arrival.
If you are visiting Chatsworth in a larger group, you may wish to consider making separate transactions for those travelling in separate cars. You can still visit all together, just remember to choose the same house entry time for each booking.
We have car park capacity for a small number of pre-booked accessibility mini-buses each day. Please call the booking office on 01246 565430 to check availability and book in. Please note that we cannot accommodate mini-buses that have not pre-booked.
Ticket information
All tickets must be booked in advance, including Friends and pass holders.
Please read our Important Information before booking.
Christmas at Chatsworth tickets include:
- admission to the house
- admission to the garden (including the garden light trail)
- admission to the farmyard and playground
- one car parking space per transaction
You can arrive at Chatsworth at any time after 9am on the day of your visit. View opening times.
Prices
Adults: from £32.00
Children (3-16 years): from £8.00
Children aged 2 years and under do not require a ticket.
A full calendar showing the ticket prices for each day will be displayed at the start of the booking process.
An overview of current availability can be viewed here.
Please note, this is updated weekly, it is not a live view.
Parking charges also apply for blue badge holders.
‘With donation’ and ‘without donation’ ticket prices
When you book online, you will have the opportunity to add a small donation to the Chatsworth House Trust charity to your booking.
If you select the 'with donation' ticket option and you are a UK taxpayer, you can add Gift Aid to your booking at no extra cost. Gift Aid allows the Chatsworth House Trust charity to claim an additional 25% from the government. All income from ticket sales, donations and Gift Aid goes to the charity to be reinvested in the preservation and improvement of Chatsworth.
Important Information - please read
Visits between 2 December to 5 January
If you visit from 2 December to 5 January inclusive, your tickets do not include access to the Christmas Market (the market ran from 9 Nov - 1 Dec).
Over this period, cars will be parked in the main car park with some overflow parking within short walking distance on parkland or trackway. During periods of wet weather, the trackway and immediate areas may become slippery and muddy.
We recommend you wear sturdy shoes suitable for walking on uneven ground and in muddy and wet conditions. We will not take responsibility for any damage to footwear. You may also wish to have access to a torch.
Opening and entry times
Our opening times vary over the Christmas and New Year period. You can view a full list of house, garden and farmyard opening times, including last entry times, here: View opening times.
You are welcome to arrive at Chatsworth any time after 9 am on the day of your visit. Our garden, farmyard and playground, and many of our shops and restaurants open at 10 am.
If you choose a house entry time of 4.30 pm or later, we recommend you visit the garden light trail before you enter the house so you have enough time to enjoy the full experience.
Unless you are entering the garden from the house, last entry to the garden is one hour before closing. Our light trail takes approximately 45-90 minutes to experience and is best viewed from dusk.
Please note that the projection may finish 20 minutes earlier than the garden closing time so please allow plenty of time to complete the trail. The Orangery shop and Flora’s café will close when the garden closes.
About Joseph Coelho OBE
Joseph Coelho is a best-selling, multi-award winning children’s playwright and author of over 45 books.
His The Boy Lost in The Maze was the winner of the 2024 Carnegie Medal for writing and has received international acclaim appearing on the White Raven Book list - Munich, The IBBY UK Honour Books List and awarded The Extraordinary Book of 2023 by The International Children's Literature Festival of Berlin. Joseph was the Waterstone's Children’s Laureate 2022 - 2024.
The illustrations featured on this page are by Vivien Mildenberger and are taken from Henry and the Lion's Christmas Feast, a new story by Joseph Coelho OBE, available in Chatsworth Gift Shops and online shop from mid October.
Watch Joseph Coelho read Henry and the Lion's Christmas Feast here:
Christmas at Chatsworth FAQs
- 1. What does a Christmas at Chatsworth ticket include?
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A Christmas at Chatsworth ticket includes access to the decorated house*, garden light trail and the farmyard. It also includes car parking for one car or motorbike.
If you require more than one car parking space, you can add additional spaces during the checkout process.
All tickets will be scanned at the car park entrance. You must bring your booking confirmation with you and be ready to show it on entry. Please note that we cannot retrieve bookings for you at the car park entrance.
Only one booking confirmation is issued. If you have booked tickets for people travelling in a separate car, you will need to book more than one car parking space. Each car included in your order must have a copy of the booking confirmation to show on entry.
The QR code on your booking confirmation will validate entry for the number of cars on your booking, after which it will become inactive, e.g. one scan for one car car parking space, two scans for two car parking spaces etc.
*Select rooms on the upper floor of the house, including the State Bedrooms, will be closed for annual conservation during Christmas at Chatsworth.
- 2. Does my ticket include entry to the Christmas market?
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The Christmas market will be running from 9 November to 1 December. If your Christmas at Chatsworth ticket is for a visit over this period it includes entry to the Christmas market.
If your ticket is for a visit from 2 December to 5 January, the Christmas market is not included. (The Christmas market runs from 9 November to 1 December, inclusive.)
Please note, during the Christmas market car parking arrangements will be different to what you have previously experienced at Chatsworth. Please read the 'Important Information' section of the event page carefully.
- 3. Do I need to buy a separate parking ticket?
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One car or motorbike parking space is included with each booking.
If you require more than one car parking space, please add it to your order when you book online.
All tickets will be scanned at the car park entrance. You must bring your booking confirmation with you and be ready to show it on entry. Please note that we cannot retrieve bookings for you at the car park entrance.
One booking confirmation is issued per transaction. If you have booked tickets for people travelling in a separate car, you will need to book more than one car parking space.
Each car included in your order must have a copy of the booking confirmation to show on entry. The QR code on your booking confirmation will validate entry for the number of cars on your booking, after which it will become inactive.
- 4. What time can I arrive at Chatsworth on the day of my visit?
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If you have booked a Christmas at Chatsworth ticket, with access to the house, garden and farmyard, you can arrive at Chatsworth at any time after 9am on the day of your visit. View opening times here.
Your house entry time is the time you selected when purchasing your tickets and is shown on your booking confirmation. Please arrive promptly as if you are more than 15 minutes late we may not be able to allow entry and no refunds will be given.
You can enter the farmyard or garden at any time during the day. Last entry is one hour before closing.
Please note that the garden lights are best viewed at dusk or later and that some of the projections may finish slightly before closing so we recommend allowing plenty of time to complete the trail. If your house entry time is 4.30pm or later, we recommend viewing the garden before you enter the house so you have time to enjoy the full experience.
Our gift shops and restaurants will be open throughout the Christmas period. View opening times.
- 5. What age ranges are included in the child ticket?
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Children aged 3 – 16 years inclusive require a child ticket for entry to Christmas at Chatsworth. Children aged 2 years and under do not require a ticket.
Children aged 15 or under must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
- 6. I am coming with my carer, do I need to buy them a ticket?
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We offer free admission to carers visiting with the person they care for. Please add a carer ticket to your order when booking online. You do not need to bring your documentation with you to show on arrival.
- 7. I am a Chatsworth Friend, do I need to book my tickets in advance?
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All visitors, including Chatsworth Friends and pass holders, must book tickets online in advance.
Information on how to book tickets is available in the Friends hub.
- 8. Will there be any disabled parking?
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There is disabled parking available in the main car park. Please display your blue badge clearly when arriving at Chatsworth so our team can direct you to the disabled parking area.
If you are visiting during the Christmas Market (9 Nov - 1 Dec), once this area becomes full, they will direct you to a space on the overflow parking that is closest to the tractor and trailer shuttle service. The shuttle service is wheelchair accessible.
Disabled badge holders pay the normal parking charge. Disabled parking spaces cannot be pre-booked.
If you would like any further information, please visit the accessibility section of our website.
- 9. Can I hire a wheelchair/mobility scooter?
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Manual wheelchairs and electric scooters are available for use in the house, garden and farmyard and can be added to your order at no extra cost when you book online.
They can be collected from the house entrance underneath the flagpole.
If you pre-book a two-hour hire electric scooter with lights for the garden trail, these can collected by Flora's tea room at the garden entrance.
- 10. Can I get a refund or change my booking?
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You can amend the date or timeslot of your booking up to 24 hours before your visit via the manage your booking link provided in the booking confirmation email or on the website. There is a modification fee of £5 to do this.
We are unable to refund tickets for any reason.
- 11. Can I bring my dog?
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Only assistance dogs can be admitted to the house or farmyard and adventure playground.
As the Christmas at Chatsworth ticket includes entry to the house, garden, farmyard and adventure playground, we recommend dogs are left at home.
- 12. What are ground conditions like at Chatsworth?
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Over the Christmas market period (9 Nov - 1 Dec) some cars may be parked on grass, or temporary tracking across the parkland with a tractor and trailer shuttle service transporting visitors between numbered car park shuttle stops and the main car park.
Due to the time of year and the wet weather often experienced throughout Derbyshire, the walk from your car is likely to be very muddy. Please take care on trackways as they may become slippery. You may find it helpful to have access to a torch.
We strongly recommend that you wear sturdy footwear suitable for walking on uneven ground, and in wet and muddy conditions. We will not accept any responsibility for damage to footwear.
You can view a map of car parking during the Christmas market here: view map.
From 2 December, cars may be parked on grass or trackway in addition to the main car park. As above, these surfaces can become slippery and muddy in wet weather so we advise all visitors to wear sturdy footwear suited to uneven ground and muddy conditions. We recommend you have access to a torch.
- 13. Can I arrive by mini-bus?
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We have car park capacity for a small number of accessible mini-buses each day. Please call the booking office on 01246 565430 for more information about how to book.
Mini-buses are classified as any vehicle with between 10+ seats.
Please note that we cannot accommodate mini-buses that have not pre-booked with the booking office.
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9 November 2024 - 5 January 2025
Immerse yourself in 'A Christmas Feast', with decorations in the house and a light and sound trail in the garden.
Pre-booking essential.
Christmas in the Garden
9 November 2024 - 5 January 2025
Explore an interactive light and sound trail around the garden, with an animated light show projected on to the house.
Twilight Dinner
21 December 2024
Experience the Sculpture Gallery by candlelight, accompanied by live jazz music, and followed by a gourmet dinner.
Stay with us
With miles of walks on the estate and in the national park, as well as centuries of heritage, art and design to explore, Chatsworth and the Peak District are a dream destination for an unforgettable escape. Find a festive stay with us in a cottage, shepherd’s hut, hotel or inn here.
*Select rooms on the upper floor of the house, including the State Bedrooms, will be closed for annual conservation during Christmas at Chatsworth.
Please note: Please be aware that for technical, operational or safety reasons, some facilities may be removed or closed, or entertainment and event timetables cancelled and/or altered at any time, including at short notice. Chatsworth reserves the right to change the programme of attractions and entertainment if, at any time, it is deemed necessary or appropriate to do so, this may also include closing attractions or areas of the estate. We apologise in advance for any disappointment caused should this need arise.
