Heath Pond and the Physic Garden cost nothing, the Lido is £6 for a quick dip and Gilbert White's House £16.50. Eleven Petersfield days out, prices checked.
Petersfield is a small market town with an unusually good hinterland. Inside the town you can spend a day on the Heath and in the Physic Garden without paying anything; within twenty minutes’ drive there is the highest point on the South Downs, a working reconstruction of an Iron Age farm, the house where Gilbert White wrote The Natural History of Selborne and the cottage where Jane Austen revised every novel she published.
Every price and opening time below was checked against the venue’s own website on 9 August 2026. Where an operator sets its prices per event rather than publishing a fixed tariff, we say so instead of guessing.
Free, and in the town
Petersfield Heath and Heath Pond
The Heath is 69 acres of open ground with a 22-acre pond, a short walk from the Market Square and owned by Petersfield Town Council. Rowing boats are available for hire in summer, there is a children’s play area, and the kiosk, The Plump Duck, is open 365 days a year for snacks, drinks and ice cream. You can fish the pond; the bailiff will ask you to buy a day ticket.
The reason the Heath is not just a park is under your feet. It carries a group of scheduled ancient monuments, which is why vehicles are confined to a marked area and need permission before they come on at all.
One date to put in the diary: the Taro Fair, which the town council holds on 6 October every year, unless the 6th falls on a Sunday. It started as a horse fair and is now a large funfair.
The Physic Garden
A walled garden off the High Street, laid out in 17th-century style with formal herb beds, a knot garden, a topiary walk, an informal orchard and a rose arch. It is privately owned and open to the public without charge. Part of the area beside the ancient west wall is currently cordoned off while repairs are arranged, so expect a slightly shortened route.
The Market Square
Petersfield’s market runs every Wednesday and Saturday all year, with stalls open from 8.30am to about 3pm, weather permitting, in the Market Square, GU32 3HH. It is a traditional street market rather than a food-hall operation, and the mix of stalls changes week to week.
Paid, in the town
Petersfield Lido
A 25-metre outdoor pool, heated all year round, with a sauna and a cafe on Heath Road, GU31 4DZ. It is run as a charity, and it exists because the town wanted a safe alternative to swimming in the Heath Pond more than 60 years ago.
Prices, cheaper if you book online:
- Quick dip: £6 online, £7 at the pool (£4 and £5 for under 16s)
- Lane swim or open swim, 45 minutes: £9 online, £10 at the pool (£7 and £8 under 16)
- Family ticket, up to five people with at least one under 16: £7 each online
- Giant inflatables, 60 minutes, under 16s: £7 online
- Spectators: £2
Lane swimming runs from 06:30 on weekdays and 06:45 at weekends, which is the detail that makes it usable before work.
Petersfield Museum and Art Gallery
St Peter’s Road, GU32 3HX. £5 for adults and free for under 18s, which is one of the better value museum tickets in Hampshire; Art Fund members pay £3. Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10am to 5pm, last entry 4pm.
Two exhibitions run to 26 September 2026: Flora Twort: Draw From Life, on the artist whose Petersfield gallery the museum absorbed, and Stanley Spencer: A Petersfield View. 1920s: Fashioning a Modern Woman runs to 13 March 2027, and the South Downs Open 2026 opens on 10 October.
Within half an hour
Queen Elizabeth Country Park and Butser Hill
Gravel Hill, Horndean, PO8 0QE, three miles south of Petersfield just off the A3, inside the South Downs National Park. Entry is free and the car parks are open 24 hours, but parking is charged by automatic number plate recognition, so you pay for the time you actually stay:
- April to September: £2.50 an hour, £5 for two hours, £8 for four, £9.50 all day
- October to March: £2 an hour, £4 for two hours, £5.50 for four, £7 all day
- Motorbikes free; coaches £20
- Annual pass £85, or £65 with a Blue Badge
There are eight car parks and they are not interchangeable. The main visitor centre car park is the one for the cafe, toilets and mountain bike trails; Juniper is the one for the play areas, assault course and pizza oven; Gravel Hill is the one for the dog field and horse boxes; and Butser Hill is the one for the views from the highest point on the South Downs.
Butser Ancient Farm
An experimental archaeology site, PO8 0BG, where Iron Age and Roman buildings are reconstructed and lived in rather than modelled. £15.50 for adults, £10.50 for children aged 3 to 16, £14.50 concessions, £27.00 for one adult and two children and £41.50 for two adults and two children. Under 3s and carers are free, and booking online saves £1 a ticket.
Since 28 March 2026 it opens Saturdays, Sundays and bank holiday Mondays, 10am to 4pm, plus Wednesday to Sunday in school holidays. Last entry is 2.30pm, which catches people out.
Gilbert White’s House and Gardens
The Wakes, High Street, Selborne, GU34 3JH, about twenty minutes north. £16.50 for adults (£18.15 if you Gift Aid), £6.00 for children aged 3 to 16, £13.50 for the garden only, £26.00 for one adult and three children and £39.50 for two adults and three children. Under 3s free. Tickets are valid for one day only, unlike Chawton down the road.
Opening hours shift with the season: Tuesday to Sunday, 10.30am to 4.30pm from April to October, seven days a week from 27 July to 31 August, and 10.30am to 4pm from November to March.
Jane Austen’s House, Chawton
The cottage where Austen wrote, revised and published all six novels. £15.50 on the door for adults, £15.00 for seniors, £11.00 for 17 to 26 year olds and for disabled visitors with a carer free, £7.25 for children aged 6 to 16 and free under 6. Families are £26.00 for one adult and up to three children, £40.00 for two adults. Art Fund and Jane Austen Society members pay £7.50.
The thing to know: your ticket automatically becomes an annual pass, so you can go back as often as you like for twelve months, and pre-booking saves £1. Capacity is limited to 12 visitors entering every 20 minutes, so book. Open seven days a week to 4 October 2026, then Wednesday to Sunday.
Hollycombe Steam in the Country
Iron Hill, Liphook, GU30 7LP: a working steam fairground with golden gallopers, steam swings, a bioscope, two railways and a farm. It reopened for the 2026 season on Sunday 26 April, three weeks later than planned after an exceptionally wet spring damaged the car park. Gates open 11.30am to 5pm, and there is no access before 11.30.
Admission is sold in three tiers, Gold (unlimited rides), Silver (a selection of ride tokens) and Bronze (three rides), and priced per event rather than as a fixed tariff, with children’s tickets from £5. Child prices apply from 3 to 15, under 3s are free, and all under 16s must be with a paying adult. Well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome and may ride the narrow-gauge railway. The Fairground Extravaganza runs 29 to 31 August 2026.
The Watercress Line
The Mid Hants Railway runs steam and heritage diesel trains between Alton and Alresford, calling at Medstead and Four Marks and Ropley, and Alton is on the same South Western Railway network as Petersfield. Tickets are “Freedom of the Line” fares, giving travel up and down the line all day.
Fares are set per operating day and shown once you choose a date in the railway’s calendar, so there is no single headline price to quote; booking online in advance is cheaper than buying at the station, and a booking fee of up to £2.50 may apply. Check the calendar before you go, because operating days vary and special events run to their own timetables and fares.
Frequently asked questions
What is there to do in Petersfield for free?
Petersfield Heath and Heath Pond, the Physic Garden and the Market Square on Wednesdays and Saturdays all cost nothing. Entry to Queen Elizabeth Country Park and Butser Hill is also free; you only pay to park.
Can you swim outdoors in Petersfield?
Yes. Petersfield Lido on Heath Road is a 25-metre outdoor pool heated all year round, with a sauna and cafe. A quick dip is £6 booked online, a 45 minute lane or open swim £9, and under 16s pay £4 and £7 respectively.
What is the best thing to do near Petersfield with children?
For a wet day, Butser Ancient Farm (£10.50 a child, roundhouses you can walk into) or Hollycombe at Liphook (steam fairground rides). For a free day, the play area and boats on Petersfield Heath, or the Juniper car park end of Queen Elizabeth Country Park, which has the play areas and assault course.
How much is Petersfield Museum?
£5 for adults, free for under 18s, and £3 for Art Fund members. It is open Wednesday to Saturday, 10am to 5pm, with last entry at 4pm.
How far is Butser Hill from Petersfield?
About three miles south, just off the A3 at Queen Elizabeth Country Park. It is the highest point on the South Downs and the car park at the top is one of eight in the park.
When is Petersfield market?
Every Wednesday and Saturday, all year, in the Market Square. Stalls are open from 8.30am until around 3pm, weather permitting.
Related
- Petersfield roadworks, parking and travel: where to park in town, and which car parks are free on Sundays.
- Petersfield trains to London, if you are coming in by rail.
- Petersfield house prices, if the day out is turning into a house hunt.
Sources
- Petersfield Town Council, The Heath for the acreage, boating, fishing, the Plump Duck kiosk, the scheduled monuments and the Taro Fair date.
- Petersfield Lido, swim at the Lido for every session price, the pool length, heating and the lane swimming schedule.
- Petersfield Museum and Art Gallery for admission prices, and the museum’s homepage for opening hours and current exhibition dates.
- Petersfield Physic Garden for the free admission, the garden’s layout and the current wall repairs.
- Petersfield Market for the market days, hours and location.
- Hampshire County Council, parking at Queen Elizabeth Country Park for the seasonal tariffs, the annual passes, the eight car parks and the address.
- Butser Ancient Farm, plan your visit for prices, opening days and last entry.
- Gilbert White’s House, tickets and opening times for prices, the one-day validity and seasonal hours.
- Jane Austen’s House, visitor information for 2026 admission prices, the annual pass, timed entry and the opening calendar.
- Hollycombe Steam in the Country, visit us for the delayed season opening, hours and the Gold, Silver and Bronze ticket structure.
- Watercress Line, timetables and prices for the Freedom of the Line fare structure and booking fee.
Prices and opening times change, and several of these are seasonal. Check the venue’s own site before you set off.
Have your say
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