Great Dixter Review

My type of garden, quirky and abundant ...like a maze with a surprise around every corner.some may say disorderly, planting rules are abandoned here, but you can feel the affection and enthusiasm of the gardeners everywhere. even my husband loved it!

Quite possibly the best garden I have ever visited. The range of planting and the peaceful atmosphere of the place verges on the magical.

Beautiful summer gardens, plants of different heights textures and colours flowing into each other, gorgeous. Unfortunately the cafe is not up to the same standard.

The gardens here are magnificent, the borders burgeoning with plants overflowing onto the narrow paths. They manage to produce a succession of blooms which I strive for but never achieve.
Head Gardener Fergus Garrett seemed to be around every corner and obviously strives to maintain it as the great man Christopher Lloyd did. The nursery was good and we bought 4 plants.
However we felt that visitors were a necessary inconvenience. There was practically no food available. Even at 1:00pm the baguettes had run out and there was only a choice of a slice of carrot or lemon drizzle cake. It was served by 2 bored lads in a wooden shack. What should have been a revenue source was a nothing.
Parking was haphazard and poorly signposted. They could learn a lot from the RHS or NT gardens. Disappointing.

Loved the gardens and house - just beautiful and well tended. It was a glorious sunny day so exploring the different areas of the garden was most enjoyable. Yhere are lots of lications to sit and admire the plants and stunning views. The cafe was a bit disappointing on selection of food and cakes however it was good to get a cup of earl grey tea.

Lovely gardens near Northiam in East Sussex... Not quite my favourite but well up there and a must visit if in the area...

We visited the gardens 29/6/19 and were really disappointed. The whole garden just had an air of neglect and at a time of year when we expected it to be at its best, everything looked chaotic and unkempt.

The Gardens are spectacular and full of colour. The house is very interesting with very friendly and knowledgeable Guides. It is as if the owners have gone out and you have sneaked in for a look.

Don't touch anything. They will yell at you. The gardens are beautiful and vibrant.

I haven't been yet but my family have n shown me a video n it's a beautiful n amazing place with such wonderful n interesting gardens, with so many wierd n wonderful plants n flowers..plus the House...I really must go n so should others if they're into gardens that literally have something for everyone.

Wonderful gardens that encourage you to go home and add colour to your own. Not fussy or formal, yet still manages to educate.

Carefully cultivated Wild Rambly Gardens, just as it should be. Was amazed at the care they must have gone to to create this beautiful organised chaos. We had great fun exploring. A trip to the woodwork barn and to see inside the Past House additional delights.

My only complaint was the badly advertised house opening times. Payed to see inside the house, but when we tried found out not open till 1pm! Checked at the pay kiosk on the way out, small note on the window which when we paid was open and therefore not visible.

Not much to see in house and very crowded gardens. Spent a very pleasant time there though. Nice refreshments.

Great garden, spring is lovely here. Plant fairs are good for picking up something unusual.

Nice house, although I didn't realise you can only see 3 rooms. Beautiful gardens

A bit disappointed! It seemed to so overgrown. The last time I went there which was probably ten years ago, the gardens were immaculately maintained. Also the house was not open until two and we had arrived at eleven. The food was not as good and wholesome as I remembered? Lettuce in the roll was brown and past its sell by date. Won't be going again! Sad as it is such a beautiful place.

Lovely house and fantastic gardens, well worth a visit if you love looking around gardens.

Absolutely wonderful gardens! The array of colours and fragrances on the breeze was magical! Not prim and proper, which is unique. Quite wild in parts. Beautiful topiary and succulents. Gorgeous pond with pink and white large lillies. Slightly tight walkways in some places, so wheelchair users wld struggle a little bit. Slightly put off by differing opening times of house and garden! 11am garden and 1pm house. Should be a tighter time scale I think. So we didn't get to go into house, despite paying for it. Beautiful little cafe in a Loggia with good seating. Lovely experience on a Sunday morning

Very old building only two rooms open. Garden large but a bit overgrown. Excellent refreshments

Wonderful gardens! Nice coffee shop. Fairly interesting house (3 rooms only on view).

Finally visited this destination, a place my good lady wife had long wished to see. Our overall opinion was that it was a place of pilgrimage but with little reward. The gardens definitely lived up to their reputation of free planting, but perhaps these days the planting had become very repetitious in the different areas of the gardens. Our opinion was that it was expensive and it became quite monotonous.

The sheer profusion of planting is breathtaking. It shouldn't be possible to keep all these plants growing in one place but they do it here. Some of the paths are very narrow and blend you into the garden. It's what this place is about. Enjoy every turn and alleyway!

The 15th century house is gorgeous, and is still in use as a family home. I think only 3 rooms are open to the public, but each are fascinating. My only gripe was that I wasn't allowed to take photos in the house.

The gardens are stunning (it helped that we went in late May when most of the flowers were out) with a great mix of semi-formal gardens and meadow which is very insect friendly, probably the best garden we have ever visited.

Wonderful gardens. Very inspiring. Buy loads of plants here and been every year for the last three!

My favorite garden in the whole world - and that is saying something. A gracious, exuberant place to ramble through the whole day long.

Always love visiting Great Dixter. This time for some plants. Great selection good prices.

Very beautiful gardens,and lots of colour for this time of year and well stocked nursery.

One of the most inspiring gardens in England! Christopher Lloyd was way ahead of his time and his designs pushed boundaries. The team at Great Dixter have done a fabulous job at carrying on that example.

A garden of such profusion that it has to be seen to be believed

Absolutely Beautiful! Highly recommended day out for lovers of stunning gardens & beautiful houses

Amazing garden with endless pathways and innumerable flowers and plants.

Well worth the visit. Facilities are good and the plants good value.

I was there at the beginning of May two years ago and was fascinated by the flowers. Beautiful park! Tulips in all facets and colors. Flowers everywhere, wherever the eye looked. Great combinations, I was totally excited. The complex was created with love, you notice it immediately. The mansion is also worth a visit. Highly recommended for nature lovers.

I love visiting Great Dixter and try to go each year. The planting is so sumptuous and artistic with unusual colours and plants placed together. It has inspired several pieces of art. The tropical garden is wonderful.

Visited early August. Didn't do the house. The 'sunk' garden was delightful but the rest of the gardens disappointing on the whole. A lot of repetitive planting so generally not much to distinguish the separate areas. Recent planting in rows like soldiers! e.g the sunflowers and what I think were zinnias (didn't look closely). Overall it looks very tired, uncared for and overgrown. The setting is great and perhaps it might be worth visiting in early summer or spring but I wouldn't recommend it as there are so many more interesting and well maintained gardens within easy reach. My two companions, with whom I recently completed a two year horticulture course, were of the same opinion.

This is one of the most beautiful gardens that I have ever been to I definitely recommend going. The flowers and the layout of the gardens were amazing. You could pay to just see the gardens or a little extra to have a look at a section of the house. But if you only can afford the garden it is well worth it.

It's only Me I was not impressed, my Friend loved it, although the gardens were very pretty, it had a Rustic Cafe at the back of the gardens....

A must see, regardless of if you're into plants and stuff

Brilliant place to go. House and gardens lovely, worth a visit

A medium sized garden in England where you can walk a lot! It takes about an hour to see everything! It's not in vain, but it's still worth going there!

This place breathes Wild Garden. It is such a harmony between garden and house. We felt the love everyone is putting into maintaining this beauty and hosting the guests

Beautiful 14th century house and gardens designed by Christopher Lloyd

Disappointing, mid September much of the gardens were madly overgrown. Many of the paths difficult to pass and some sections completely inaccessible. The Oust houses could do with new information boards especially in the lower section which also needs tidying up. Talking of information, none of the plants we saw had labels, maybe they are buried in the undergrowth.

We visited today with a wheelchair ,we spoke to angas head gardener very friendly helpfull guy, but I have to say it's one of worst trips we have ever been on,we where directed to tea rooms very uneven ground pot holes my carerer had bad More

The great hall is a fine example of a Tudor building and, while built after the late medieval period despite appearances, gives a good idea of how the surrounding Sussex countryside dwellings may have appeared in the days that saw near-by Bodiam Castle dominate local life.

The extensive gardens offer plenty of good walking with a pretty extensive variety of shape, colour, and smell, as you would expect given who owned the property.

A must visit.

We have been to many houses and gardens with our children (age between 5 and 10) and they have enjoyed almost every one of them. However this isn't something we can say about Great Dixter.

Great Dixter felt really unsuitable for children. They were made to feel really unwelcome. Our advise is not to go if you and your children want to have a good time....This is a real shame as at this young age children can get a real appreciation for this type of venue.
The gardens were nice but having a meadow around formal topiary!!!!. In our view it didn't go together....
The house is really nice, but you only get to see 3 rooms. A real shame as you dont get to see much at all. A bit of a waste, given that this is 3 houses incorporated into one. The real benefit would be to see how this is merged together but you don't get to see any of this.....
In summary we wouldn't waste our time or energy visiting Great Dixter.

Amazing house and gardens with good coffe and good value nursery

Windows magnificent view .. UNMISSABLE !! Admission is free mother deliver however book minus 2-3 weeks in advance .. Sony ericsson but go early in the morning between the 8 edward within 10 you can enter cost-free even without reservation. Tip not gourmet coffee sipped at tables overlooking the terrace .. 3 single lb. I think mother is worth all of them !! Turn around 's standard / restaurant age, going up, and beautiful to admire the other skyscrapers including the Gherkin .. PHOTOGRAPHING PHOTOGRAPHING !!

Wild beautiful garden, a well-kept "jungle", absolutely worth seeing.

What a wonderful garden ranging from near jungle to more formal. There is a fantastic range of plants and a riot of colour, with lots of 'gardening rules' broken but to great effect. The house is interesting being made up of three houses, one built in the mid-15th century with slightly later additions, the second a yeoman s house from Benenden, across the border in Kent, built in the early 16th century and moved in 1910, and the third combines the two with additional accommodation, completed in 1912 by the architect Edwin Lutyens. There is a 'rustic' cafe with mainly outdoor seating, the food is good but quite expensive.

Some area's were very unkept especially the approach on foot to the house very disappointed.

All the better for being a little bit on the wild side at the moment! The violas in the veg garden and the poppies are great fun.

What an amazing garden. Even though it is not big, there is a lot to see. The multiple layers of planting is fascinating. The garden esthetics isn't spoiled by plants name tags and all your questions will most likely be answered in the plant sale that contains a lot of plants and a lot of information about them. Loved it!

One of the worlds gardening hotspots. Lovely and well kept.

A beautifully landscaped garden. There are guided tours in the building.
For us, the arrival was rewarded with a variety of flowers.

So many different species of poppy.nice atmosphere , visitors from many countries.lovely afternoon.