UK Lavender fields to visit featuring Cotswold Lavender

Yet again I’ve not made it to the confetti fields which are only open for a few days each year, but I knew I’d have plenty of time to visit lavender fields near me.  Cotswold Lavender is near enough for me to visit on a flexi morning from work.  It was definitely worth taking my time off work to see, avoiding the weekend crowds. In the UK there are now quite a few lavendar farms open for visiting.

Scroll down to see my visit to Cotswold Lavender.

If you want to find lavender fields near you, then check out the list below, mainly in the southern half of the country. Don’t forget to check their website or social media for opening times as the season can be quite short, and you may need to book in advance. I’ve included here the 2023 opening times as currently stated, but depending on the weather dates can change.

Where to visit lavender fields in the UK?

Opening times are for the lavender fields. Many are open outside of these months for other parts of the farms. Most have cafes and farm shops.

• Hitchin Lavender, Ickleford – Jun 26 to late August, also have sunflowers later on. Dogs allowed
• Warwickshire Lavender Farm, Bubbenhall – 8 acres, opening from 28 June to 6 August, Wednesdays to Sundays
• Cotswold Lavender, Snowshill, Gloucestershire – open to 16th August
• Mayfield Lavender, Banstead – open now til 20 August. No picnics.
• Castle Farm, Shoreham Kent – late June to late July, more than just lavender, but you can only visit the lavender for their events – BYO picnics, tours or field walks.
• Fitchinfield Lavender, Essex – 29 June to late August Tuesdays to Sundays, ticketed only
• Norfolk Lavender, Heacham – National collection of lavenders, farm shop, distillery (including tours), open 7 days a week
• Welsh lavender, Powys – July and August for blooms. They ask to check ahead for opening.
• The Lavender Fields, Hartley Park Farm – open from late June. Picnics and dogs are allowed
• Carshalton Lavender – a community not for profit enterprise, only open one weekend in July for harvest weekend. You can volunteer through contacting them.
• Somerset Lavender, Faulkland – depending on weather, open late June to late August. Sunflower fields are open after the lavender.
• Cornish Lavender, near Perranporth – open May to 13 August. Volunteering, group visits workshops. pop up events and tea rooms.
• Yorkshire Lavender, Terrington – open April to September, they also run workshops.
• Woldies, Malton North Yorkshire – Nature gardens, trails and play as well as the distillery, good for kids.
• Tarhill Farm, Kinross – open for 6 weeks of the year. As well as lavender they have herb garden and wildflowers. Distillery workshops on offer. Day tickets and tours included

Let me know of any I’ve missed.

Visiting Cotswold Lavender

Cotswold Lavender farm, grows and distills the lavender for the oil.  They’ve been growing lavender since 1999, and now have over 40 varieties. As well as the lavender fields, there’s a small wildflower area to give the insects some variety. The flowers are tiny against the purple of the lavender, but it’s nice to have another areas to enjoy.

As it doesn’t open until 10am, and I’d dropped N off at school at 8am, even stopping off en route meant I was nearly an hour early. I’d planned to sit in the car park and read until it was open, but this wasn’t possible as the car park gates were locked. Arriving at 9.45 would be better in terms of still getting there ahead of the crowds. But don’t panic as there’s plenty of parking in the field next to the coach park.

Visiting the lavender fields is under a fiver for adults, and a reduced rate for children over 5 years. You can pay by cash at the kiosk or by card in the café across the road.  There are also season tickets if you want to return several times.  The kiosk also sells a few drinks and ice creams.

Arriving early meant you can get out into the fields before the crowds, and it only takes until 10.30 for there to be queues of people walking into the fields.  There’s plenty of rows of lavender to enjoy so you can head off further into the field if you want photos empty of other people.  There were people with tripods, children, dogs and selfie sticks (yes I did take mine rather than trying to use my remote or timer and tripod.  Still being without my usual camera was painful because my point and shoot was too hard to use in the sun , and the auto setting wasn’t playing ball. Thank god for a good phone camera!).

If you can’t spot the difference in the varieties, the names are on signs at the ends of rows.  Otherwise it’s a case of walking where you want and enjoying the views.

I spent around 40 minutes walking round and taking photos and that was plenty.  Then it was time for a drink stop at the café.

I think I was the youngest person in the café by about 15-20 years.  As well as a small shop, toilets and café, there’s also an outdoor seating area, including tables under a marquee.  So plenty of space to sit and try some of the lavender flavoured treats.  I had some lavender shortbread and it was delicious, if a little ‘soapy’ in flavour.

The lavender is at its peak bloom between early to mid-July when it’s then gradually harvested into August. Cotswold lavender opens around June each year, so just check for bloom updates on Facebook and the website if you’re planning to visit.

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If you fancy a nice sunny walk amongst the gorgeous smelling lavender, then check out your nearest lavender fields.  For other flower farm tips check out my flower year post. If you’re after sunflowers, I’ve got a post with lots you can visit.

Have you visited any lavender fields this year? Where would you recommend?

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