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The Great Britain Guide

Family attractions · South East England

Tilgate Park & Nature Centre

Modern♿ Wheelchair: limited

Crawley's 450-acre country park with a free-entry children's nature centre.

Tilgate Park

Wikimedia Commons licence

Plan your visit

Typical visit
1 h–2 h
Nearest railway station
Crawley · 2.1 km
  • Family-friendly
  • Dog-friendly
  • Limited wheelchair access

About

Tilgate Park is the 450-acre Crawley country park surrounding the historic Tilgate Forest, with a Nature Centre housing rare-breed farm animals, owls, reptiles, alpacas and meerkats — strongly child-orientated and free to visit. Three lakes, the National Pinetum, formal walled gardens, a maze and an adventure playground extend the day; pay-and-play attractions include the Go Ape treetop course and Tilgate Golf. Crawley's most-visited public space.

Photo gallery

Protected designations

  • Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty: High Weald
  • Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty: Surrey Hills

Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.

From the Wikipedia article

Tilgate Park is a large recreational park situated south of Tilgate, South-East Crawley. Originally a 2,185-acre (8.84 km2) part of the ancient Worth Forest, the park and adjacent areas (including the modern-day Furnace Green, Three Bridges, part of Southgate and Tilgate Forest) were part of the larger Tilgate Estate. Although visitor activity is mostly focused on the area surrounding Tilgate Lake and on the adjacent gardens of a former country mansion, a large area of the park is former silvicultural forest. This is now managed as a Local Nature Reserve called Tilgate Forest. The park also contains the Tilgate Nature Centre featuring captive breeding of some vulnerable and endangered animal species and varieties.

Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.

Coordinates
51.0964, -0.1758
County
West Sussex
District
Crawley
Parish
Crawley, unparished area
Postcode
RH10 5PQ
Parliamentary constituency
Crawley
Nearest railway station
Crawley2.1 km
Official site
crawley.gov.uk

Sources

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Frequently asked questions

Where is Tilgate Park & Nature Centre?
Tilgate Park & Nature Centre is in West Sussex, South-East England, United Kingdom (postcode RH10 5PQ), in the parish of Crawley, unparished area.
When was Tilgate Park & Nature Centre built?
Dates from the modern period.
Is Tilgate Park & Nature Centre a protected site?
Yes — Tilgate Park & Nature Centre is part of the High Weald National Landscape (AONB) and the Surrey Hills National Landscape (AONB).
How do I get to Tilgate Park & Nature Centre?
The nearest railway station is Crawley, about 2.1 km away. Drivers can navigate to postcode RH10 5PQ.
Is Tilgate Park & Nature Centre suitable for children?
Yes — Tilgate Park & Nature Centre is a family attraction designed for children. Most rides and attractions are aimed at the under-12 age band.