From 16 November Sutton Hoo's house, café and shop open at weekends only; weekdays are walks and the tower. Closed 24 and 25 December, open daily 26 to 31 Dec.

Sutton Hoo, the National Trust’s Anglo-Saxon burial site across the Deben from Woodbridge, opens every day until Sunday 15 November 2026. From Monday 16 November the house, exhibition, café and shop close on weekdays, and only the estate walks and the viewing tower stay open Monday to Friday. Everything opens at weekends, the site shuts on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and it is fully open every day from Boxing Day to New Year’s Eve.

That weekday pattern is only on the Trust’s day-by-day opening calendar. The visitor information on the same page still says the King’s River Café “is open every day”.

The quick answer

  • Every day to 15 November: house and exhibition 10.30am to 3.30pm from 26 October (4.30pm before that).
  • 16 November to 23 December: weekdays are walks and tower only (10am to 4pm); house, exhibition, café and shop open Saturdays and Sundays.
  • Closed 24 and 25 December. Open daily 26 to 31 December. Adult £18, child £9, family £45 (without Gift Aid); free for National Trust members.

Opening times, October to December 2026

All times are from the opening calendar published on Sutton Hoo’s National Trust page, checked on 25 September 2026. The Trust had published dates only as far as 31 December 2026.

Dates House and exhibition Café and shop Estate walks Tower
To Sun 25 October, daily 10.30am to 4.30pm Café 10am to 4.30pm, shop to 5pm 10am to 5pm 10am to 4pm
Mon 26 October to Sun 15 November, daily 10.30am to 3.30pm 10am to 4pm 10am to 4pm 10am to 4pm
16 November to 23 December, Mon to Fri Closed Closed 10am to 4pm 10am to 4pm
16 November to 23 December, Sat and Sun 10.30am to 3.30pm 10am to 4pm 10am to 4pm 10am to 4pm
Thu 24 and Fri 25 December Closed Closed Closed Closed
Sat 26 to Thu 31 December, daily 10.30am to 3.30pm 10am to 4pm 10am to 4pm 10am to 4pm
From 1 January 2027 Not yet published

The second-hand bookshop in the courtyard follows the café pattern, opening at 11am.

If you want the full visit, with the Tranmer House displays and the High Hall exhibition, go before 16 November, at a weekend, or between Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve. A weekday in late November or December gets you the Royal Burial Ground walks and the tower, but nowhere to buy a hot drink on site.

Prices

Admission covers the whole site. The Trust says you do not need to pre-book, and National Trust members get in free.

Ticket With Gift Aid Without Gift Aid
Adult (18+) £19.80 £18.00
Child (5 to 17), under 5s free £9.90 £9.00
Family (2 adults, up to 3 children) £49.50 £45.00
1 adult, 2 children £29.70 £27.00

The Trust’s page does not say whether the price changes on the weekdays when the buildings are shut. Ask at Visitor Welcome before you pay.

What is on this winter

These are from the Trust’s own Sutton Hoo events listing:

  • Tales by Torchlight: The Adventures of Rægenhere, 23 to 31 October. A torchlit walk across the estate meeting Anglo-Saxon storytellers, two performances a night at 6pm and 6.45pm, drinks and cake included. Booking essential: £18 adult, £9 child on the Trust’s ticket site. The Trust warns the terrain is hard going in the dark for wheelchairs and buggies.
  • Big Draw Paint and Sip evening, Tuesday 27 October, 7pm to 9pm in the King’s River Café, adults only, booking essential.
  • Finds Friday object handling, Friday 30 October, 10.45am to 1.15pm, real finds and replicas for families. No booking.
  • Conservation in Action: Edith Pretty’s travel case, 10 and 11 November from 10.30am, the collections team unpacking more than 100 items. No booking.
  • The Dig: A Story Unearthed, the temporary exhibition of costumes and props from the Netflix film, runs until 24 January 2027. Note it is indoors, so on weekdays from 16 November you will not be able to see it.
  • Quiet Hour, 10am to 11am on the first Sunday of each month, for visitors with autism or dementia.

No Christmas event had been listed by 25 September. Last year’s programme is not on the Trust’s site any more. We will add any festive events when they appear.

Getting there

Sutton Hoo is on the east bank of the Deben, near Woodbridge. The Trust lists a main car park with Blue Badge spaces at the front and an overflow car park at busy times. Dogs on short leads are allowed on all the estate walks, in the café, shop and bookshop, but only assistance dogs in the High Hall exhibition and Tranmer House.

Coming by train? The East Suffolk line has no trains between Ipswich and Halesworth from 24 October to 1 November, the whole of half term, with rail replacement buses instead; see our report on the closure and check roadworks and travel before you go. For more half term ideas see October half term on the Suffolk coast, and for the town itself, parking in Woodbridge.

Still to be confirmed

  • Opening from 1 January 2027. Not published by the Trust yet. We will check again in early December.
  • Any Christmas events at Sutton Hoo for 2026. None listed yet.
  • Admission on weekdays when only the walks and tower are open.

Checked against the National Trust’s Sutton Hoo pages and ticket site on 25 September 2026.