Stonor Park
📍 Stonor
🌿 Parks & Gardens
💷 £5 - £15pp
⏰ Up to a full day
👣 High Energy
☕ Café
May 2026 · Parks & Gardens · Event
Letting off steam in the adventure playground, handling birds of prey and finding nature treasures in the gardens.
We don't often come to this corner of Oxfordshire, and we really should. As soon as we'd got out of the car I stood gaping in wonder at the rolling Chiltern Hills, while Little Leopard took photos of the deer herd running along the other side of the Valley.
There's plenty of different ways to explore this gem, including the parkland (deer and pheasants galore), various gardens, and a big country house.
The big pull for us, as I suspect is true for most families, was Tumblestone Hollow, a big adventure playground in the woods with slides, tunnels and nets galore. We spent a big chunk of the day here, with Little Leopard running around with his friend, while I had coffee with mine.
There was a medieval event on the day we went which included jousting and birds of prey displays. I feel like it's a bit of a stretch to include jousting in a nature adventure post, but the horsemanship was impressive, and led Little Leopard to ask me if he could learn to ride a horse. (He previously thought of it as solely a girl's activity).
The birds of prey display was Little Leopard's highlight of the day, including flights from a Hybrid Falcon, and a Goshawk. Little Leopard's favourite moment of the YEAR was when he was picked to run with a lure as a hawk chased him and then pounced on it. He didn't stop smiling for hours afterwards.
We ran out of time to nosy round the house (not Little Leopard's natural environment anyway). We would have loved a walk over the other side of the valley around the deer park, but it's served well with footpaths that form part of the Chiltern Way, and Shakespeare's Way, so we forwent it and spent the rest of our visit in the gardens.
The garden is accessed by a little side door which immediately gave off secret garden vibes. We spent over an hour exploring the 3 gardens, including a medieval garden with ponds and fountains, an old kitchen garden with apple and plum trees, and through another magical looking door was a more wild arboretum.
There was plenty for Little Leopard and his friend to spot, they were kept busy looking for bugs and spiders in the nooks and crannies of the old wall.
The mistletoe I pointed out failed to impress them, they preferred to lay on the grass watching bees check out flowers, and hundreds of tadpoles wiggling in the pond. I'd love to come back in the summer when they'll all be hopping on the lily pads.
I loved the ladies walk (arboretum), filled with a more rebellious, vibe. Hazelnuts and mulberries and plenty of wild, twisty, gnarled trees to inspire stories of woodland spirits.
Nature Notes
Goshawk
The “phantom of the forest”
One of the UK’s most powerful woodland birds of prey
They can twist through dense trees at incredible speed
Their yellow/orange eyes become deeper red as they age
Historically persecuted in Britain, but now making a comeback
Fallow Deer
Spotted woodland wanderers
Fallow deer were introduced to Britain by the Normans nearly 1,000 years ago
They live in herds and are often most active at dawn and dusk
Their white-spotted coats help them blend into dappled woodland light
Males grow broad antlers which are shed and regrown every year
When startled, they raise their tails to flash a bright white warning signal to the herd
Mistletoe
The winter plant that grows in the sky
Mistletoe is a semi-parasitic plant that grows attached to tree branches
It stays green all winter.
Birds spread the sticky seeds by wiping them onto branches after eating the berries
In Britain it’s especially associated with apple orchards and old folklore traditions
The white berries are poisonous to humans.
An energetic day out exploring the playground, gardens and meeting some birds up close.
Address: Stonor Park, Stonor, Henley-on-Thames, RG9 6HF
Parking: Free parking
Opening Hours: 09.30 - 17.30 weekends and school holidays. Check website for events and alterations.
Entry Fee: £5 - £15pp
Website: stonor.com
