Autumn is when the New Forest really earns its reputation, and it has been named one of the most colourful autumn destinations in the world. The national park in Hampshire turns red, orange, yellow and gold, and it sits only about two hours south of London, so it is an easy day or weekend trip from Bournemouth.
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The animals are part of the appeal. Ponies, cattle, donkeys and pigs roam free, and the pigs are busy with pannage, the old tradition of grazing on fallen acorns. It usually runs from mid-September into November or December, and because 2026 is a mast year, it has been extended right through to January. The forest is also a mushroom paradise, with around 2,700 species and foraging workshops to match, and autumn is when the deer come into their rut.
Walking and cycling are the obvious ways to take it all in. There are more than 140 miles of off-road trails, and the New Forest Walking & Cycling Festival runs across two or three weeks in October and November with more than 70 guided routes, put together by the National Park Authority and a long list of partners including Forestry England and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. Bolderwood is the one to know for beech and oak, with the Knightwood oak at the Lyndhurst A35 end among the largest trees in the forest. The Blackwater Tall Trees Trail gathers trees from around the world, the West Walk takes you through the Hundred Acre Woods, the largest remaining piece of the ancient Forest of Bere, and Roydon Woods is full of massive oaks, beeches, ash and birch. For the colours, look at Puttles Bridge, Ober Water, Aldridge Hill Inclosure and Broomy Inclosure, the last one near the High Corner Inn in Linwood with its beech trees and Dockens Water. If you would rather be by the water, there is a 40-mile coastal walk from Lymington, Milford on Sea and Lepe.
The gardens are worth a stop too. Exbury Gardens, 200 acres at Exbury, has rhododendrons, azaleas and a National Plant Collection of acer and nyssa trees that turn red and orange, plus a 20-minute miniature steam railway. Through October there is a Nerine exhibition, the head gardener leads autumn tours on the 20th and 22nd, and from the 25th the Halloween Ghost Train, The Curse of the Haunted Circus, runs alongside creepy crafts workshops, pumpkin carving, face painting and a haunted circus trail. Furzey Gardens in Minstead is a more informal spot, set up in 1922 and now run by the Minstead Trust, with a 16th-century straw cottage, a heather garden and more than 40 fairy doors for children to leave messages or gifts. It stays open until 4pm daily through 30 October.
And if you are after something to eat or drink, the New Forest Cider in Burley is a family-run cidery that holds its Craft Cider Festival on 10 and 11 October, and the Burley Fudge Shop and New Forest Shortbread do seasonal fudge. Burley itself is worth a wander, with its old links to witchcraft and smuggling, and Paultons Park, home to Peppa Pig World, runs its Halloween Spooktacular from 12 to 30 October.
Published Date
5 October 2026
