If you haven't seen at least a hundred photos of dogs in Lavender fields this summer, then you must have been living on another planet!
Doggies sitting amongst the lovely purple plants has taken Instagram by storm for the last few summers and we had major FOMO every time we saw one. So this summer we decided to find out what all the fuss was about!
There are two fields within an hour of London which are both dog friendly.
The first is Mayfield Lavender Farm which is near Banstead in Surrey and the second is Hitchin Lavender, only a 20 minute drive from North London.
Both fields ask that dogs be kept on leads and that any poop is picked up but otherwise we are free to walk around everywhere and, more importantly pose for those Instagram photos.
Mayfield Lavender, Banstead
Mayfield is in Surrey so you can visit together with some of the other pretty villages (see my previous blog '3 Dog Friendly Surrey Villages') and is a 25 acre lavender farm which is open from June 1st to August 31st.
You don't need to book entry, which is charged at £4 per person (FREE for under 16's) but be warned it does get very busy at peak times. The fee includes parking and there is no time limit.
The fields are very flat and easy to navigate through with plenty of wide parts to fit even big dogs in.
There is a cafe and shop, selling all things lavender based from soaps to honey and also a little coffee van with a few products too. Picnics are NOT permitted at Mayfield.
Nearby there is a small park which also has a cafe or you can visit the Woolpack in Banstead which is very dog friendly.
Hitchin Lavender, Hertfordshire
This one is more convenient for our North London friends and is worth visiting later in the season because they also grow sunflowers which are at their best from mid August. To enable more people to see the sunflowers, Hitchin is open until mid September.
In Summer 2020 you had to pre-book your visit which cost £7 per person (under 5's FREE) and included parking but for 2 hours only. This may change next summer so check their website before visiting.
Their is a small cafe and a large covered outdoor seating area. You can also bring your own picnics here.
The farm has 35 miles of lavender rows and is on a slight incline. The space between rows is a bit narrower than at Mayfield but still plenty of photo opportunities.
We really enjoyed both our lavender field visits and look forward to seeing all your photos next year.
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