What's On in Ashford This Weekend? The Best Events, Days Out and Vineyard Trips on 22 and 23 August 2026

What's on in Ashford this weekend, 22 and 23 August 2026, plays to the town's real strengths: a working Victorian windmill open to visitors, a Jacobean house wrapped in one of Kent's finest gardens, and a clutch of award-winning vineyards on the doorstep in the self-styled "wine garden of England". This is the weekend before the late-August bank holiday (the bank holiday itself falls on Monday 31 August), so Ashford is busy but not heaving — a good window to enjoy the Garden of England before the bank-holiday crowds arrive. Add free family activities in the town centre, up to 60% off at the Designer Outlet, and a heritage steam railway a short hop away in Tenterden, and two days fill themselves, report the Ashford Chronicle.

Because Ashford sits on the M20 with a high-speed line to London (St Pancras in around 38 minutes) and fast trains along the Kent coast, it also makes an ideal base for a day trip: the seaside towns of Whitstable, Broadstairs and Folkestone, the castles at Leeds and Hever, and the vineyards of the High Weald are all within easy reach. This guide sets out what's on in and around Ashford on 22 and 23 August, what each thing costs, how to get there — and what to do if the weather turns.

A quick note on timings: several of the town's attractions are volunteer-run or seasonal, so opening hours can change at short notice and weddings occasionally close the windmill on a Saturday. Where it matters, check the venue's own website before you set off.

Willesborough Windmill: a working smock mill open this weekend

The pick of Ashford's own weekend openings is Willesborough Windmill, a Grade II* listed white smock mill built in 1869 on the eastern edge of town. Through July and August it opens on Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays, so both days of this weekend are covered. Guided tours run roughly 2pm to 5pm (last entry 4pm) and last 45 minutes to an hour, led by the volunteers who keep the mill turning. The mill is in full working order and still grinds wholemeal flour — either by wind or by its restored 1906 Hornsby gas-oil engine — and you can buy the stoneground flour in the shop. Children can grind their own small sample on the quern stones and take home a Miller's Certificate. Round the visit off with a clotted-cream tea in the Barn Café.

Prices are refreshingly modest: £5.00 per adult, £2.50 for children and concessions, and £10.00 for a family ticket (two adults and two children). Note the mill can close on some Saturdays for weddings, so it is worth a quick check first.

Getting there: Mill Lane, Willesborough, Ashford, TN24 0QG, off the A292 — a short drive or bus ride east of Ashford International, with parking on site.

Godinton House & Gardens: a Jacobean house and 12 acres of formal gardens

For a slower, greener afternoon, Godinton House & Gardens sits just west of the town centre in ancient parkland. The house is Jacobean with a medieval hall at its core, but the real draw in late August is the garden: 12 acres of ornamental planting, redesigned by Reginald Blomfield in 1898, including one of the longest cut-yew hedges in England, herbaceous borders in full summer colour, a rose garden and a walled kitchen garden. There is a tearoom for lunch or cake, and a plant sales area if the borders leave you inspired. You can buy a combined house-and-garden ticket or visit the gardens on their own; check current opening days and prices on the estate's website before travelling, as house openings are more limited than the gardens.

Getting there: Godinton Lane, off the A20 towards Lenham (leave the M20 at junction 9); opposite the Hare and Hounds pub. The Stour Valley Walk from Ashford International passes close by if you fancy walking out.

Chapel Down and the vineyards: wine tasting in the Garden of England

Ashford has quietly become one of England's premier wine destinations, and a vineyard visit is arguably the Ashford weekend experience. The flagship is Chapel Down, England's leading winery, tucked in the village of Small Hythe just outside Tenterden. Entry to the shop, restaurant, vineyard walk and herb garden is free; free tastings are always available in the shop. Guided tours (seasonal, advance booking advised) are priced at £20.00 for adults, £18.50 concessions, £5.00 for children aged 12–17 and free for under-12s. The on-site restaurant, The Swan, is a destination in its own right, and a new tasting room with a first-floor viewing platform over the vines has recently been approved — a sign of how fast wine tourism here is growing.

If you'd rather stay closer to Ashford, Nine Oaks Vineyard near Hothfield offers small-batch, estate-grown English wines and sits handily on the Stour Valley Walk. A short drive into the High Weald brings you to Biddenden Vineyards, planted in the late 1960s across 23 south-facing acres and known for both wines and ciders. Any of the three pairs well with a garden or windmill visit for a classic Kent day.

Getting there: Chapel Down — Small Hythe Road, near Tenterden; best reached by car, or by taxi from Ashford International or Headcorn station. Nine Oaks — near Hothfield, west of Ashford. Biddenden — off the A262 in the Weald.

Ashford Designer Outlet and free family fun at County Square

Rain or shine, Ashford Designer Outlet is a reliable weekend fixture: over 100 boutiques with discounts of up to 60%, plus cafés, restaurants and a children's adventure play area, all under one roof and a short walk from the International station. In the town centre, County Square Shopping Centre is running free family activities across the summer holidays through to the end of August (drop-in sessions, typically midday to 5pm and free to join) — an easy, no-booking option if you're in town with children.

For food and drink with local character, Curious Brewery near the station runs its taproom for craft beer and cider, and the Coachworks yard is Ashford's go-to spot for street food, markets and live music. Both are walkable from the centre.

Kent & East Sussex Railway: heritage steam from Tenterden

A 20-minute drive south-west of Ashford, the Kent & East Sussex Railway steams out of Tenterden Town Station through the Rother Valley towards Bodiam, passing the moated Bodiam Castle. It's one of the county's best family days out — vintage carriages, a proper station café and gift shop, and a genuinely scenic run. Services run on most summer weekends; check the timetable and fares on the railway's website and pre-book at peak times, as popular services fill up.

Getting there: Tenterden Town Station, Station Road, Tenterden, TN30 6HE; easiest by car from Ashford, with parking at the station.

Parks, lakes and walks: Ashford in the open air

If the sun's out, Ashford has plenty of free outdoor options. Victoria Park, the town's largest and most central green space, sits on the Great Stour and is ideal for a picnic. Just east, Conningbrook Lakes Country Park — a former quarry turned country park — offers lakeside walking and wildlife, while Warren & Hoads Wood, a 35-hectare Kent Wildlife Trust reserve, and Hothfield Heathlands, one of Kent's last surviving heathlands, are within a short drive. The Stour Valley Walk runs right through the centre of town, linking the park, Godinton and, further out, Nine Oaks Vineyard and Hothfield — a walkable thread tying several of this weekend's highlights together.

Saturday, 22 August: the day — with times, addresses and prices

Willesborough Windmill · Time: 2–5pm (last entry 4pm) · Address: Mill Lane, Willesborough, TN24 0QG · Guided tours of a working 1869 smock mill; grind your own flour, café and shop. · Price: adult £5, child/concession £2.50, family £10.

Godinton House & Gardens · Time: garden afternoons (check website) · Address: Godinton Lane, off the A20, Ashford · 12 acres of formal gardens, yew hedge, walled garden and tearoom. · Price: garden/house ticket per website.

Chapel Down vineyard & shop · Time: shop 10am–5pm; tours by booking · Address: Small Hythe Road, near Tenterden · Free shop, restaurant and vineyard walk; guided tour £20 adult. · Price: entry free; tour £20 (concessions/children less).

Ashford Designer Outlet · Time: daytime (standard centre hours) · Address: Kimberley Way, Ashford, TN24 0SD · Over 100 outlet boutiques up to 60% off, cafés and play area. · Price: free entry.

County Square family activities · Time: approx. 12–5pm · Address: County Square, Ashford town centre · Free drop-in summer-holiday activities for children. · Price: free.

Curious Brewery & Coachworks · Time: afternoon into evening · Address: near Ashford International Station · Taproom craft beer, street food, markets and live music. · Price: free entry (spend as you go).

Sunday, 23 August: the day — with times, addresses and prices

Kent & East Sussex Railway · Time: daytime services (check timetable) · Address: Tenterden Town Station, TN30 6HE · Heritage steam through the Rother Valley towards Bodiam Castle. · Price: per railway website; pre-book at peak times.

Willesborough Windmill · Time: 2–5pm (last entry 4pm) · Address: Mill Lane, Willesborough, TN24 0QG · Second chance to tour the working mill this weekend. · Price: adult £5, child/concession £2.50, family £10.

Biddenden or Nine Oaks Vineyard · Time: daytime (check website) · Address: Biddenden, off the A262 / Nine Oaks, near Hothfield · Estate-grown English wines and ciders in the Weald. · Price: tasting/tour per venue.

Victoria Park & Stour Valley Walk · Time: any time · Address: Jemmett Road, Ashford · Riverside park and a walkable stretch of the Stour Valley Walk. · Price: free.

Conningbrook Lakes Country Park · Time: any time · Address: Willesborough, Ashford · Lakeside walking and wildlife at a former quarry turned country park. · Price: free.

Day trips from Ashford: coast, castles and the Weald

Ashford's fast rail and motorway links make it a springboard for the whole county. For the seaside, the high-speed line reaches Folkestone (with its harbour arm and creative quarter) in minutes, while Whitstable's oyster shacks and the sandy bays of Broadstairs and Margate are an easy run along the coast. For history, Leeds Castle near Maidstone and Hever Castle near Edenbridge both run full summer programmes and gardens. And for slow-lane countryside, the High Weald around Tenterden, Biddenden and Cranbrook rewards a wander — vineyards, oast houses and village pubs at every turn.

For a single weekend, though, you don't need to travel far: Ashford's own windmill, gardens, vineyards and heritage railway make for a satisfyingly full two days.

If the weather turns: indoor ideas around Ashford

Kent copes well with rain. Ashford Designer Outlet and County Square keep families busy under cover, Willesborough Windmill's tours are largely indoors, and Chapel Down's shop, tastings and restaurant are all weatherproof. Add the Kent Cookery School for a hands-on class, Curious Brewery's taproom for a dry-day pint, and the county's museums and galleries a short train ride away, and a wet weekend needn't be a washout.

Getting around at the weekend

Ashford International is the hub: High Speed 1 reaches London St Pancras in around 38 minutes, and Southeastern services run along the Kent coast and into the Weald. A car is genuinely useful for the vineyards, Godinton and the Kent & East Sussex Railway, as some sit off the main routes; the windmill, outlet, County Square and town-centre food spots are all walkable or a short bus ride from the station.

Frequently asked questions about the weekend of 22–23 August in Ashford

What's on in Ashford on 22 and 23 August 2026? Willesborough Windmill is open for guided tours on both days, Godinton House's gardens are open for late-summer visits, and Chapel Down and the local vineyards are running tastings and tours. Add free family activities at County Square, up to 60% off at the Designer Outlet, and the Kent & East Sussex heritage railway near Tenterden.

Is 22–23 August the bank holiday weekend? No. The August bank holiday in 2026 falls on Monday 31 August, so this is the weekend before — usually a little quieter than the bank-holiday rush.

What can you do in Ashford for free? Entry to Chapel Down's shop, restaurant and vineyard walk is free, as are County Square's summer activities, Victoria Park, Conningbrook Lakes, Warren & Hoads Wood and the Stour Valley Walk. The Designer Outlet is free to enter too.

How much is Willesborough Windmill? Guided tours cost £5 for adults, £2.50 for children and concessions, and £10 for a family ticket. It's open Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays in August, roughly 2–5pm, with last entry at 4pm.

Can you visit a vineyard near Ashford? Yes. Chapel Down near Tenterden is the best-known (free entry, guided tours £20), with Nine Oaks near Hothfield and Biddenden in the Weald as strong alternatives. Booking ahead for tours is advised.

What's a good rainy-day option? The Designer Outlet and County Square are fully covered, the windmill tour is mostly indoors, and Chapel Down's tastings and restaurant are weatherproof. Kent's museums and galleries are a short train ride away.

Is Ashford a good base for a day trip? Very much so. High Speed 1 reaches London in about 38 minutes, and the Kent coast (Folkestone, Whitstable, Broadstairs), Leeds and Hever castles, and the Weald's vineyards are all within easy reach by train or car.

Follow Ashford Chronicle for daily news from Ashford and Kent — traffic, property, business and the decisions shaping the borough. Read more from Ashford Chronicle: How does the free travel pass work for Ashford families planning Kent trips in August 2026