Bramall Hall is dressed for Christmas and ran a £3 elf trail Thursday to Sunday last December. Entry is £7, under-16s free; closed on bank holidays.

Bramall Hall is decorated for Christmas each December, and last year its family event was an elf trail: children searched the hall for “cheeky elves” at £3 a trail, earning a festive prize at the end. The 2026 programme has not been listed yet. Last year’s trail ran on the hall’s normal opening days from late November to the weekend before Christmas.

The hall is run by Stockport Council and sits in a free, 70-acre park, so a winter walk costs nothing even when the house is shut.

The quick answer

  • Last Christmas: the Christmas Elf Trail, £3 per trail plus adult admission, 11am to 4.30pm, Thursdays to Sundays from 27 November to 21 December 2025. No 2026 dates yet.
  • Admission: £7 adults, £5.50 concessions, under-16s free with a paying adult. Tickets are bought on the day at the visitor centre.
  • The hall is closed Monday to Wednesday and on bank holidays, which this winter means 25 and 28 December and 1 January.

Last year’s Christmas Elf Trail

In the council’s words: “The elves are back at Bramall Hall and up to their tricks again! Bramall Hall is beautifully decorated for Christmas, which means our cheeky elves have moved in once again!” Children search the rooms for the elves, “both naughty and nice”, and collect a festive prize when they finish. Tickets could be bought online or on the day at the visitor centre and shop (Stockport Council events, archived).

The council listed it for these 2025 dates:

Week Dates (2025)
1 Thu 27 to Sat 29 Nov
2 Thu 4 to Sun 7 Dec
3 Thu 11 to Sun 14 Dec
4 Thu 18 to Sun 21 Dec

The Halloween equivalent, the Witch’s Potion Trail, is already on sale for this October at the same £3 per trail, which suggests the format is settled (our October half term page has it). Last year’s elf trail appeared in the council’s events listings by 10 November.

Opening hours and prices
Hall open Thursday to Sunday, 11am to 4.30pm
Hall closed Monday to Wednesday, and bank holidays
Adult £7
Concessions (60+ and students) £5.50
Children under 16 with a paying adult Free
Leisure Key holders Free
Stables Kitchen café Mon to Sat 9.30am to 4.30pm, Sun 10am to 4.30pm

Sources: Stockport Council’s opening hours, prices and Stables Kitchen pages. Companions of disabled visitors, Art Pass holders and HHA members also go free. The hall is occasionally closed for weddings and private functions, so the council asks you to call 0161 474 2020 before travelling.

Two things to know before you go:

  • The council contradicts itself on over-60s. Its Bramall Hall landing page says “Free admission for over 60s”, while its prices page lists £5.50 for 60+. Ask at the visitor centre.
  • One room is shut. The Solar is closed for roof restoration, paid for by £1.6 million of funding for the failing roof and rainwater system, and some room displays “may look a little different” (Stockport Council).

Over Christmas 2026

Applying the hall’s published rules to this year’s calendar: open Thursday 24 December; closed Friday 25 December and Monday 28 December (both bank holidays); open Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 December, and Thursday 31 December; closed Friday 1 January 2027. The council has not published separate festive hours, so check by phone before a holiday visit.

The Stockport Explorer ticket covers Bramall Hall, Staircase House and the Air Raid Shelters at a discount; our things to do in Stockport page has the price.

Still to be confirmed

  • The 2026 Christmas trail at the hall, its dates and whether it is the elf trail again. We will check the council’s listings from late October.
  • Any festive opening changes around Christmas and New Year.

Further afield, Lyme’s house is decorated as The World at Christmas from 27 November: see Lyme Park at Christmas. For Father Christmas visits, see Santa’s grotto in Stockport.

Sources