Day to Day Events

Wells Film Centre - From Friday 17th October to 23rd Thursday October

Afternoon Tea at The Bishop's Table

• Available 7 days a week • Food served 9.30am - 3pm   Enjoy a delicious Afternoon Tea in Wells from The Bishop’s Table Café, overlooking the stunning Palace buildings and Croquet Lawn. Your Afternoon Tea includes a fruit scone with clotted cream, a slice of cake from our counter selection, a choice of sandwich, and a pot of tea. Add a glass of prosecco for £6.95   Please book your Afternoon Tea at least 24 hours in advance by calling 01749 988111 and selecting option 3 for the Bishop’s Table Restaurant. Please note that food is served until 3pm. Please present your email confirmation (either on your phone or as a printout) at the café counter upon arrival.   Book Here Want to treat a loved one to a delicious Afternoon Tea in the stunning surroundings of The Bishop's Palace? We're now offering vouchers - Perfect for treating someone special. Click here to find out more.

Mendip Rocks 2025 - Throughout October

'Sparkle' Christmas Illuminations at The Bishop's Palace

Selected Dates from 29th November – 4th January 2026 (please visit our website for dates/closures)

Book Your Slot: https://bit.ly/46CxuvB 

Step into the magic of Christmas as our much-loved Illuminations return for 2025, bigger, brighter, and more enchanting than ever before. Sparkle transforms our historic Palace and RHS partner inner gardens into a dazzling wonderland of light, colour, and festive joy.

With added dates, extra lights, seasonal refreshments, live music and a beautifully decorated Palace it’s the ultimate Christmas lights experience in Somerset.

New for 2025:
•    We’re delighted to welcome exciting additions to our Christmas Illuminations this year, including, a mesmerising lantern tree, illuminated woodland, additional lighting along pathways, and a wider and longer light tunnel.
•    We’ve added more illumination dates so you can enjoy the Palace festivities for longer, including 1st – 4th January, and more dates throughout December (excluding 24th-26th, and 31st December).
•    Tickets to our Christmas Illuminations evenings are now booked in entry time slots of 5pm, 6pm, and 7pm.

Christmas Illuminations Dates & Timings
•    Sparkle Christmas Illuminations and Palace interior decorations will take place on selected dates (see table on our website) from 5pm – 8pm.
•    Last entry is 7.30pm and the site will close at 8pm.
•    You can enter the gardens from the beginning of the start time you have booked and can stay in until close.

Seasonal Food & Drink
•    The Bishop’s Table will be releasing a special Christmas Illuminations menu (more information on that soon!), and throughout the Sparkle illumination evenings, you can enjoy festive refreshments from the Apple Store (located in the Inner Gardens), Horse Box (for takeaway treats), and the café (for a cosy escape from the cold).

Live Music & Festive Atmosphere
•    Throughout the month, enjoy live performances from local choirs and music groups.
•    Plus, the rooms of our medieval Palace building will be decked out in Christmas finery with seasonal foliage from the Palace gardens creating stunning adornments to complement the historic interiors. Visitors to the Entrance Hall will be greeted with a roaring fire and invited to explore the rooms of the Palace, which will also include the return of the popular local Schools Eco-Exhibition.

Christmas Illuminations Tickets
We’re delighted to say that our Christmas Illumination ticket prices have stayed the same for two years running!

•    Adults: £10
•    Children (5–17): £6
•    Friends of the Palace: Free

Please note that Annual Tickets (green or white passes), RHS Memberships and Historic Houses cards are not valid for this event. Tickets can be purchased online or on the day.

If you have booked a Friends of the Palace ticket, please bring your Friends/Member card and present it on arrival.

Sparkle Christmas Illumination tickets are booked in time slots, so please take care when selecting your desired visiting time.

Book Your Slot: https://bit.ly/46CxuvB 

Select a day and time slot to arrive – take note of restrictions or extra entertainment on some days. For large group or coach party bookings please contact our admin team via groups@bishopspalace.org.uk. Sparkle will go ahead in all weathers unless it is deemed unsafe for the site to be open – customers will be contacted to select another date or given a refund if Palace Enterprises Ltd has to cancel an event.