Chiltern OpenAir Museum

Chiltern Open Air Museum occupies 45 acres at Newland Park on Gorelands Lane in Chalfont St Giles. Volunteers established the charity in 1976 to rescue historic buildings threatened with demolition, and it opened to the public in 1981, with 2026 marking its fiftieth anniversary. More than 30 reconstructed buildings stand on site, moved timber-frame by timber-frame from across the Chilterns, spanning an Iron Age roundhouse reconstruction through to a 20th-century prefab and the Henton tin chapel. A working historic farm keeps sheep, goats and chickens, and the grounds include a walled kitchen garden, a wartime 'Dig for Victory' allotment plot and woodland trails. Visitors can book onto hands-on heritage sessions covering blacksmithing, willow weaving and traditional photography, run by tutors in small groups. The museum operates as an independent charitable trust rather than a chain attraction, and won the Beautiful South Awards' Dog Friendly Business of the Year for 2020-21.