beekeeping experience days… book now for 2024.
Click here for The Noble Bee on Trip Advisor.
We are passionate about bees, beekeeping and nature conservation and we are delighted to be able to offer you the chance to experience beekeeping for yourself, through one of our relaxed, fun and informative beekeeping experience days, run by beekeeper, Simon Noble and apprentice Chloe Harvey, from our base here at Furzedown Farm Wildlife Conservation area. It makes a wonderful gift for Christmas or a birthday.
The beekeeping experience will include:
Honey tasting - try an assortment of honeys from around the world.
A chat about the life cycle of bees - including the different roles of the bees in the hive and swarming.
A chat about beekeeping - we’ll look at the day in a life of a beekeeper and what to expect through a typical season.
We’ll take a look at what beekeeping equipment is required to keep bees.
Lunch served down in the woods by the pond.
A chat about what you can do in your own lives and in your gardens to have a positive effect on bees and other pollinating insects.
Observe a wild bee colony in our natural log observation hive.
Get hands on and take a look inside an active beehive and see what goes on with your own eyes. We’ll take a walk through the woodland to our training apiary where you’ll get to inspect your own hive.
Make your own beeswax candle.
A jar of our delicious honey.
The pocket guide 'Planting for Honey Bees' [Kindly donated by Author Sarah Wyndham Lewis and our friends at Bermondsey Street Bees in London].
Tea and Coffee station available all day.
The day will run from 10.30am and will last around 4-5 hrs including a relaxed lunch break.
Numbers are limited to 10 people per session.
There has been a slight increase in price hence the cost per person for 2025 is £120.00 [+ eventbrite booking fee]
A complimentary gift certificate can be provided upon request, if you have purchased this experience as a gift for someone.
We recently received an award from Trip Advisor, putting our beekeeping experience days in the top 10% of things to do worldwide.
If you have any special dietary requirements, please email us at least one week before the event, so that we can make necessary arrangements for you. Please send this information to: debs@thenoblebee.co.uk along with the date of the event, your name and ticket number.
Please bring wellies or ankle high hiking boots.
It is best not to wear strong perfume or aftershave. A protective bee suit will be provided. The bees you will handle are especially bred extra gentle bees.
Photos of our beekeeping experience days by Martin Noble
What previous customers thought of the day…
“We had a wonderful day with you on 31st May - it definitely exceeded expectations. It's a beautiful location, the lunch was amazing and of course it was great to get hands-on with the bees. I don't think there's anything more you could have done to improve the day and the candle and honey were a bonus. It was great having tea and coffee available on arrival (and throughout the day). 5/5 for value; I don't know how my daughter found out about you - probably by searching for activities /experiences in the area. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us and for forwarding the photos.”
“Neil and I would like to say a big thank you to Simon for a brilliant bee keeping experience day today,. We learnt so much about the bees, their habitats, and the fantastic way they go about their daily business. Amazing lunch in the woods, honey tasting, candle making and a jar of honey as well. If you get the opportunity to do it, then I strongly advise you do. Thank you Simon and thank you to our chef of the day Martin.”
“Had a great day beekeeping today with Simon Noble at 'the noble bees'. Very interesting and hands on day. Simon is very knowledgeable and passionate and knows everything bees. Even got given a jar of honey from own their bees. Just a great day”
“Thanks for our Bee experience today, it was amazing, Simon was brilliant and his lovely wife made us all a fabulous lunch. The people we met were lovey, we had such a great time. I will be recommending you to everyone. Thanks for welcoming us to you wonderful woodland.”
“My husband was given the experience as a Christmas gift and he had an amazing day! He would like thank Simon for running the session and Tina for the wonderful lunch. We're looking forward to trying the jar of honey we were given. Thoroughly recommend it - you'll BEE amazed!!”
“Just wanted to thank you for the most wonderful day. The Beekeeper experience totally exceeded our high expectations and was an absolute joy from the moment we arrived to the moment we left. We now feel so much more knowledgeable about bees. We loved tasting the honey, making the candle and inspecting the hives was the highlight of our day - an awesome experience. Lunch was simply delicious too. Such a lovely experience for a Mother and Son to share. Thank you again from both of us”
“I just wanted to thank you for giving my husband such a lovely day, he really enjoyed it and we are definitely now planning on keeping bees (if) when we manage to buy our little smallholding!”
