Detecting holidays

Come and detect
two thousand years
of England.

Stay on the farm you are detecting. Camping and glamping on working English land, with written permission over the fields for the length of your stay. Open to detectorists from the United States, Europe and anywhere else.

Two farms confirmed. Dates and pricing agreed one enquiry at a time.

Interested in a holiday?

Reach out today and we can check what is available.

No obligation and no deposit. We reply with availability and a price before anything is booked.

The farms

Working farms, chosen for their ground rather than their car park. Open a stay to see the accommodation, what is included and what to bring. Every stay is accommodation and the land to search; no detecting equipment is provided at any farm. Farms are named once they are happy to be, and nothing can be booked until dates are agreed.

Coming from abroad

Your detector travels as luggage

It goes in the hold like any other equipment. Bring your own digging tool and a finds pouch; a spare battery pack is worth the space.

No licence, no permit

England has no detecting licence. Permission from the landowner is the whole of it, and yours is arranged before you arrive.

Treasure is reported, not smuggled

Anything qualifying under the Treasure Act 1996 goes to the coroner within fourteen days. Objects over a certain age and value also need an export licence to leave the country. We cover both with you before you book, not at the airport.

Recorded finds are worth more

Ordinary finds are recorded with the Portable Antiquities Scheme, the national archaeological record. A recorded find has provenance and a story attached, and it does not diminish your claim to it.

The full position on finds and the law is on our finds & ethics code.

Questions

Can Americans metal detect in England?

Yes. There is no nationality restriction on metal detecting in England. What matters is permission: detecting on private land is legal with the landowner’s consent, and a visiting detectorist has exactly the same standing as a British one. You do not need a licence or a permit to detect on private land.

What is a metal detecting holiday?

A stay of several nights on a working farm where your accommodation and your permission to detect the land come together. You camp or glamp on site, you have written permission over specific fields for the length of your stay, and you detect at your own pace rather than buying a single day.

Do I need permission to metal detect in the UK?

Always. All land in the UK belongs to somebody, and detecting without the owner’s permission is trespass and potentially theft. On a FieldFinders holiday the permission is written into your booking before you arrive, covering named fields for named dates.

Can I keep what I find on a detecting holiday in England?

That depends on your search agreement and on what the object is. Ordinary finds are shared with the landowner on the terms in the agreement, which on our farms is an even split by value unless you agree otherwise. Anything that qualifies as Treasure under the Treasure Act 1996 must be reported to the coroner within fourteen days, and cannot simply be taken home.

Can I take metal detecting finds out of the UK?

Ordinary finds that are yours under the search agreement can usually travel with you, but objects over a certain age and value need a UK export licence, and Treasure cannot leave at all until the process is finished. We go through this with you before you book rather than at the airport.

Can I bring my own metal detector into the UK?

Yes. A detector is ordinary luggage and can be carried in hold baggage. Bring your own coil covers, a decent digging tool and a finds pouch; a spare battery pack is worth the space.

What is the best time of year for metal detecting in England?

Late autumn through early spring, once the harvest is in and the fields are ploughed or stubble. That is when the ground is workable, the crops are down and the soil has turned over what the season before it hid. Our holiday dates follow the farming calendar for that reason.

How much does a metal detecting holiday cost?

Pricing is being finalised with each farm and will be published before booking opens. A holiday covers your pitch or glamping unit, permission over the land for the length of your stay and the written search agreement.

Dates go to the list first

A limited number of pitches, and a season that runs when the fields are clear. Register your interest and you will hear before it goes public.

Send an enquiry

Holidays are booked here on the website, not in the app.