New Place was Shakespeare's final home and the largest house he owned, purchased in 1597 and lived in during his retirement from the London stage. The house itself was demolished in 1759, but the site has been excavated and the footprint of the original building marked out in the garden, with interpretation panels explaining the layout and history. Nash's House, the adjacent Tudor building that belonged to Shakespeare's granddaughter's husband, survived and now contains a museum of the town's social history.
The main attraction is the garden. The Knott Garden is a formal Tudor garden laid out on the site of Shakespeare's orchard and kitchen garden, with knot garden patterns in clipped box hedging enclosing beds of herbs and flowers from the Elizabethan period. The Great Garden beyond is larger and more informal, with mature trees and a fountain. In summer the gardens are in full colour and the contrast between the formal geometric beds and the taller garden behind them is visually satisfying.
The archaeological excavation carried out on the site in recent years has been productive; finds including structural remains, pottery, and personal objects are displayed in the interpretation centre within Nash's House. The combined admission gives access to both the garden and the Nash's House museum.