The 2025 National Rally will be held over the weekend of 16-17 August at the Beamish Museum in County Durham. This is an open-air museum on a vast 350 acre site, telling the story of life in the North East with reconstructed buildings and exhibits from the 1820s through to the latest 1950s town.
The Rally is open to all Wolseley owners and enthusiasts, including Members of other classic car clubs. Well behaved dogs are welcome in the outdoor museum areas, but there will be restrictions in some indoor spaces. Multiple entries are welcomed – please complete one form per vehicle entered. Non-exhibiting entrants are also welcome, but as the Museum tries to park modern vehicles out of sight of visitors to maintain the historical time period, very limited parking for non-classic vehicles will be available in the Staff Car Park next to the Events field. This will be prioritised for Blue Badge Holders plus towing vehicles and trailers. Please state if trailer space is required and give the registration number of the tow vehicle on the application form.
Classic cars will be displayed in the Events field adjacent to the museum display areas on both Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 August, with the main static display set out in rally classes being held on the Sunday from 10.00am to 4:30pm. Access to the Museum will be via a separate entrance direct into the Events field – full directions will be in the Rally Programme. PLEASE NOTE: The Rally entrance will be open from 8:30 – 11:00 am ONLY on both days. Later arrivals in modern or classic vehicles will have to park in the Museum car park and walk through to the Event Field.
Drive your pre-1960 car through the Beamish “towns”!! – The recent addition of the 1950s town allows cars registered pre-1960 to be offered the opportunity to drive in convoy for about 10-15 minutes through the site at set times on either day, on completion of a separate Application Form and mandatory attendance at a 10:15 am safety briefing at Beamish – all at no extra charge. Vehicles can pause for a photograph opportunity outside the Co-op but must return to the Events field. The number of vehicles allowed to drive through the site is limited to 30 each day: 15 at 11:00 am and a further 15 at 2:00 pm, so please state which day and time is preferred. Those wishing to take part must be able to arrive on site by 10 am on whichever day they are booked for the driving opportunity. The application form to take part will be forwarded to those who request it on the Rally Application form. The form should be returned as soon as possible to the Beamish Museum for their approval before 23 June 2025. Beamish Museum require all drivers who wish to participate to submit copies of their vehicle insurance and driving licence.
The Rally fee of £20 will admit the car and driver across both days and covers all admin expenses including UK postage of Rally Packs, the Rally Programme and souvenir slate coaster (issued at the Rally). Any passengers can be booked at £10 per person (all adults and children over 5 years), which also covers museum admission on both days. No charge for children under 5 years. This offers excellent value compared to the standard museum admission charges. Attendees holding Annual Beamish passes which include the rally dates would not need to book Beamish entry for the Rally weekend, but will still need to pay £10 for the Rally entry fee. Please advise if this applies to anyone in the rally booking. We cannot order or extend current Annual Passes..
Other nearby attractions:
Tanfield Railway at Old Marley Hill, Gateshead NE16 5ET will be running a 6-mile round trip Heritage Steam train ride on Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 August. Tickets are bookable online at a 10% saving but there is so much to see at Beamish that the two rally days could easily be filled there, therefore no organised Road Run is planned this year.
The National Trust property Gibside at Hillhead Road, Wrekenton NE16 6BG is open 10 am to 5 pm daily in August so this could be an option for those extending their stay in the area.
Accommodation:
BEAMISH PARK HOTEL NOW FULLY BOOKED!
The hotel is located at Beamish Burn Road, Marley Hill NE16 5EG, it is an independent hotel approximately 2 miles from the Rally entrance to Beamish Museum and will be the base for the 2025 National Rally weekend.
HOWEVER – there is still room for non residents to join us for the main rally dinner and/or the Sunday evening Buffet , see below!
Alternative accommodation is available at their sister hotel, The Gibside Hotel, Front St, Whickham NE16 4JG. This hotel is 3.5 miles north of Beamish Park and offers standard double rooms including breakfast at £116 on Saturday 16 August, £112 per night for Friday 15 or Sunday 17 August. Deluxe rooms are available at £10 per room per night extra. Telephone 0191 488 9292 to book.
Rally Meals at Beamish Park Hotel:
The Rally Dinner will be served in the Tanfield Suite, Beamish Park Hotel at 7:00 for 7:30 pm on Saturday 16th with a choice of 2 or 3 courses at £37/£43 respectively, which includes tea/coffee. Click here to download the Rally dinner menu!
A post-rally Hot and Cold Buffet will be served in the Garden Room at Beamish Park Hotel at 6:00 pm on Sunday 17th, price £22 per person. Click here to download the post-rally buffet menu!
The bar will remain open on all evenings for drinks and beverages.
Both meals will be open to non-residents and should be booked and pre-paid through the Wolseley Register application. Menu options are published in Wolseley World and above on the club website. Choices can be made on the online Rally Application Form, hard copies of which were included in UK copies of issue 233 of Wolseley World and which can be downloaded below.
Please mention when booking accommodation if meals on other evenings are required. These will be payable direct to the hotel. Some ground floor hotel rooms have parking spaces right outside the room.
Camping/Caravanning:
Beamish Museum are unable to offer camping or caravanning on site. However, nearby Beamish Holiday Park, Money Hills, DH9 0RY is a commercial campsite offering a range of rental accommodation as well as touring and camping pitches. Tel: 0191 370 1776 or Email: info@beamishholidaypark.co.uk .
There is also a possibility of FREE camping for tents only at Tanfield Railway, Old Marley Hill, Gateshead NE16 5ET over our rally weekend with limited facilities on site. Please contact the Events Team if this would be of interest. Meals could be taken at Beamish Park Hotel which is less than a mile from the Railway.
Glamping:
Two Glamping sites less than 2 miles from the Rally entrance to Beamish Museum had accommodation available around our Rally dates when checked in early January:
1) Beamish Glamping, Woodland View, Beamish DH9 6RJ offers 4 restored vintage Railway Carriages with private decking & hot tubs. One and 2 bedroom options available for 2 or 3 nights ranging from £330 to £599 per stay. Please mention Wolseley Register. Email: beamishglamping@gmail.com. Tel: Peter: 07708 720701 or Julie: 07515 699110.
2) Alma Meadow Glamping, West Pelton, Stanley DH9 6SY appears to offer Glamping Pods at £100 per night for 2 persons in mid-August. Email: almameadowglamping@gmail.com. Tel: 07443 102301
Booking:
Booking the 2025 National Rally can be done by completing the online form below, and then paying through our online shop, or if required, a paper application form can be downloaded here.
Please note: EVERYONE wishing to attend the rally MUST complete the relevant parts of the form, even if they are not bringing a car to exhibit, or staying at the Beamish Park. This will enable us to know who is joining us, and who requires rally packs.
PLEASE NOTE: Ensure that there are no validation errors in your completed form and that it has sent successfully!
NOW CLICK HERE to go to the online shop to select your purchases and to pay.
Entries received by 8 June 2025 will appear in the Rally Programme. These and the pre-booked Beamish passes will be posted to UK entrants w/c 21 July 2025 and the Programme emailed to Overseas entrants who can collect Beamish passes on arrival. Souvenir Welsh slate rally coasters can be collected at the Rally – one per rally entry.
Further updates will be published in Wolseley World and posted on this website. All enquiries to Jenny and Graham Ryder 0121 445 1872 or email EventsTeam@wolseleyregister.co.uk
