Abbey or priory · near Leiston · Suffolk

Leiston Abbey

Leiston Abbey is an abbey in Leiston, East Suffolk, Suffolk. It is on the official list as a Grade I listed building. 22 other places to visit are within 15 km, led by Orford Castle (14 km).

Photo: Leiston Abbey, Dave Briggs (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Where

400 m

north of Leiston

Run by

English Heritage

a national heritage body

How well known

Top 19%

#1,601 of 8,556 places we list

Warmest months

Jun–Sep

highs of 19–22°C

In brief

Abbey or priory near Leiston

Just outside Leiston

Leiston Abbey is 400 m north of Leiston. Towns near it ↓

Cared for by English Heritage

One of the places English Heritage looks after; members usually get in free. About ↓

Grade I listed building

On the official list of protected heritage; Leiston has 22 listed buildings in all, on its History page. About ↓

Written from OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, the ONS built-up areas and Met Office 1991–2020 averages.

When to go

The best months to visit

Expect highs of 19–22°C in Leiston from June to September.

Jan8° / 2°51 mm

Feb8° / 2°45 mm

Mar10° / 3°41 mm

Apr13° / 5°38 mm

May16° / 8°51 mm

Jun19° / 11°50 mm

Jul22° / 13°58 mm

Aug22° / 13°57 mm

Sep19° / 11°53 mm

Oct15° / 8°67 mm

Nov11° / 5°62 mm

Dec8° / 3°61 mm

Green months are the warmest. Typical afternoon highs and night lows in Leiston, and rain in a month. Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for Leiston. Opening times change through the year: check before you go. Leiston’s full climate →

About

Leiston Abbey

Upkeep is seen to by English Heritage. Readers can find it on Wikipedia in 3 languages.

Leiston’s listed buildings and monuments →

Type: Abbey or priory
Run by: English Heritage
Listed: Grade I listed building
Wikipedias: Covered in 3 languages
Town: 400 m north of Leiston
Official site: english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/leiston-abbey

Facts: Wikidata (CC0) and OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors).

The map

Getting your bearings

Each numbered point is one of the places listed below; Leiston Abbey is the orange one.

Towns near it

The nearest towns to Leiston Abbey

The most populous of the 8 is Leiston, at 5,919. Nearest first, every town here counts it among its places to visit.

1 · 400 m south of it

Leiston

5,919 people · 6 places to visit

2 · 2.8 km south of it

Coldfair Green

794 people · 7 places to visit

3 · 3.4 km south of it

Aldeburgh

2,423 people · 5 places to visit

4 · 3.5 km north of it

Middleton

378 people · 1 place to visit

Compare the 8 towns

Town	Where Leiston Abbey is	People	Places to visit
Leiston	400 m south of it	5,919	6
Coldfair Green	2.8 km south of it	794	7
Aldeburgh	3.4 km south of it	2,423	5
Middleton	3.5 km north of it	378	1
Westleton	4.6 km north of it	342	2
Thorpeness	4.8 km southeast of it	215	5
Kelsale	6 km west of it	618	1
Saxmundham	6.4 km west of it	4,778	2

Make a day of it

Pair Leiston Abbey with these

Around it, within 15 km, lie 22 more, including 5 museums, a castle and a historic house.

Castle · English HeritageOrford Castle14 km away · 31K visitors a year (2017)2

Historic houseGlemham Hall11 km away 3

MuseumParham Airfield Museum12 km away 4

MuseumSailors' Reading Room14 km away 5

PierSouthwold Pier14 km away 6

MuseumDunwich Museum7.2 km away 7

MuseumAlfred Cory Museum12 km away 8

MuseumSouthwold Museum14 km away

Within 15 km, close and well known first. Numbers match the map.

Leiston Abbey, answered

Where is Leiston Abbey?

Leiston Abbey is 400 m north of Leiston, Suffolk.

What is Leiston Abbey?

Abbey in Leiston, East Suffolk, Suffolk, England, UK.

Who runs Leiston Abbey?

English Heritage, so members usually get in free; check opening times before you go.

When is the best time to visit Leiston Abbey?

June to September are the warmest months in Leiston, with afternoon highs of 19–22°C (Met Office 1991–2020 averages).

Is Leiston Abbey a listed building?

Yes: Grade I listed building.

What else is there to see near Leiston Abbey?

Within 15 km: Orford Castle (14 km), Glemham Hall (11 km), Parham Airfield Museum (12 km) and Sailors' Reading Room (14 km).

Places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence) and Wikidata (CC0), placed in the ONS 2022 built-up area (Open Government Licence v3.0). Visitor counts are the latest Wikidata gives, with their year.

Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).

Photo credits (9)

Leiston Abbey: Dave Briggs, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Orford Castle: Chris Gunns, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Glemham Hall: John Goldsmith, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Parham Airfield Museum: John Goldsmith, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Sailors' Reading Room: Alexander Williams, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Southwold Pier: Graham Horn, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Dunwich Museum: Paul Shreeve, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Alfred Cory Museum: John Winfield, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Southwold Museum: Jim Osley, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.