We had a real treat recently with our trip to Stourhead which is a National Trust estate with huge gardens and house. We won a family ticket which was a thrill in itself and we wanted to go somewhere that we hadn’t previously heard of.
My OH and I had a look through the national trusts site. With our need to have somewhere; family friendly, a long walk and a good house to have a nose around, coupled with somewhere within 1 to 2 hrs drive, we settled on Stourhead in Wiltshire. It seemed to have all the elements that would suit us. It does state that no balls are to be taken for the kids and I can understand that they don’t want a football to go hurtling into all their beautiful plants and flowers.
We packed a good old family picnic in the morning and set out on our trip. It didn’t take too long to get there from our home in Dorset, just over an hour. Our prize ticket did work OK. I’m always a little worried when using a voucher or something that ‘the computer says no’ or there is a problem with that day or time being excluded. Everything was fine though.
The house is stunning and you can see from this view looking up from the gardens that it is framed really well by the care that is taken over the gardens. you can also see by the dark clouds that rain was a feature of our day too!
The literature and the information around the house charts the lives of the last family to have Stourhead, parents Henry and Alda Hoare and their only son Harry. The family were devoted to each other and to Stourhead. Behind the public rooms used for entertaining and shared with visitors were the intimate family spaces where the family could relax and be themselves.
As you move around the family home, you follow in the family’s footsteps from their arrival and through the war years. Henry and Alda were devastated when Harry was killed in World War 1. They gave Stourhead to the National Trust in 1946.
In the playrooms there were dressing up areas for the children to try on clothes from the era that the family were in residence. Our boys had some fun in there. It’s a good break if you are doing the tour in the house with children as they can let off a little steam without worrying that they will upset anyone.
There is also a picture quiz where they have to go round and find pictures of dogs in different paintings around the house. The boys love a bit of competition between themselves so it was another task to keep them occupied.
So much care and dedication was put into the gardens by the family, it was such a labour of love for them.
“The greens should be ranged together in large masses as the shades are in painting: to contrast the dark masses with light ones, and to relieve each dark mass itself with little sprinkling of lighter greens here and there.“
Dogs are welcome across Stourhead’s countryside areas all year round. They are welcome in the landscape garden from March-October after 4pm, after 3pm in November and all day, every day from December-February.
The kitchen gardens were in full bloom. The plants were massive and growing so well. I would of loved to chatted with one of the gardeners to get some tips but I didn’t manage to. In one of my posts where my OH made my pallet garden you can see what we have managed at home. I’m really chuffed with what we have managed on a small scale and for free! My dream would be to have a huge garden devoted to fruit and veg.
The visit was wonderful and I think the rain added to the day in ways that surprised me. There were times we had to stop and take shelter under some of the huge trees or hide under the arches. In those times we felt some more of the magic of Stourhead.
Have you been there or visited other walks that you would like to share? I’d love to hear about it.
Wow; this place looks lovely. The picture of the building through the trees and bushes is particularly stunning! This makes me want to start planning a day out straight away! Thank you for linking up with #tacticaltuesdays
Wow, what great photos. Sounds like a fab family day out! #tacticaltuesday
Seems like a lovely place to explore! We have some NT places closer to us which we like to visit, such as Sissinghurst, Scotney Castle and Bodiam. I like the way you’ve pointed out that the rain wasn’t all bad. We’ve had a couple of similar experiences, where sheltering from the rain – or stepping out into it! – made it all a bit more memorable 🙂x #TacticalTuesdays
Beautiful place and what stunning gardens. love national trust properties #tacticaltuesdays
This looks like a beautiful place to visit. I don’t think I’ve ever actually been to somewhere like this before.
These gardens look beautiful.
What beautiful pictures – I have been there too and confirm that it is a superb place to visit both inside and outside.
It looks lovely. So nice to read about your fabulous day out.
Thank you, lovely to have you pop by and comment:)
This does look a good day out. I remember how much my daughter enjoyed following paths in big gardens and finding a summerhouse to sit in, and stepping stones over ponds.
these are beautiful pictures!
Wow, what a lovely place, must add it to my list of where to go!
Such an adorable place
I used to love visiting Stourhead when i lived nearby. They allowed me to bring my dog into the gardens too which was nice as we could spend all day there.
Ahh you know it well then, beautiful place.
I really like how the location is dog friendly.
Yes, I’ve found most of the places are really great for the family including dogs ?
I have never been there, due to distance, however we have some stunning houses and gardens up here in Northumberland, both cragside and wallington have stunning houses and gardens and gibside has some bautiful walks, we are spoilt for choice.
Northumberland is beautiful:)
That looks a great day out
Oh, lovely. The chance for the children to dress up is a good idea. Thanks for the review.
Oh yay for winning a ticket, I like the interactive nature of some if the national trusts houses, fun things for kids always important. The grounds and house looks stunning. Well done for a good day out!!
Thank you for linking up to the #familyfunlinky
Thanks Karen:)
Beautiful photos, I would love a fruit and veg garden too 😉 #pointshoot
That looks like a stunning national trust site, gotta love NT!!
Thanks so much for linking up with #kcacols. We hope you can join us next time.
This place looks amazing. I love all the child friendly things to do. I think this is probably within 2 hours from us so I will have to add it to our list.
#KCACOLS
Back again for another visit with you, from #KCACOLS xoxo
Thanks for stopping by again 🙂 x
It is beautiful there. I love going to places like this and having a good walk around.
#FamilyFun
This looks like a great place to visit! We love our local National Trust sites and visit them quite often! #PointShoot
Thanks, I love them, it’s amazing how much work goes into keeping them going.
What a stunning location. I also worry when using free tickets or things we’ve purchased online and always breath a sigh of relief when we are inside. I love the dressing up costumes and that door is stunning ? Thank you for linking up to #PointShoot ?
I love National Trust properties and this one just looks SO beautiful. #KCACOLS
Oh yes it’s beautiful:)
Wow this place looks absolutely stunning! Well done on winning the family ticket, it always feels great, doesn’t it? I would be the same as you when it comes to using a voucher too – always nervous that it’s not going to work. We have one such voucher to use in a couple of weeks, so fingers crossed, ‘the computer won’t say no’!
#PointShoot
Good luck with yours too:) thanks so much for stopping by and commenting, Mainy
This looks like a lovely place to go, and a free family ticket too! Win Win! #mondaystumble xo
It was a fab day and being free was a real treat.
Beautiful. I bet they didn’t let you take photos inside, right? I like visiting some of the old grand estates and especially the castles too. #KCACOLS