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Tour the Biltmore Estate
- December 5, 2008
- Rated 5 of 5 by
weeblewobble46 from Marietta, Georgia
The Biltmore Estate has two tiers of tickets during the Christmas season. The first allows a Candlelight tour of the mansion and a grounds entry the next day. This entry will allow a tour of the deer park, farm and winery. The second tier of tickets allows all the previous listed events, plus daylight entry into the mansion. If you can afford the difference in price, go for the daylight tour also. The crowds are not quite as crushing and you can take the time to really see the details of the woodwork and carvings.
Be sure to wear comfortable clothing that you can remove and carry if you get too warm in the house. You will be climbing several sets of stairs - some very narrow and some very wide - to tour the four stories in the mansion (five if you include the basement). There is a small elevator for those in wheelchairs, but strollers are not allowed for the little ones.
There is a headset available for rent that will describe the rooms as you pass through them. If you don't want to go that route, the booklet that is available at the entry will give a brief explantion of the areas.
The gardens, winery, deer park and farm will take up the remainder of the day as you drive along the winding road and admire the beautiful scenery. Bicycle rentals and carriage rides are also available.
Be sure to stop in the garden shop and see the free demonstration on wreath decorating. You can learn to make a wreath for every season and hints to make the holidays a decorating delight.
From journal Christmas at Biltmore Estates
Editor Pick
Biltmore Estate, Ashville, North Carolina
Biltmore is the largest private residence in the US, I've been told. It's a castle, based on French chateaux. It was built by George Vanderbilt in the 1890s. He was the grandson of Cornelius Vanderbilt, the railroad and shipping magnate. The house and grounds will leave you speechless. Anyway, we had lunch in what were the stables and then went on the tour. I had been there before, but the top floor of the house had only been open since 2005, so that was new to me.
The place was so large that to bring in supplies, the Vanderbilts had a railway line built right up to the front door. Also, it was a state of the art building when it was built. It had one of the first elevators installed (it has four enormous floors, so that's very helpful) and had running water and working electricity all the way through the building. It has over 43 bathrooms, built at a time when most houses didn't have indoor bathrooms. It has a bowling alley, one of the oldest in the country and an indoor swimming pool with original underwater lighting. The room was built to fit a ceiling of an old church. The ceiling is made up of painted canvas that was rolled up and shipped from Europe. It's beautiful. Linda liked Mrs. Vanderbilt's room best. The walls and furniture were covered in beautiful yellow and purple fabric. It was gorgeous. Even the servants quarters were nice. I'd hate the work, but the lodging wasn't bad.
There are no interior pictures of Biltmore allowed.
From journal Biltmore Estate, Ashville, North Carolina
Biltmore Estate
- March 9, 2008
- Rated 4 of 5 by
Valerie_C from Lawrenceville, Georgia
We visited Biltmore Estate on a rainy day. This was the first time we'd been to Biltmore and we were somewhat disappointed. Due to the rain, almost all of the activities were canceled and the only things left were regular house tours (rooftop tours were canceled).
We'd pre-paid for a carriage ride, which we were informed was canceled when we picked up our tickets. Well, the canceled it, but they didn't refund it - we had to request that. So, if you pre-paid for any activities, make sure to ask the ticket desk for any cancellations or changes, 'cause they won't tell you without being prompted.
I've read a lot of reviews stating that you can't visit all of Biltmore in just one day - well you sure can if it's raining and there's not much to do. There don't seem to be any "rainy day alternatives." Here's what you can do during the rain:
*Tour the grounds by car, then foot. You can drive through much of the grounds to find parking lots or convenient paved pull-off areas. Take a raincoat, umbrella and boots and get out walking. Check out the waterfall at Bass Pond, the walled garden, the esplanade in front of the house, etc. We drove the entire property twice, just taking pictures for a while.
*Check out the Farm & Winery. This is where you'll find the horses you can't ride due to rain. You'll also see sheep, goats, chicken and donkeys. I can't review the winery because we didn't visit it. No one in our group was at all interested in this area of Biltmore.
*Shop. Actually, I was a little disappointed in the shopping at Biltmore. There are a lot of shops all over the property, but many of them sell the same things. In each one you can get key chains and magnets and a very few other small items. Otherwise much of the offerings are high-end knickknacks or home furnishings. And most of it's expensive and useless. I really had a hard time finding souvenirs for my family. There was a candy store, christmas store and toy store.
*Eat. There are multiple restaurants on the property, as well as many snack stands. The downside is that most of these eateries aren't open until 11am. Eat breakfast before you arrive and don't plan to eat until lunch. Also, expect to spend some money. We ate at the Stable Cafe, which was one of the middle priced restaurants, and a basic burger cost $10.
*The House. This is the one place that still has paid activities available. There was a house tour, though the rooftop tour was canceled. If you don't want a guided tour you can rent an audio tour or follow a self-guided brochure tour. Take your time and enjoy - there's a lot to see, from the Vanderbilt's bedrooms to the basement and servant's quarters. Also, take a look out the windows for some great views.
So, if possible, go on a sunny day. If you can't (like during my visit), take advantage of few activities available. In the end, we still found our visit to be enjoyable, but would rather it hadn’t rained.
From journal SC, NC trip
Editor Pick
Biltmore Estate
- March 2, 2007
- Rated 3 of 5 by
Jaysour from Maryville, Illinois
During our vacation to the Gatlinburg area, we put aside a day to go to Asheville, NC to visit the famous Biltmore Estates, located about 2.5 hours from Gatlinburg. I must say the drive there was picturesque to say the least with mountains on each sides of the road most of the way.
I will preface by saying to try and get discount tickets either from a website or from eBay. We did that and saved about 15 bucks per ticket which are quite expensive.
The parking area is quite a walk to the actually estates, however, the walk through the nature trails are very serene and open up to a glorious view of the entire front area of Biltmore Estates. It's a perfect photo op.
The actually mansion itself has a self guided tour by way of a headset or you can read the many plaques throughout each room describing its story. The place was truly majestic and very elegant to say the least. The tour is laid out nicely and will take about 2 hours or so to tour the entire area. I will warn those with small children that it is all steps so strollers will cause you to use your arm muscles to carry up and down the spiral staircases. They do have an old, small elevator, however, they were not always monitored by employees.
They also have an attached courtyard with gift shops, a restaurant, and a small food stand selling hot dogs, and sausages along with chips and sodas. The restaurant was packed and the food court had limited seating with a large crowd gathering. I was somewhat disappointed in the eating area. We had to wait for 30 minutes until a table opened and it was ballpark prices on the food as well.
After lunch we proceeded down to the Winery which was about another 1 mile drive from the estate. The winery was a pleasant surprise and very calming compared to the hustle and bustle of the entrance to the mansion itself. We were able to taste several of the Biltmore wines and take home a bottle or two for ourselves. The employees at the winery were extremely nice and even gave us tips of what to see on the way back to Gatlinburg.
We were lucky enough to visit Biltmore during the opening of a small petting zoo. The kids loved to see and pet a variety of animals from horses to sheep. And the people there were more than happy to talk about the animals and allow us to pet and interact with all of them.
As we left Biltmore I was torn about my experience. It certainly is a place to witness in person, however, it is not something I would go back again and again to see. As with all places, there could be improvements: Lower ticket prices, more seating, and better selection/price of lunch items.
From journal Gatlinburg Worth the Drive
Wine Tasting at the Biltmore Winery
- November 25, 2006
- Rated 5 of 5 by
STLUCIELADY from PORT ST LUCIE, Florida
The wine tasting at the Biltmore Estate is not only fun but a trip back in time. The winery was originally the cattle barn for the estate. It is a wonderful structure. It starts with a short movie and then the walking tour begins. This is a family event. Children are welcome to join in the fun with a grape juice tasting. The tour concludes at the wine tasting bar. There are several wines to try and everyone was satisfying. Not to mention the grape juice was also great. If you're not ready for the party to end, there is a nice bar and restaurant in the winery. During the summer you can eat outside under the grape vines and enjoy the entertainment. Winery tour is not to be missed!
From journal Biltmore Estate