Favourite National Trust place?

[fellyjish]

We got NT membership for Xmas and it kicks in tomorrow! I'm really excited and want to use it to the full! Where are your favourite NT places?

I'm in the South West but would like to use it as a tool to plan weekends away/visit friends etc too!

Oh and Sissinghurst & Great Dixter are well worth making a weekend of if you are remotely into gardens. They are fairly near each other on the Kent / Sussex borders so a B&B overnight means you can do both in a weekend.

I agree with Fountains Abbey, one of my favourite places. We were there at the weekend and they had a choir singing carols in the cloisters. It was fantastic. We enjoyed Tyntesfield when visiting friends in Bristol. We have also enjoyed beach days on holiday in Devon and Wales where we can use our membership for the carparks

nobody's mentioned Hidcote?! Glorious gardens and newts

Im north but fountains Abbey and cragside are both wonderful

I am also in the South West and there are loads of lovely ones!

I second the vote for A La Ronde near Exmouth - small but very quirky.

Arlington near Barnstaple is also good and has a carriage museum if that floats your boat.

Knightshayes near Tiverton is another lovely one.

Cragside. Great grounds.

Oh it gets you access to Stonehenge too!

We loved Cotehele, coleton fishacre, Killerton and Lydford Gorge.

Knightshayes, Saltram and Drogo are nice too.

Bodiam Castle is lovely

I came on to say Brimham rocks although I've noticed it's been mentioned twice already! It's a bit of a trek from the south west though!

Was just coming back to mention Stonehenge. We do Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral on the same weekend (the cathedral isn't NT though).

Waddesdon is amazing - agree with all previous suggestions for this one!

Plus not far from there, near Buckingham, is Stowe Landscape Gardens. Acres and acres of beautiful parkland, lakes, temples and follies. Stowe house is private (public school) but open on certain days of the year at additional charge.

Tyntesfield is fun

Just a note re dyrham park - it's my local and I was there today. It's lovely but they are doing loads of work on the house and they only have a handful of rooms open. We heard a few people complain as they came out that it wasn't worth it and they hadn't made it clear that so much was closed.

The grounds are lovely but I'd say at the moment not one to journey to. They are aiming to do up more by the spring/summer so try then.

I also love Avebury, especially because it's all replica so you can have a proper play with stuff.

Brownsea Island, Corfe Castle in Dorset, Ightham Mote in Kent
Lavenham Guildhall in Suffolk in fact spend some time in Lavenham village. Nearby Melford Hall in Long Melford has links with Beatrix Potter- she drew parts of the buidling and furniture in several of her stories
Anglesey Abbey and Wickham Fen in Cambridgeshire ( they are very near each other).
Blickling in Norfolk
Also, keep your membership cards with you, DS went on a water sport stag weekend in the West Country and used NT car parks for free.

Another vote for Erddig here!....amazing insight into downstairs life in a country house....& my gran & g gran were in service there so a very special place for me!

Cotehele is lovely in South West. Lots of the coast are NT in the South West.
Waddesdon is fabulous for a trip.
Belton House near Grantham is good too, really good playground if you have kids.

Stonehenge is Ehglish Heritage not NT

Waddesdon Manor
Sissinghurst castle
Wimpole Hall
Stowe

Another vote for fountains abbey, if you fancy a reasonable weekend away, try the black swan in Masham as a base... Reasonable price, excellent food especially during a seasonal event like the game festival

Lyme park and Dunham Massey x

Mottisfont Abbey
Petworth House

Clouds Hill
Thomas Hardy's Cottage
Castle Drogo
Dunster Castle
Coleridge's Cottage
Montacute House
Barrington Court

Stourhead is my personal favourite
Avebury is great. They have a museum barn, a house where you can touch everything - play billiards/dress up/read 17th century bibles - nothing is off bounds. Plus there's the stone circle and a decent pub.
Tyntsfield is alright.
Castle Drogo and the walks around dartmoor near there are amazing!

(English) National Trust members are free at Stonehenge.

Bosheston Lily Ponds