Just joined National Trust- where to go next?

[Alakazam8]

So we have just got membership of national trust and I’m a bit overwhelmed by the website. I’m looking for somewhere to visit that has things that will interest children that I can get to by train, so North West/North Wales for us. Would prefer a castle but have searched for one with no joy yet.
If you have membership and been to somewhere lovely in North West, or further afield as we will have some weekends away please can you recommend places for us.
Hoping to organise a day out next weekend so a bit short on planning time.
It would be really useful for us to find out which places are a hit with other families before we start working our way round some…

The NT website has a search facility. Click on days out and put in the area you are interested in. They tend to have houses rather than castles but at this time of year most locations have activities for children and they always have some sort of children’s worksheets to take them through the property. Look out for the second hand bookshops too.

We're north west and go to Dunham Massey and Tatton Park regularly. Also Speke Hall but that is smaller. In North Wales bodnant gardens is lovely as is Chirk Castle.

Usually if you’re on the website or look in the book for the North West you’ll see the name of a place & then “places nearby”.

Alternatively give the HQ a ring for advice & they’ll talk you through some suggestions.
Im a life member & it’s worth it’s weight in gold. Use your membership as much as you can. It’s a wonderful opportunity for children to learn & makes a great day out.
Food is expensive in their cafes so take picnics.
Have a lovely time.

Erddig or Bodnant gardens. I find the map function on the NT website a bit clunky and it's much easier to search for "National trust" on Google maps then click on places on route.

Thanks- did try the website but didn’t find it easy. Will look at Chirk castle so thanks for that recommendation also Dunham Massey and tatton park. Will be able to focus in on those on website so that’s a great help.

Also we worried whether the kids would enjoy Bodnant gardens but it was huge, lots of little paths to run along and explore. It had stepping stones and bridges over a stream and a "willow worm" they could run through and hide in.

Thanks for rec about using Google maps - found the website hard to navigate

Speke hall, Dunham Massy, little Morton hall. Were all favourites of mine

Fountains Abbey?

Lyme Park isn’t too far from Middlewood station. It’s got a big adventure playground.
East Riddleston Hall is close to Keighley station. There’s a natural play area with swings, slides and climbing frame plus a wild play area with den building and a mud kitchen.
Speke Hall is on the edge of Liverpool so you could probably use public transport. There are a couple of play areas, a very large maze and a woodland trail.

Chirk castle has an event on next weekend so we will head there I think. Wouldn’t have found that on the trust’s website so really glad I posted on here- thanks

Sudbury Hall museum of childhood is great for the kids. Not sure if it's too far for you though.

Tatton Park, Lyme and Dunham Massey are both fabulous - big parks, interesting houses, good playgrounds.

Little Moreton Hall - Tudor house that looks like it should have toppled over a hunted years ago!

Speke Hall in Liverpool - beautiful

Erdig - fascinating big house and grounds in Wales

Quarry Bank Mill - huge industrial mill, loud machines, apprentice house and gardens.

Biddulph Grange - interesting gardens with a fun kids woodland trail and lots of things to explore.

Have fun!

Sorry, just seen you said accessible by train. I think that crosses Sudbury off your list.

Good shouts.

I'd add in Lyme Park. Station at Disley.

What's the nearest station to Dunham? Hale or Altrincham maybe?

North Wales has Plas Newydd on Anglesey and Penrhyn Castle near Bangor too, which are both lovely. The grounds of both are impressive and I particularly liked Plas Newydd for the grounds and house story and Penrhyn for the grand house itself. We easily spent 5-6 hours at each place. I have not visited any others in the area yet. Enjoy exploring!

There's very little in NW Wales but Penrhyn Castle in Bangor (slavery, sugar & slate money) has a fab outdoor adventure muddy playground by the river, and good walks in the garden the kitchens are very well set up and interpreted & Plas Newydd on Anglesey (royal lackeys since Tudor times) has a gorgeous garden with frisbee golf and big playground in the woods.
Unless you're minted never buy lunch in the cafes bring a pack up.

If you go to Northumberland there are loads of NT places round there. Cragside is amazing - I could spend days there, Wallington is great for the kids, Gibside is good as well. Lindesfarne castle is also NT but I found that disappointing.
Near Ripon there’s Fountain’s Abbey and Brimham Rocks both of which are great.

I'll back up the picnic idea for the same reason, but I do get a cuppa, and maybe a slice of cake.

We've got our thing sorted now where my son goes off and hikes round the long trails, while DD and I do the house and formal gardens wherever we go.

We've just let our family NT membership lapse as we've been going less often as our children got older, and DD is now 18 so isn't covered on the card anyway. DD is about to leave for uni, so I asked her if there's anywhere particular she wanted to go locally in the holidays -- of course her answer was a NT place! (Cragside, in fact, which is indeed spectacular but would be very difficult to reach by train.)

We love our nt membership saves us a fortune if we had to pay each time! We often use it on long journeys as an alternative to motorway services.

Another vote for speke hall although can be noisy with plans overhead as it's right next to the airport.

Dunham massey, tatton park both good

Bodnant also good but very steep (we have a wheelchair) so wouldn't necessarily go back

Penrhyn castle lovely!

YY to Quarry bank

We’ve been to Speke hall which was lovely so looking for others- some great ideas here and will start planning our year of adventures!!

If you can manage to get to Biddulph

Next to the NT gardens, is a free country park. There is a duck pond, woods where children make dens & a valley with a waterfalls & a river. There are also toilets & a cafe.