To ask if you went to NT properties as a child...

[LisaJool]

And if you think they made a difference to you?
Went to my first NT stately home today, and judging by admission prices I can see why NT is often trotted out on MN as being very middle class. Forty minute house tour which was great (for me), but not convinced it would be enjoyable for young children.
The grounds, whilst vast, weren't much better than (free) parks and there was no play equipment, so again, not sure it's a great thing for dc to look forward to. Despite being in the middle of nowhere, a lot of the other visitors were mums with several dc, and I sort of wondered what the appeal was? Why would you pay to walk around a park when you can go to a free park that offers better facilities?
I do realize the memberships work out much cheaper, but still I'm rather perplexed about the appeal. Is being a NT member a status thing?

We have family membership purely for the walks / playgrounds - never ever go in the houses.

however, Christmas at Waddesdon is superb and so worth the membership .

All the time & on every holiday (all in UK). Plus various castles & churches - I could spot linenfold panelling at 20 places! Usually enjoyed it, & sparked a lifelong love of history. My parents made many mistakes back in the 1970s but, actually, I think it was right to expand children's horizons, and thank goodness it wasn't all dumbed down theme parks and the like back then.

Yes, we went as children, sometimes it was because my Dad was entertaining/hosting colleagues from abroad as he worked for a Malaysian country. The visitors wanted to see bit of quintessential England and it didn't offer that. I enjoyed it, especially in the Summer, we lived in London and we visited NT homes and gardens in the countryside so it was a bit more pleasant than my local sw London urban park. Playgrounds in the 80s 90s in most of London except Central London were not very thrilling!

I think English Heritage is better value with young children. As a rule of thumb, NT is fancy houses and EH is fun ruins/castles. I got taken to both as a child, but more EH, and the advantage is that you can often set children free to run and explore. For example, we took DD to Rievaulx a few weeks ago, and it was beautiful for us as adults to saunter around looking at pretty scenery, but they'd laid on a pumpkin trail for children, and it was absolutely fantastic for hide-and-seek - you're allowed to race about, hide behind walls, climb over things, etc.

I would say, if in doubt, look for EH membership first.

It’s not a status thing - it’s a nice day out. We went a lot as children - I found it a bit dull sometimes, but I got really in to history, so ended up loving it! Very atmospheric and gives you a good appreciation of the history of the country - especially nowadays with more of a focus on the lives of the servants.

The houses usually have huge gardens, woods and often playgrounds, and they’re trying to make them more family friendly all the time. Actually, they’re being criticized quite a bit now for being too keen on the cafes and running Peter Rabbit trails while not focusing as much on the heritage and architecture!

If you have one nearby with lots of land to play in it’s worth being a member, but if you don’t have one nearby and heritage isn’t your thing, then maybe it’s not for you. But we like them and we take DS.

I loved going to NT properties as a child, but then I’ve always loved history and my grandmother was a historian so she’d tell spectacular stories of the places we were visiting.

my DS, 5, has very extensive SEN but also loves it. Mainly the old castles though as he loves climbing up the spiral steps and peering into dark corners etc.

Me and my sister used to like playing in the gardens and I did like the inside of houses: my parents liked the gardens and I half wonder if the appeal was also the cafes and available toilets from when I was younger and back then parks weren’t like they are now (at least where I grew up).
Now I would say the appeal when I take my DC is the change of scenary for a walk as we’ve been to our local parks a million times over

I didn't go as a kid. We live in a part of the world with some truly spectacular NT properties, which were big enough to support full day-trips without kids getting bored, and decided on membership and frequent visits.

DD has recently left for uni. Before she went, we asked her if she'd like to do anything special, and she wanted to re-visit her favourite NT property... and recently she told me that she has wonderful, happy, memories of exploring NT estates. Felt like we'd made a good decision!

I went as a child, and they were okay but often a bit boring. We're members now though and find it well worth it - lots close enough to us for a day out are beautifully decorated at Christmas and the membership for the year is not much more than the cost of many Christmas events. We've also been to Halloween events with properties decorated for Halloween and actors dressed up telling stories. Many have really excellent play areas, and in school holidays there's often activities for the kids like making candles, scavenger hunts, making flowers crowns etc etc. We do a lot of UK holidays and so get probably about 20 - 30s days out a year from it. There are plenty of properties that are different from the standard stately home too - we've been to a lighthouse, a cotton mill, an old photographers studio. There definitely are some that are still dull for kids but it's easy to figure out what is worth visiting from the website.

Company not country.

I have amazing memories going to castles and historical sites, they used to have medieval days. I liked the park ones less. Went on to do history degree!

Yes we used to go. I quite enjoyed some of them. Not the ones that were basically furniture collections, but the ones that were maybe a bit spooky or steeped in social history. Kitchens and below stairs were always my favourite places. I think my love of walled gardens dates back to childhood too.

I'm a NT member now, but mainly for a few fairly local parkland properties and free parking in the Lake District.

We were members and I seem to remember most of the places had a playground which is all I cared about. We also used to go to Fountains Abbey in N Yorks a lot (our nearest property) which we liked because it had big grounds.

I don't remember going to stately homes as a child because there weren't memberships like there are now, I don't think? We went to Bowood House once a year as a massive treat. Otherwise we went for lots of walks.

I go a lot now. Never pay admission, membership is good value.

I think of it as being for well off people, as you need a car to get to them usually and cars are very expensive.

My ex mother in law lived in a big house in Surrey and had a car and had NT membership and took us to some, back in the day. I liked them, perhaps as a child I would have as they have lots of space to run wild in.

We went loads as children. It was a compromise as my Dad likes architecture and history, my Mum plants and us children could run around and make noise. It was an improvement on going on a walk (perhaps via an interesting church or geological feature) or to a museum (no option for running around or making noise). We never went to parks as they were full of people and certainly nothing like a theme park or bowling alley.
I did have membership for a couple of years in my 20s when I lived London as I do now like historic buildings and there are several in and around London.
We moved out of London when DC1 was born and have had membership pretty much continuously since. It was great when the kids were little as several friends did too and it was an easy & cheap day out with clean loos!

We have membership that my parents kindly pay for. I love taking our toddler to our local ones as they are huge and we can roam safely for ages.

I am terrified of dogs and have had help trying to overcome it but I don't feel confident in dealing with dogs in our local parks where, unfortunately, a lot of dog owners seem to think it's OK to let their dog run up to us. Most NT places require dogs to be on short leads if they are allowed in.

Not bothered about the stately home aspect though.

Our family was gifted membership for a couple of years when I was a teenager and I enjoyed it.

We became members probably about 8 years ago and love going as a family. Going to the local parks is ok but usually it means we spend a couple of hours sat on a bench watching the children, and my teenager refuses to come with us as it's boring and he might see someone he knows.

However we have really fun proper family days out at national trusts, lovely peaceful walks where we mess around, chat to each other and either take a picnic or have tea & cake there. Sometimes the kids learn something about the history but often we just do the grounds. A lot of the places are just stunning and the children appreciate that too.

We are NT members-went to lots with DC.
They have grown up being interested in architecture, history and enjoy the gardens and surroundings.

DS (24) gave his GF a NT membership for christmas and they love exploring the different properties-really nice day out.

I think they all appreciated the exposure as children and we enjoyed the outings as a family

I'm not quite your target audience - I didn't even know what the NT was as a child, I joined once I had small children I wanted to explore the outdoors with.

I think they're quite variable as a family day out (and obviously you never know that really until you've turned up to try). Some of them have great wild grounds where the DC can roam and I can find the sort of peace and tranquility that none of the free parks I know provide. Some of them are dog free and then I know I won't be cleaning dog shit off anyone's shoes later 🥳 Some have really well thought out children's trails or playgrounds. Some are historically or culturally interesting for me and I make the DC tolerate them for my sake. And some do have too much manicured lawn and are vaguely stressful and not quite the blissful day out I'd envisaged.

Cliveden for eg is wonderful as a family day out. Ham House is nice with my thoughtful introverted older child but my more rambunctious smaller child doesn't really get it.

Yup went a lot as a child. It's partly what sparked my interest in historic buildings and land management which led to my now career.
We were and still are HE members too - the kids love the castles!
Also NT do massive slices of cake in their cafes with the benefit of staff discount when my DH worked for them. What's not to love!

I now have WWC and RSPB memberships as my children live birdwatching. We can't afford a car to get to any of their sites except two we can get trains to, but they're lovely places.

Yes, I did. They were nice places and I liked them. There was a particular syatrly home/park we took our dc to quite often which they loved. They didn't 'make a difference' to us any more than going to any other place we liked, but yes I guess it's quite a middle-class activity!

Never as a child. We have family membership now but we only really visit the big "posh houses" a couple of times a year. We are bigger users of the footpaths, carparks and open land they maintain (including our favourite beach in Wales)

It's a cheap way of entertainment with a child. Also great toilets if you travelling . Nt membership that is. Never pay to go into a house without membership.