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?

Same here and I have always had NT membership with my family when they were young. Now I am back to adult only tickets.

My children are now young adults and they do enjoy and choose to go sight seeing and visiting palaces and museums and seeing new places so I think It instilled an interest in history, places and the outdoors.

However, I think you either are interested or not and that’s fine too. It’s not compulsory.

Loved going to them as a teenager, there is so much variation that some are more interesting than others. My children have often asked to go (from being toddlers through to teens/young adults) so they can't find them too dull. They were gifted life memberships when small so we go often and don't feel obliged to do everything/spend hours on each visit to get our moneys worth so that might make a difference.

We went a lot as kids. Membership was reasonable for family days out, dad was history fiend and mum was garden freak. I loved history too so I really enjoyed them but my brother didn't enjoy as much.

We had membership when the kids were younger mostly because we have a couple of nice places nearby and we used them as good places for walks/play and then cake. We rarely went in the houses when the kids were tiny but they got a bit more interested from about 8. Avebury was a favourite because it was a reproduction so you can climb on stuff. Also some of the Christmas events are lovely.

I was dragged to many a NT property and stately home as a child and found it deathly boring (I was also taken on other days out I did enjoy, but it was museum and education heavy 😂 and very rarely a theme park or similar).

I assumed that as a middle class mother I would join the NT. daughter is 3.5 and I haven’t yet joined. I’ve been to a couple and she has had an ok time if there’s a park and she can run around. She absolutely wouldn’t enjoy a big house and neither would I. But on the whole we have just as good a time at the local free parks, and if I’m spending money on a day out there’s lots more places which my daughter will prefer.

We went to a fair few, we had a caravan and went all over the place for weekends and weeks away (but not abroad until I was in my teens). My parents were pretty skint when I was under 9 so we did nice but cheap things so picnics at a stately home were fairly common as something to do.

We don’t have membership as there’s actually very few near us. The big houses are still in private ownership. But we are close to Burghley and Belvoir and go there regularly (Burghley park is completely free and lovely, you only pay for the formal gardens or house so we go a lot. It was a godsend on mat leave during lockdowns).

DD isn’t that interested yet though, but she is only 3.

Unfortunately you don't get free parking with ds' membership, but he does have a blue badge, would this enable us to park for free?
Also please if you have a favourite place, name it and say the area it's in. Like another poster I'd never heard of NT as a child, I only found out it was a thing on MN!

A bit off topic, but which part of the country are you in? DD is a big birdwatcher (and photographer). Obviously there's a reason that nature reserves are generally remote but it's always nice to talk about ones we like!

Cragside, in Northumberland.

@LisaJool
Dyrham Park near Bath
Mottisfont in Hampshire
Kingston Lacy in Dorset
Stourhead in Wiltshire

We went for the houses, the contents and the history, not the grounds - there were plenty of parks for that in the 70s and 80s. It worked for me - I’m an art historian, architectural historian and archaeologist. Early exposure helped me to see the possibilities for work in the future.

We’ve got a NT house down the road. By the sounds of it the facilities and levels of child friendly activity varies greatly. We’ve been loads but don’t have a membership.

Pros for us are:
-There is a lake, fields and big kids play area with free entry dusk til dawn.
-They have a cold drink/Ice cream hut open on the field in summer.
-Parking is reasonably cheap.
-They have a cafe you can access from the free entry side.
-Pre-covid they did a Santa’s grotto which was amazing and absolutely worth every penny. (The child’s gift each year was a different stuffed woodland animal).
-The gardens in the paid area are lovely and have a wild trail with a bug hotel.
-Interactive elements - They have dressing up stations with dresses and frock coats in one room and a large picture frame with a variety of hats to try on in another. DS was a pirate (leather tri-corner hat) and magician (top hat) and had a great time. At Christmas they have an actor dressed as Scrooge shouting Bah Humbug and threatening to send the kids up the chimney or telling the parents to put them to work.

Cons:
Price if the tours - we’ve done it as part of the Christmas entry and I had a free ticket to use there this month I’d seen shared on here. However it is very expensive and probably boring to most kids to do that regularly.

I didn't go as a child. There wasn't enough nearby to be worth it. I guess we possibly went to some on holidays but I don't remember specifics.
We have membership now and there are enough places nearby to make it worth it. Lots have big estates and do children's trails and hunts if kids need something specific. But lots of it is about them being able to explore places without direct instruction. Let them get muddy and build a den and make mud pies.
But there are some really interesting places too - The Workhouse in Southwell, Quarry Bank Mill in Cheshire, Mr Straw's House in Worksop, and then they've got the Beatles childhood homes and the Birmingham back to backs so I don't think it's all just same old stately home.

I didn’t as a child but am a member now and take dc. They love the playground at our local one as it has different play equipment and is suitable for older dc whereas many normal parks only cater for younger ones and are boring once you get to around 8 or 9. Their interest in the houses vary, some have great volunteers who are really engaging, others are quite dull even for an adult,
They are also relatively safe in that I can let my older ones go off to explore without worrying about them.

I was a child of the 60s so no.

My children were born in the 90s and we took them to NT places but they grew bored of them very quickly.

It's really difficult for young children to understand the history timeline/important art and architectural features and so they tend to get bored very quickly.
Most NT properties are very similar... interiorly designed with ' matching' furnishings.
Having been a member of many years, you get to remember various decor / furnishing patterns and finishing. They are often repeated in their properties. I've even second guessed portraits as reminiscent of being in other properties but I must be wrong!

Many NT properties have wonderful, exploring grounds and they are what many children will remember. Eg mazes, deer, collecting chocolate eggs.

Children seem to get more from English Heritage properties which are lees to see but offer more for the imagination.

We went to ruins all the time as kids and have EH membership now. Whenever we holiday in the UK we check out the castles; north Wales was great, 4 World Heritage Site Castles in a week!

I always think of NT properties as lots of land with multiple fab play areas for kids so a good day out to tire them out. Both EH and NT I suppose are quite middle class activities, dragging the DC out to beautiful locations for fresh air and exercise. But with membership they are good value and they tend to have OK picnic facilities as well so don't work out as expensive as long as you can drive to enough of them.

I didn’t go as a child but always had membership with my DC. I love it as do the DC. I never find it busy. Lots of places to have a picnic. Kids enjoy the freedom and I always fell safe.

We didn’t go as kids but take DS now - most of the NT properties near us are woods and parklands though - places like Box Hill and Devil’s Punchbowl. We don’t have membership because we don’t go often enough, but we probably would if we lived near somewhere.

We are on an Island and don't have many NT near us, but have English Heritage membership and have done for years. We go through peaks and troughs using it, but are regulars and the kids definitely think of the main local sites as some of their standard stomping grounds.

We didn't as children, but we had a family past time that filled all our spare time, so we didn't do standard days out really.

I was frequently dragged round NT properties as a child and was bored out of my mind. I don't remember playgrounds though, just stately homes that I had to follow my parents round in silence.

I've never taken my DC to one.

We use the membership on holiday too, a few Cornish and Welsh castles etc

Not as far as I remember. We rarely went to places we had to pay for.

Although we did used to do Wales castles because my brother was a bit obsessed. I'd rather have done NT places.

I went a lot as a kid, didn't always enjoy it, but I do like history and walking round grounds.

We are members now because it's £10 a month for both of us and we live on the doorstep of a nice national trust. Rejoined in lockdown and we go most Sunday mornings for a walk and a coffee. I think entry to the garden for none members is £15 each, which is crazy.

Sudbury museum of childhood was the only "fun" NT place that I can remember as a kid, not sure if it's still open.

My parents always said that they regretted not getting a lifetime membership when it was £50.

One of my friends godparents got them a lifetime membership when they were Christened back in 1992 - the ultimate middle class Christening present!!

Exactly this. Every day cannot possibly be at a softplay. And between the house, garden, park, cafe, shop, secondhand bookshop, ducks for feeding, nature trail, a lot of these places have enough for everyone to have something to enjoy.

There are so many lovely ones. If you give a rough idea of your location people can make recommendations.

Hardly ever do a tour, though.