National Trust properties - dim question

[UnquietDad]

Our family has become members of the National Trust in the past year.

Visited a couple of places where showing our card was enough to be waved in (in Wales and the Lakes) but are there any where you do have to pay an entry fee on top?

The annual sub works out quite good value if you do a few visits a year, but not if you're paying on top of it.

Sorry if that's a really dim question, but I just wondered why their handbook quotes entry prices for places, given that you only get the handbook if you are a member. ?!

handbook prices are for non-members.
some (v few) charge fee on top (one being wimpole hall farm - because the farm isn't NT I think).

Thanks, I thought it was something like that but I was a bit confused. My brain has turned to mush this week.

We have annual membership and have never had to pay to get in anywhere. it's good value if you visit NT properties near where you live. We've got loads within an hour's drive so go regularly in nice weather.

We've only got one within an hour's drive

nt is fab, and as CS says the prices are for non-members. A couple of places around the country are jointly owned with Heritage or a local council so may ask for a small fee for parking or whatever but usually everything is included in the membership - parking and entrance to properties, gardens and everything.
We make our years family-membership costs back in the spring alone [done it already and most around here have only been open since easter] so everything that we see in the summer is real value for money, i.e. free!!

My boys love our local NT properties because they can run free and explore and I don't need to worry about them going near roads.
The nearest is 10 mins drive and our favourite, Polesden Lacey, is about 45 mins drive. Definitely worth the money imo.

We have had an annual membership for 17 years and have probably visited 10 houses in that time

some lovely places in Yorks too
Fountains Abbey
though I appreciate Yorks is a big old county

Wndyweber, you must have some near you. They're everywhere!

I don't take the boys in the houses, just the gardens. Ham House is our nearest (did a picnic there recently with some friends) but Claremont Gardens (with it's beautiful lake and peacocks strutting in the grounds) isn't far. Box Hill and Polesden Lacey within a shortish drive. My boys love the freedom.
I can't see us being without NT membership for some years to come tbh.

Lancashire

It's the same with bleeding Waitrose. We are a non-county!

ah but Rufford Old Hall is gorgeous!
maybe better with English Heritage....

Oh dear, that's a bit of a poor show. You need to move dahn sarf.

It looks lovely harpsi but is it more inside than outside?

Rufford does look gorgeous, but it's a looong way. We could combine it with another trip to Waitrose at Formby (we did that when we went to Formby Point to see the squirrels, and Crosby to see the Gormleys) but it is a very very long and wiggly drive.

WW, There's Rufford!!!
and, erm, erm, errrrr

there are lots around - Styal/Quarry bank mill, Speke Hall (our v local) Dunham massey - are this lot all too far from you? [she's gonna say she lives at the cumbria end of lancs, isn't she?]...but in which case there's sizergh castle, all the Sawrey B.Potter stuff, wordsworth [dora's field], all sorts!

Tatton Hall charges everyone £4 to park.

but there's loads to do there and I thought it was excellent, very good playground.

Otherwise we have onlyever paid for craft activitiy, trail with chocs at end etc.

It's great IMO if you have a range of properties nearby (we do). We have already been on 4 days out since season started at Easter.

WW that's grim - we have 4 really good places in well under an hour. One is 5 mins away
Also good if (top tip) DC want to look at house but don't want to spend hours there. Whizz in and out of Hardwick Hall in half an hour and you've all seen sthg interesting. And it didn't cost you £6 a head.

We actually live 20 minutes from Gawthorpe, gw - about as far as you can get in Lancs from Cheshire and Cumbria and Merseyside!

There is East Riddlesden near Keighley as well but basically we live in an NT pocket of isolation.

oh WW!
blardy useless!!
two fantastic and practical suggestions for you :

1. get a private helicopter
2. move house having considered the NT Handbook first.

clever, eh?

Brilliant plans, gw. I will get our roof levelled for a landing pad immediately!

Perfect. Can't you bully one of your neighbours to donate their property to the NT so that you have a local place to visit?

Are you drunk gw? tut.