Anyone have National Trust membership, and is it worth it ??

[nutcracker]

Was looking at this yesterday. I want us to start going out more together but w rarely have much money and so I though the National Trust membership might be good.

Not entirly sure how much us we would get out of it though, does anyone else use it ??

Yes and yes.

We live nearish to an excellent property with the most wonderful parklands and adventure playground. WE estimate that three wisists a year and we break even. In practice we go far more often than that, it is excellent in the summer holidays, when we often go with a picnic and spend the whole day there. It is also useful when we go on holidays

Yes and no.

I've had it for two years. Last year I visited one property and took DD which made it very expensive. The year before I didn't visit any properties which made it even more expsnive but I forgot to cancel it. The first year I started going to properties I went to 3 or 4 but wasn't a member whch was why I thought membership would be a good idea to save money!

I should cancel it now, whilst I'm thinking about it.

Very similar to MB. I live near a lovely place and use it loads in the summer. Always take the guidebook with us on daytrips and hols and often take in a few NT properties. So value for money for me - and will use it more when dd's are older.

We got family membership for Xmas from MIL. We have a property nearby with an excellent, house park and coffee shop and non members have to pay £2.50 to park their cars. I figured lots of afternoon visits would soon make up for the cost, only it's closed until March . Will definitely visit other properties though and yes I do think it is worth it.

we have it.. beware paying on direct debit one year to find that it automatically disappears the next year. We have a property nearish with wonderful grounds and amazing adventure playground so use that often. We also use Nt properties to break long journeys- esp if they have tea shops. You need to look at their website and see which properties you would actually visit and see if it will be worth it.

We do but haven't got value for money over last couple of years as we've been abroad. We do have some nice houses with large grounds within 20 minutes or so and plan to use it more this year. They do some kids activities and concerts in the summer. It is also worth it if you go on holiday somewhere where there are several properties within a small area like Devon/Cornwall or Isle of Wight.

If you live near to a variety of properties, have a car, like looking at old houses and running around big gardens, then definitely.

If you have properties near you with adventure playgrounds/activities for children, then you would get a lot out of it.

We are members of the National Trust for Scotland, and the only place we go to (because it's the only one near enough) is Glencoe. However, there is a fantastic array of things to do, a great ranger who does loads with the kids, and lots of events taking place particularly during the holidays. Despite only going to the one place we certainly get our money's worth.

yes we use ours a lot - live very near Stourhead which is perfect for walks and has a lovely cafe

Yes and Yes - we live near a great property that we love going to. My dses are 4 and 1, and it's great because we don't have to worry about seeing everything at once - when they get bored we go and we come back another day.

Ds1 loves doing the "guided tour" around the property gardens as he knows it well now, and loves exploring new places too. It's also a great way to break a long journey (such as when we go see family) because you can stop half way for a loo & play break at a property and it not cost you anything.

Best money we spent last year, I reckon.

Have a look on the NT website first and see how many properties there are in your area - and what facilities they have. My parents bought us family membership last year and we've used it quite a lot (though not as much as we should have!)

Nutty as Miaou says I would look at what is near you.
We are near 4 excellent properties (5-30 mins drive) all of which offer holiday activities eg Easter egg hunts, summer garden trails, teddy bears' picnics etc, halloween craft activities, Christmas activities etc. All free or a small charge (£1 a child maybe).
Sometimes we just hightail it up to Kedleston for a run round, or Sudbury for the excellent Museum of Childhood which we all love no matter how often we go. I would estimate we went about 10 times last year.
Plus on holiday I always check what's nearby.
OTOH if there's nothing much near you/the things near you don't do activities, then it might not be worth it. Check their website for more details.

DH was given a life membership by his grandmother when he turned 18; it is a real boon (though at the time I think he was a bit hacked off ) as we 4 all sail in for free and will until DD hits 5, I think.

In the autumn for eg we went to Devon and due to extreme lack of imagination/poverty went to a property a day for a week. The baked potatoes in the tearooms cost a bit though.

I have a feeling that if you buy NT membership in scotland it's much cheaper and you can use it nationally

Would also suggest you look into membership at English Heritage -- not so well-promoted but similar deal (a bit less precious and considerably better catering )

Yes - had it for years as I did heritage stuff at university and then luckily dh is into history so we now have joint membership. As others have said, most useful if you have a good property near you which you can use the grounds off regularly and then always useful on holidays in the UK when you're stuck for things to do.

Join the National Trsut for Scotland. It is cheaper - and gives you the same rights of entry!

(Memo to self: really must get round to doing it)

We live 10 mins from a NT stately home with an amazing outdoor adventure playground which is open all year round so for us it makes great sense.

We go about 1-5 x a week

definitely yes.. once summer spring hits we are always national trusting... you're always assured of a nice tea shop, very buggy friendly and a big place for the kids to run about... (we never visit the houses!)

a lot of our friends have membership too so like i said... trips out to NT are a given when the weather gets better!

Yes and English Heritage. We have used them a lot in the past and always take the handbooks if we go away (very seldom now!). Apart from visiting the properties I think they're both charities worth supporting anyway and its better than making a donation as you do get something worth having. We've also got discount on concert tickets at an English Heritage property nearby.

I never use mine - not near many properties here (there's not much in the SE corner east of Bodiam). I've cancelled my membership now. We use English Heritage loads though. I can take 7 children in on my ticket - never dared try it! It just depends what there is in your area.

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Yes. We have 4 NT properties within 40 minutes of us though so it is worth it.

I like the idea of going and being able to leave in 30 minutes if one of the children is playing up. Rather than feeling grumpy at the £15 down the drain.

We asked for membership as a Christmas present this year from the parents and in-laws. Better than forking out the ~£60 ourselves.

As others have said, check what's near you and think about how often you'd go. We have family membership and it has definitely saved us huge amounts of money.

We've visited a few nearish houses/estates, but our main expense would be coastal/beach carparks, which if owned by the NT (which is just about every one near us) charge a couple of quid during the summer and then it adds up, especially if you go 2-3 times a week over a few months.

i too got life membership for 18th birthday - fantastic pressie. For many years I didn't use it but now it gets used several times each year. I particularly like the fact that i don't think 'i spent £15 getting in, i must stay for hours' so if all we do is pop in to feed the fish in the pond it's worth it.

Likewise more rarely go in houses with dd, she really prefers interactive things from a museum instead. It's the grounds that get used most, so is definitely a nice day activity.

Some are much more imaginatively managed than others and maybe depends on which ones are nearest to you. Are you in B'ham, nutty? I can't remember. If so, I can recommend the good/bad/indifferent in your area Completely disagree with cod - they've worked hard to professionalise themselves over the last 5 years or so. Not all properties are there yet though.

Yep! Absolutely. Ours gets lots of use. We picnic loads in summer - have accrued lots of gear over years of camping and climbing. And I'm a huge history buff, as are all my famile, many of whom visit in the warmer months. Asked for a lifetime membership for my 35th bday as a pressie from my folks

Fav entertainment, and cheap, is to go for a drive to one of the sites, 'do' the attraction, and cap it off w/a picnic.

Big bang for the buck and a great way to keep the kids entertained and show them their heritage.

We're members of both - if you live between London and Kent like we do, you get the best of both worlds: Eltham Palace, Hampton Court and Dover Castle for EH and a host of fascinating properties in NW Kent and N East Sussex. NT membership is also helping them keep a lot of open countryside in good order.
But IIRC there is not much round your way nutcracker it does vary a lot.