In this post, I will write about Waddesdon Manor and tell you about our visit to this beautiful National Trust property in Waddesdon, Buckinghamshire, England.
For other posts on National Trust properties check this: A day out in Houghton Mill and High Wycombe (Hughenden Manor).
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Last summer, we went for a long weekend to our friend’s house, which is in Wendover, Buckinghamshire. We visited Waddesdon Manor on Saturday, and on Sunday, we went to Henley-on-Thames and visited Heys Court, another property from the National Trust.
We became members of the National Trust about two years ago, because we started visiting a lot of its properties (and we enjoy it a lot), so we thought it was worth becoming members to explore as many historical properties as possible without having to pay the entrance fee every time.
Below is a map showing where Waddesdon Manor is:
VISITING WADDESDON MANOR
Waddesdon Manor is a neo-Renaissance château, built in the late 19th century by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild. Designed in the style of the French Loire châteaux, less of a residence and more a stage-set. It was intended to impress, display wealth, and the house immense art collection.
The manor is a monument to the Rothschild family’s synthesis of finance, art patronage, and political influence. Unlike English country houses that evolved over centuries, Waddesdon was built rapidly and artificially, more Versailles palace than a country manor.
Its interiors are packed with 18th-century French decorative arts, Sèvres porcelain, Gobelins tapestries, Dutch Old Masters, and English portraits. It is more a curated museum than a private home. It hosted Edward VII and foreign dignitaries; now it’s run by the Rothschild Foundation, in partnership with the National Trust.
The place exemplifies the Rothschild strategy of cultural naturalisation: dominating elite English society not by assimilating but by overwhelming, through capital, taste, and curation.
Our visit to the manor started in the house, and soon after the entrance, we encountered the marvellous mechanical elephant. It was probably made in London by a French clockmaker called Hubert Martinet around 1774. It plays four tunes and its trunk, ears, eyes and tail move. This is one of the 125 treasures of the National Trust Collection.
We followed the visit, admiring the French Wood Panelling in the Breakfast Room and arriving in the attractive conservatory. Following on, we entered the Dining Room, showcasing its beautiful mirrors and marble, looking like a mini-Versailles.
Next, we looked at the living room and Ferdinand’s private sitting room full of paintings from the 1700s of famous Ladies of the time.
From there, we went down to the cellars to see some of the historic wines dating from 1868, making it the largest private collection of wine in the world.
Continuing the visit, we went to see the porcelain collection. There is a French one given as a present by King Louis XV in 1766 with more than 400 pieces to serve up to 24 people.
We continued, and next was some of the most beautiful jewellery exposed in glass cabinets. Following on were the bedrooms and other private living rooms until we arrived at the Smoking and Billiard Rooms.
The end of the internal visit to the house was in the “Renaissance Museum”, where Ferdinand kept his most precious objects from the 1500s and 1600s. We still passed some guest bedrooms and bathrooms before finishing our visit.
After the visit to the house, we explored the gardens, which consisted of the Parterre, the Aviary Garden and the Water Garden as well as a large woodland.
Once we explored the gardens in their entirety, we went to the café and enjoyed a lovely lunch of sandwiches and drinks.
Below is a reel from The Traveling Surveyor Instagram account from Waddesdon Manor. Check it out and follow me!
We had a lovely day at Waddesdon Manor and will happily return for another visit at any time. It is a great day out, especially if you have kids, as they always have activities for kids going on in the grounds.
There is a very nice day tour leaving from London that goes to Waddesdon Manor and some very picturesque towns in the Costwolds. Check it out and book it HERE.
After lunch, we returned to my friend’s house and later on went for dinner at a Spanish restaurant called “Tres Corazones” in Wendover, where they serve very nice dishes tapas style, where we had a wonderful dinner and ended our Saturday.
The plan for the next day was to visit another National Trust property called “Greys Court” in Henley-on-Thames.
I hope this post will give you some idea of what can be done in a day in Waddesdon Manor and will help you plan your own visit there.
HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR VISIT TO WADDESDON MANOR
Below you will find a list of what to visit, where to stay and where to eat in the area. I classified each place as follows:
BOLD – Visited, tried and recommended
NOT BOLD – Not visited or tried, but planning to visit or try and heard very good reviews
RED – Visited and tried but do not recommend, avoid or be cautious
*** – Excellent
** – Good
* – OK
£££ – Expensive
££ – Fair and affordable
£ – Cheap
PLEASE NOTE: Every hotel, restaurants and attractions I mention on my blogs are not sponsored reviews and we always paid the full price when visiting. We give our own opinion of the place and detail our experience, good or bad.
WHERE TO STAY
ACCOMMODATION
1 – The Five Arrows Hotel – 4* – ££
2 – The Lion Waddesdon – 4* – ££
3 – The Pointer – 5* – £££
4 – Hartwell House & Spa – 4* – £££
5 – Stylish 4 Bed Home – 4* – ££
6 – Pass the Keys Merlin’s stables-Country Retreat – 3* – ££
If you prefer to look for your own accommodation, search and book via the below widget:
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BEST PLACES TO EAT
RESTAURANTS
1 – Stables Café – Waddesdon Manor – *** – £
2 – Tres Corazones – Wendover – *** – ££
3 – The Five Arrows – ££
4 – The Manor – ££
5 – Opuz – £££
6 – The Bow – ££
If you tried any of my recommendations above, please send me a message and tell me about your experience good or bad, so I can update the list accordingly. Thanks!
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