Another National Trust Day Trip
If you follow my blog and read my posts you will know by now how much Nathan and I enjoy a Sunday outing to a National Trust property. When I looked at the National Trust’s website and saw Knightshayes had a Christmas Food and Drink Fair I couldn’t resist!
Knightshayes Court
Knightshayes is an amazing Gothic Revival house and is simply stunning to look at, both inside and out. The house was built in the late 1860’s by William Burges and so it’s pretty old! There is a stunning drive way which you drive up to park the car and then it’s only a short walk from the entrance building to the grand house.
The opulent house has been home to three generations of the Heathcoat Amory family and there is information about their history within the house. The house was then given to the National Trust in 1972 and has been visited by many NT members and public visitors since.
The house if full or lovely historical artefacts and grand pieces of furniture and is such a pleasure to walk around and explore.
Plenty to See and Do
Like with many of the NT properties there is lots to see and do. You can visit the house of course, as well as the formal and woodland garden and also the kitchen garden which we had a good look around. You can also try out the Douglas Fir walk or peruse the wider estate which covers over 200 acres of parkland and forestry.
Knightshayes is also home to the Stables Cafe and Conservatory Tea Room. The tea room looked lovely and is attached to the main house, overlooking the gardens. It wasn’t open when we were there due to seasonal opening hours but I can imagine it would be a lovely place to stop for a drink or lunch in the summer months. We didn’t visit the Stables Cafe either as it was rather busy and we had already enjoyed some treats at the Christmas Fair.
Festive Christmas Stalls
On various weekends in November and December Knighthayes is holding various Christmas and festive events in the lead up to the big event. The weekend we visited, the estate was hosting a Christmas Food and Drinks Fair. This included a marquee full of lovely stalls offering their delights including a posh marshmallow stand, a macaroons stand, various cakes and biscuit stalls and some cider offerings too.
We tried a few samples of such items as we made our way around the stalls; everything was super yummy although some things did seem a little over-priced in our eyes. We settled on having getting some savoury pastries for lunch and picked a couple of pic n mix yummy fudge bits to take home.
The weather wasn’t the best on the day we visited and so we didn’t go for a longer walk but I look forward to visiting again soon and exploring the gardens and walks a bit more.
Knightshayes has various festive Christmas events coming up in the next month and you can check them out here!
Have you ever visited Knightshayes? Been to many Christmas fairs yet?
What a beautiful place to visit! No wonder you like to go here, I would too! Putting this on my bucket list of places to see, thanks!
It’s so nice, looking forward to visiting again soon! Enjoy if you ever get to go 🙂
What a beautiful looking house! I love National Trust properties, they are lovely to visit as there’s always plenty to do or see.
I agree completely Rebecca! There is always lots to see and do and the houses are just so full of stories and history!
What a fascinating place! It’s amazing all the places you can visit on the NT pass!
I totally agree Jenny! There are so many places to see! I love it!
Oh wow what a gorgeous property! I love the national trust, we’ve had some great days out!
Me too – so many nice places to visit and some with so much history.
One of my modules on my English Literature university course was ‘Gothic Literature’ so a National Trust Property that is in the ‘Gothic Revival’ style is right up my street! What a fabulous outing.
Ah that’s cool! Such a beautiful building!
What a beautiful place! I have been trying to decide whether to get a family national trust membership as there seems to many places for me and the kids to visit and enjoy!
Ah Jess, I would totally recommend it, I just pay for a single membership but have made the money back a zillion times over! Well worth it and lots to do for the kids, especially at holiday times.
What a beautiful house. Not heard of it before, but will add it to our list when next in Devon.
Yes add to your list, well worth the visit and the gardens are meant to be lovely in the summer.
What a beautiful looking place. Love the photos.
Thank you, it certainly is 🙂
I’ve never heard of Knightshayes but it looks like a lovely place to visit. Some of the pictures of the furniture and antiques you captured inside the house are stunning.
It was such a nice place to wander around – I love all the older antiques too.
i have never been her before but it looks beautiful. I love to visit TheNational Trust places 🙂
I love National Trust places too! I’m a member so try to visit as many as I can!
This place looks amazing, I love the gardens and beautiful library! X
I loved the library the most – so much history! Thanks for your comment 🙂
I have really started to appreciate National Trust properties in the last few years. I didn’t have much of an interest in history when I was younger, but now I like to imagine the people who lived there and I get really involved in it!
Me too! I feel the same – lots more history and nice gardens to admire now I’m a little older! Glad you enjoy them too!
You just can’t argue with the National Trust, or the National Trust for Scotland. They simply deliver.
Haha yes totally! I agree completely!
We love National Trust places and this one looks lovely. I do find the markets are quite over priced too. Perfect for walks though aren’t they
Aww I’m glad you like them too Stephanie! It’s a shame, I know these little companies have to make money but if they charged just a couple of pounds less for each item I think they would sell so many more! Perfect for walks anytime of the year!