Houghton Hall & Gardens Norfolk

This review is about the house, which is in a word, spectacular. Built in the 1720s for Britain’s first Prime Minster Sir Robert Walpole, its interior is statement to the opulence that came with wealth, power, and influence. One enters the house through the interior Great Staircase, arriving at the Stone Hall, which is a huge and breathtaking space filled with intricately carved putti, swags, a huge gilded chandelier, bronze sculptures, and Walpole’s collection of antique marble busts (to include one of himself clad in a Roman toga). William Kent was instrumental in Stone Hall’s creation, and designed the magnificent ceilings throughout the ground floor, as well as much of the elaborate furniture made specifically for each room. Elsewhere on the ground floor one is treated to the Marble Parlour, which is thought to be Britain’s first dedicated dining room, the richly gilded Saloon, the Green Velvet Bedchamber with its wildly extravagant bed and tapestries, and the handprinted bird wallpaper in the Cabinet room. Interestingly, there used to be even MORE art on the walls, but after Walpole died in 1745 the family fortune experienced a sharp decline. Fortunately, Russia’s Catherine the Great was only too happy to purchase a significant amount of Walpole’s art collection from his grandson in 1779, with most of the works now on display at the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. Be sure to ask the excellent guides in the house about anything. Practical information: Directions can be found on the Houghton Hall website in WhatThreeWords and Google, and if using the latter be aware that the app may take you to the north side of the property on Crow Lane, whereas the main gate is actually to the south along Rudham Road. From the car park it is a 300 metre walk through the stables (which contain a lovely café) to the house, and you can admire the huge herd of fallow deer on the way. Make a note to leave 20-30 minutes to explore the oddly interesting Model Soldiers Museum in the stables with its 20,000 strong collection of figurines.

Fantastic day out, We explored the House, grounds, walled Gardens all wonderful. The Model soldier exhibition was amazing. Lovely cafe and gift shop with amazing local produce. Definitely worth a visit

The most beautiful house and gardens. I visit every year because the owner is an art lover and has amazing exhibitions by leading artists, mostly sculpture and installations. This year is Stephen Cox. Last year was Scully. Previously Richard Long and Gormley. The volunteers are outstanding. Knowledgeable, charming and go the extra mile to facilitate your visit. This year I needed a buggy to go round the walled garden, but it was no trouble and entirely free. There's always wonderful plants to buy, and parking is free. The cafe and shop are full of local goodies. I'm always sorry when the season ends, but look forward to the next year's exciting developments. What's not to like!

Did the gardens and grounds. Gardens beautifully presented - well worth looking round. Saw the herd of white deer laying in the shade of a tree - stunning site. Very nice cafe with indoor and outdoor seating.

We had a very interesting visit to this house. The gardens are very popular. The wisteria was at its best and to walk through the wisteria walk was a delight for the nose. The flaming fountain was another very interesting feature. The art installations were very thought-provoking, not always to my taste, but mostly very impressive none the less. The collection of model soldiers was very interesting for my husband. The dioramas were very well done. So much to say about this house, I'd sum up with well worth a visit. Food in the cafe was very good too. we had sausage rolls and they were very tasty.

Beautiful gardens and inside the hall. Not worth paying £24 to see both. You must be a good walker to visit, although disability buggys can access a lot of the areas. Spoiled by the lumps of shaped rock distributed about the premises (exhibition?), which offset the true artwork of the past. Staff were very friendly. As mentioned, admission should be about £12 to access the area. Nice cafe.

A stunning house with rich history, and a beautiful walled garden. We spent almost five hours in the grounds and enjoyed every minute of it! Free parking.

Such a lovely day! Our ticket included entry to the toy soldier museum, the art installations and the house itself. The grounds with there free roaming white deer are breathtaking and the guides in the house friendly and knowledgeable. Our 4 year old and 8 year old even enjoyed touring the house and exploring the art around the ground. A very enjoyable day!