Luke L.
Yelp
I do appreciate the fine furniture craftsmanship and detailed architecture designs, but I thought the one-hour guided tour wasn't very interactive and it felt like a plain & dull class lecture to me.
The Gamble House was designed by the Greene brothers in 1908 and it was built as a vacation home for David and Mary Gamble (David Gamble's dad, James Gamble, was one of the co-founder of Procter & Gamble). The Gamble family donated the whole house to the USC School of Architecture in 1966 and that was the 1st year of the public tours. In 1978, this three-stories tall vacation house was selected as a National Historic Landmark.
There are total of six different types of tours - the general One-Hour Guided Tour ($15 per adult), Upstairs Downstairs (limited time this summer, 1.5 hours, $20 per adult), Behind The Velvet Ropes (2.5 hours, $45 per person), Details & Joinery (about craftsmanship, 3 hours, $80 per person), Fire & Light (2 hours, $45 per person), and Arroyo Terrace (1.25 hours, $17 per person). Other than the One-Hour Guided Tour and Upstairs Downstairs, all other four tours must be purchased in advance.
If you are here for the general One-Hour Guided Tour, then you can pick up or buy tickets at the bookstore (it is located right next to the Gamble House). No photography during any tours, no touching, no food and drinks, no high heels, and turn off anything that make noises (e.g. cell phones).
During the tours, you'll walk through each level of the house and learn about its history, architectural designs (e.g. elements such as Japanese cranes), and other detailed information. The entire house doesn't have the best ventilation system (no A/C - after all, this house is over 100 years old), so you might feel a bit stuffy while inside the house (especially during the summer time).
This is a must visit for people who are into historical architectures, but this is just not my cup of tea.
P.S. - Bookstore was the original garage for the Gamble House.