Wilton House

Visited Wilton House as a break from driving from Cornwall to Kent. Not far from A303. An absolutely delightful house. The 10 or so rooms open were delightful. I could literally be locked in one for a day and wouldn't be able to take it all in. Great car museum too. For children the park was amazing and children were playing in the river. It was a warm day and watching the children play whilst parent sat on the banks eating picnic there was something for everyone. The restaurant was a little pricey but the food was excellent quality so happy to pay a little more and the restaurant itself was lovely.

Wilton House is quite lovely. We were given a guided tour, where the history of the house and family was related. There was quite a lot to see, but we didn't feel rushed. The grounds of Wilton House are bordered on one side by the river. There's plenty of space to walk or to have a picnic. The prices in the coffee shop are, as you might expect, on the high side (£16 for two pieces of cake and two coffees). For the little ones, there's a fabulous adventure playground. All in all, a lovely relaxing day out.

Athough the garden/park area disappointed - few flowers and the roses needed pruning, the house is well worth a visit, or the bit you are allowed into anyway. Dozens of statues and busts as well a walls covered with paintings, many by well-known artists of the past. Staff available in nearly every room for information. There is also a display of the owners expensive car collection.

Beautiful place. I only visited the gardens (and the cafe) but it was gorgeous. Lovely walk in peace and quiet. Might be less quiet with a lot of kids around and can't say anything about the interior of the house.

This would have been given 5 stars if it was not for one thing… the guide for the house tour, if you end up with Sue Eastham as your guide you are in for a treat but not in the way you hoped, it’s as if someone went to finishing school and did not finish, she was very condescending towards people almost belittling. This is less of a house tour and that of an art tour. We could hear other guides showing around and people were laughing and enjoying themselves but on our tour you could see people could not wait for it to be over. We was told it was a 30min tour and it lasted over an hour which was not great in the heat. When we raised this with her we was almost told off like being a naughty child just like the time we wanted to take a photo and was told we was holding the tour up… so we joined the front of the tour and was you guessed it told off for going to far in front of her… can you see what’s coming next we stood in the middle and was told to get out of the way as we was blocking her and everyone else’s view. I felt like a prisoner at the end, one of the group wanted to leave early (yes it was this bad) and you not what’s coming she was told off for wanting to do that. I came away early from here as a result of feeling unwelcome. Word of advice… read the room and the people around you when giving your tour! No one was even allowed time for questions as supposedly there was not enough time. It’s a shame that a pretentious tour guide ruined what was a rather warm and welcoming start to the experience!

Poor signage to find the car park from the road and surprised to find guide was mandatory to see the house. Gardens ok with good playground for children. Staff and food at cafe were good and guide was excellent Well worth a visit

Wilton was somewhere I had been meaning to visit for ages so last weekend we decided to utilise our Historic Houses membership and make the trip. Once you reach Wilton, the house is well signposted and there is a large car park. We visited the formal gardens first before watching the film about the history of Wilton and its owners. This was rather good - it only lasts 15 minutes - and gave a good potted history of the people and events that have shaped the house. Next to the film room was the storage area for the Earl's car collection. I didn't even know that existed so it was a nice surprise and there were lovely descriptions of some of the early cars. From there we moved on to the house itself. I usually have limited interest for the interiors of stately homes but the combination of the Roman statue collection at the entrance and the fabulously engaging guides in each room meant we spent a lot longer looking around the house than normal. Nex stop was a circuit of the gardens to see the famous Palladian bridge and the woodland walk and then ending in the cafe. This had equally excellent staff and a nice menu to refresh us before our drive home. A wonderful visit.

An amazing house that's a favourite of film crews having featured in The Crown and Bridgerton amongst many others. Advance bookings not necessary. I recommend one of the hour long guided tours of the house as there is so much interesting history and many artworks which are highlighted. The cafe is delightful and the food very good. Well worth a visit.