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Saturday 28 April 2018

Kedleston Hall


We love visiting National Trust places. It's something both my husband and I were brought up on and wanted to carry on with our little boy.

When we became members nearly two years ago I wondered if there would be much for us to enjoy as a family but we've been to so many places! Our latest visit was to Kedleston Hall in Derbyshire, a country house built in 1759. 


A large country house


Venturing out on a surprisingly sunny spring day, we reached Kedleston just before noon. As always we were warmly greeted by the volunteers and handed a map to start our adventure. 

As we hadn't been to Kedleston Hall before I was keen to have a look around the house first. 


A large country house with a mother and son walking hand in hand towards it


A mother and son standing in front of large double doors

Now, it can sometimes be a bit worrying going into these places with a young child, and even more so for us after the Belton House incident, but our little boy is warmly welcomed and there's normally something for him to see or do on the way. When we visited Wordsworth House for example, there were children's toys fitting to the time period to play with. This time Joseph got a paper fortune teller and inside were little things for him to spot and see along the way.

Obviously, there's lots for adults to see too! The Marble Room certainly needs to be seen, as does the incredible ceiling dome.


A room with marble pillars

Dome ceiling with flower pattern

Period room with damask wallpaper

Period dining room

My favourite though has to be the peacock dress.


A period dress in a box case

Worn by Lady Curzon, the wife of the former owner of Kedleston, Lord Curzon, during their time in India. An iconic dress of its time, it was quite the sensation and it's remarkable that it can still be seen today in such amazing condition over a 100 years later!

After our roam round the house we had a picnic on the lawn near to the restaurant. We also sampled a cream tea! Well, you do need to support the National Trust cafe too!

With no children's park we finished our day with a long walk around the woodland known as the pleasure grounds! Taking in the surroundings, spring spotting and collecting sticks on the way!


Mother and son walking through a wooded area

Woodland cover in bluebells


woodland

A small hermitage house

A field with sheep grazing


Mother and son walking through a field hand in hand whilst carrying sticks

As always with my day out posts I like to share my top tips! So here we go!
  • Take a look at the current exhibition/display marking 100 years since women were granted the vote and why Lord Curzon disliked it so much! 
  • If you plan to visit the restaurant over the busy lunch period allow plenty of time. It was packed with people when we visited and there was a large queue to order and a wait for food.
  • Baby changing facilities are available in the toilet block as usual. Unfortunately though there only seems to be one block of loos and they were a bit smelly and messy but this may simply be down to the high volume of people using them!
  • Make sure you wear comfy shoes! There are walks of various lengths to try and you really get to appreciate the grounds of the Kedleston estate in the process.
For more information on Kedleston Hall, along visiting hours, take a look at the National Trust website here.

Deck chairs with Kedleston Hall printed on them


Mummy Snowy Owl
xx

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