Chatsworth House Review
Chatsworth House
Reviewed by Laura Bown
I know Chatsworth House well. I have visited the estate many times, but have only been in the house once whilst on a school trip. I live fairly close to the estate, it takes only 15 minutes for us to drive to the house. Situated in the heart of the peak district, close to Bakewell, Chatsworth House is easy to get to by car. The M1 (J29) is 16 miles from the house. There are signposts all the way from the motorway. To get to the house by public transport can be difficult, there are buses that run regularly, but not all of them drop near the house. There are schemes in place for discounts on admission prices if you use the local bus service. The parking at the house costs £3, which is reasonable. If you book tickets online you do get free car parking.
It really is a picturesque approach to Chatsworth House whichever way you travel. The views of the estate and house are stunning. There are animals free to roam on the estate, so you are likely to see some sheep and maybe even some deer. There are many attractions on the estate besides the house. If you simply want somewhere for a nice walk, you can’t beat Chatsworth. There are maps available when you arrive and on the website detailing suggested walks. One that I can recommend (and have done a few times over the years) is the walk around Stand wood. This is a great walk if you have little ones as it is accessible with a wheelchair / pushchair, and there are plenty of things to see along the way. My favourite is the Hunting Tower and the view from it, breath-taking! There is also the award winning Farm Shop, and the stables complex next to the house, which houses a restaurant and gift shops. They are all open all year round.
We visited just before Christmas, the house is dressed in a theme each year, and this year it was ‘Alice in Wonderland’. When we arrived we were greeted by friendly staff on the gate who informed me of the best place to park. The car park is a paved area but at busy times you may be asked to park on a grass area, it can be a little muddy, so be prepared! I was visiting the house with my son and my friend and her daughter. They are both still in pushchairs, I had checked the website and knew we were not able to take the pushchairs in the house, but Chatsworth have thought of everything and provide a free secure buggy park and a free loan of baby carrying equipment. My friend had brought a carrier for her baby daughter, but I opted to borrow a hip carrier for my son. I didn’t have to ask the staff offered it straight away and were very helpful helping us to put our pushchairs away.
As we entered the house it was clear that there had been an immense amount of effort put in to decorating the space. And the theme was stunning. We went down the rabbit hole, into a corridor lined with pages of books which looked amazing. Further on you enter the chapel, which has simply just been decorated for Christmas, but is just as outstanding. There is something to look at in every room, and a few little activities that you can take part in. Along the way there are staff members most in costume. For the children there were little hedgehogs hidden around the house to look for. There was also the chance to write a Christmas wish on a star and hang it on a Christmas tree. In the marquee you could dress up as one of the characters from the book. I think I enjoyed that one more than the children. I was concerned that the house part of our visit wouldn’t be that suitable for my son, but he seemed entranced by the decorations and loved looking at all the different decorations. The word that was repeated a lot was wow!
Apart from the theming, the house itself is a work of art. It is steeped in history, and I think I could honestly spend all day wandering round. There are audio trails and guided tours available if you want a more in depth tour of the house. Chatsworth is well known for its art collection. It often also has other displays and exhibitions in place.
When you exit the house there is the amazing gardens to explore. There are so many beautiful views and many easy, accessible walks. We chose to have a drink in the marquee and then collected our pushchairs and had a lovely walk around the gardens. After this we decided to go for a light lunch in the Carriage House restaurant which is situated in the stables next to the house. We had some lovely coffees and cake, the cheesecake was amazing. It was all usual coffee shop prices, which is reasonable for the quality. I must say though, all the staff in the restaurant were very attentive, and very helpful. I also purchased some lovely freshly baked scones to take home! We have already decided on our next visit we will pre-book an afternoon tea.
Chatsworth is not just about the house. Next to the house is the farmyard and adventure playground, which you can go into separately or as part of the discovery ticket. We visited the farmyard earlier in the year at Halloween. There are always activities available for the children, our favourite being the tractor ride. When we visited it was a scary theme, and the staff really had put a lot of effort into making the ride fun, and a little scary. There are also lots of animals to see, including smaller animals that the children can handle at times. The other main attraction is the woodland adventure playground. This is a huge play area with slides, swings, trampolines and picnic area. The main attraction to my children is the waterfall and stream which runs through the playground. Each time we visit we go through at least 2 changes of clothes. There has been an improvement in the facilities recently, with the addition of some new toilets at the adventure playground, which are fresh and clean.
There are a few options for tickets to Chatsworth: a full discovery ticket includes house, garden, and farmyard. A family discovery ticket which covers 2 adults and 3 children costs £68, a single adult discovery ticket is £22. Although this does seem like a lot, you really do get a lot for your money. I would almost say there is too much to do in one day if you wanted to do everything. The other options are tickets just for house and garden, garden, or farmyard and range from £6-£20 dependant on the option. There are also annual passes available. All payments can be gift aided, with monies going to the Chatsworth House Trust, a charity dedicated to the preservation of Chatsworth.
I really had forgotten how magical Chatsworth could be. Our visit reminded me of many childhood memories of the fun we had in the gardens and grounds. We have already decided to make this an annual visit to Christmas at Chatsworth, and to visit this local jewel in the peak district more often.
Rating: 5/5 
Tickets: for all tickets options click here.
For more information or to book tickets visit www.chatsworth.org.
Chatsworth House, Chatsworth, Bakewell, Derbyshire, DE45 1PP
