National trust

[Raj]

Couldn't find a topic about this. Any members of national trust on here? Would you recommend joining???

[Phube]

I’m a member.

 

If you like going around old houses and lovely grounds (or have kids who like that sort of thing) then yes it’s worth it!

[Raj]

You been Belton House?

Reckon my kids who are 9/5 would love it according to people who've been.

[Old Fox]

As an older member of FT I am also a member of NT - great venues all over the UK and some great ones in the East Anglian region if you like walking, fresh air and interesting landmarks/buildings. It is great value and also helps preserve many special  UK landmarks- highly recommend it Raj

[PAULCFC]

We're members and as someone who doesn't really like stuffy old houses ,it's really good...Belton is great for kids and Sudbury Hall is great too(National trust museum of childhood).Membership is allways good if you go on holiday here as there is allways somewhere on your way or when you get there that you can visit.Really want to go to the Beatles homes when im up that way next.

Edited 8 May 2018 by PAULCFC

[fleckneymike]

National Trust - Tony Harrison

 

Bottomless pits. There's on in Castleton, 
and stout upholders of our law and order
one day thought its depth worth wagering on
and borrowed a convict hush-hush from his warder
and winched him down; and back, flayed, grey, mad, dumb.

Not even a good flogging made him holler! 

O gentlemen, a better way to plumb
the depths of Britain's dangling a scholar, 
say, here at the booming shaft at Towanroath, 
now National Trust, a place where they got tin, 
those gentlemen who silenced the men's oath
and killed the language that they swore it in.

The dumb go down in history and disappear
and not one gentleman's been brough to book: 

Mes den hep tavas a-gollas y dyr

(Cornish-) 
'the tongueless man gets his land took.' 

[Izzy]

2 hours ago, Raj said:

Couldn't find a topic about this. Any members of national trust on here? Would you recommend joining???

We were members up until a few years ago. Mainly because we had two young kids and live near Waddesdon Manor and there's loads to do there.

 

Probably used it once a month on average so it's good value based on around £100 for a years family membership from memory.

 

Then the kids got a bit older and we stopped using it so didn't renew. Funnily enough we went back to Waddesdon yesterday with my sister and her family who are members and it cost us £30 so a bit pissed we weren't still members!

 

I'd recommend joining if you've got the time to go regularly and are happy to travel. There's NT places all over the country and they're nearly always a good day out.

 

[stripeyfox]

2 hours ago, Raj said:

You been Belton House?

Reckon my kids who are 9/5 would love it according to people who've been.

Belton House is great. The kids are not so fussed about the actual house but the adventure playground and model railway are great and there is loads of open space to explore. We go there quite a bit on our NT membership. NT member is worthwhile when we go to the Lakes or Northumberland on holiday too.

 

[PAULCFC]

13 minutes ago, stripeyfox said:

Belton House is great. The kids are not so fussed about the actual house but the adventure playground and model railway are great and there is loads of open space to explore. We go there quite a bit on our NT membership. NT member is worthwhile when we go to the Lakes or Northumberland on holiday too.

 

Have you been to Cragside?Really interesting house.

[Phube]

4 hours ago, Raj said:

You been Belton House?

Reckon my kids who are 9/5 would love it according to people who've been.

Yup,  Belton House definitely has one of the best Play Areas of any of the 13 houses I’ve been to.

 

Most houses do have small to large play areas though, and usually have treasure hunts in the houses (or the grounds) to keep the kids occupied. 

 

 

[Milo]

No brainer - best hundred quid I spend each year. 

Loads of places to go and they are all super kid-friendly, and are not at all precious about the gardens - kids are encouraged to be kids and climb trees, etc. 

 

Usually have good themes in the holidays, too. My kids (10 and 5) usually moan a bit when we say we’re off to a NT place, and then love it when they get there and don’t want to leave. 

 

If you do join, I recommend taking picnics unless you want to regularly pay £50 for bang average food. 

 

[David Guiza]

10 hours ago, fleckneymike said:

National Trust - Tony Harrison

 

 

 

 

As for the original question - i'm not a member but will almost certainly look to be in future. Any British town/city we visit we generally look to go to a National Trust site if possible, plus having lived in Warwickshrie for the past few years we have been able to visit the Warwick and Kenilworth castles fairly regularly and both are so fantastic in different ways. 

[Vince Vega]

Been a member for years and would recommend joining.  Always a good day out. 

[stripeyfox]

10 hours ago, PAULCFC said:

Have you been to Cragside?Really interesting house.

Yes, we went to Cragside when we were up there a couple of years ago, and will be doing so again this year when we go in July.

 

Cragside was great, the house was interesting and the kids loved all the outdoors stuff - they were doing den building and stuff.

 

[Bellend Sebastian]

I don't know if this is still the case, but in The Lake District a lot of the car parks are National Trust run, so if you're a member you can save a small fortune on parking

 

Edit: this is only of interest if you are going to the Lake District. If not, it's unlikely to influence your decision making process

Edited 9 May 2018 by Bellend Sebastian

[stripeyfox]

58 minutes ago, Bellend Sebastian said:

I don't know if this is still the case, but in The Lake District a lot of the car parks are National Trust run, so if you're a member you can save a small fortune on parking

 

Edit: this is only of interest if you are going to the Lake District. If not, it's unlikely to influence your decision making process

 

Yes, this is still the case. Car parking can cost a fortune in the Lakes. If you're going for a week, a NT membership might even pay for itself in car parking charges alone

 

 

[surrifox]

Yep . Great  value and as has been mentioned Worth it for the car parking alone !

[DANGEROUS TIGER]

The National Trust.--Wonderful.

[Buce]

 

Free parking in Cornwall, too - we saved a fortune last summer.

 

The National Trust also has reciprocal arrangements with 14 other countries.

[Parafox]

We were members until a couple of years ago. Particularly good if you have a young family. Most places are child friendly ith play areas, learning zones and it gives you the chance to get kids interested in history; dressing up rooms, old fashioned nurseries, old toys they can play with. It's no longer a stuffy old thing for pensioners, NT really has moved on in trying to attract families. Shugborough is brilliant. A lovely house, lovely gardens for the older peeps, a farm that kids can get to touch and get close to pigs, goats, sheep, watch lambs playing (at the right time of year), a traditional Victorian farm kitchen where the make bread, cakes etc. And it was the home of the late Lord Lichfield and has a really interesting gallery of his photographs. Take a short walk from the grounds and you're alongside the canal with barges and so on moored up and you can chat to the owners. They also have special days with classic cars on show, the working farm experience. I don't know what it costs for admission but I remember the farm and house were 2 separate admission charges unless you were a NT member, then the whole thing was "free" as in, included in your membership.

 

I know the NT is generally seen as an old fuddy duddy thing, and yes, there are a generous number of pensioners that go to these places, but that's cancelled out by the number of families that go. 

 

Really, I would join, it gives you so many places to access all of which are so interesting and absorbing. One years membership will be repaid in a matter of weeks if you make the right choices.

 

As has been said before, Belton is great for young families, a great adventure play area, a miniature railway good picnic areas, a lovely house with loads to see. And that's just one of many. Even our own local Calke Abbey.

 

Not just Big houses, mansions, and so on... many areas of natural beauty are owned by the NT. you can access them with your membership, go walking, exploring, take picnics, let the kids see things they would never see in the city.

 

Our kids have grown beyond the excitement they had at going to these places and now we go as a couple but it still doesn't diminish the enjoyment of the wonderful heritage and countryside we can go to at a whim.

 

Just be prepared for a lot of "middle-class-ness".

[Parafox]

Pay your membership, get up the next weekend/bank holiday/school break morning and think, what shall we do... let's go to... job done. It won't let you down.

[Raj]

Appreciate the feedback guys. Minds made up,think we'll go for it....those ****ers won't know what's hit them when we rock up with our samosas!!!!

[Phube]

Fun National Trust game for everyone:

 

How many “Standard Grandads” can you spot (a bit like where’s Wally) on a nice sunny day.

 

Rules:

 

Must be a male > 60 years old 

Must have a Blue Checked/striped Shirt

Must have cream trousers

 

 

My last visit I spotted 9 (including my Dad!)