Rosie
Well Known Member
Day 5: A day at the Biltmore in Asheville, NC
Wednesday May 25th had us spending the day at the Biltmore. First, we had breakfast at one of my favorite places that we don't have in California...don't laugh...Waffle House. Yes, my favorite! After breakfast, it was about a 15 minute drive to the visitor center to buy tickets ($49/each today).
I can tell you now that this is a MUST SEE if you are ever nearby!!!!! What a GREAT day at the Biltmore!
The Biltmore is still family owned and now run by the Great Grandson of George Vanderbuilt. It is America's largest private residence and was completed in 1895....it has 250 rooms! We could have easily made this a 2-day visit as do many visitors.
While no pictures were allowed inside, I can say that I was awestruck during the entire self-guided tour. We rented the audio-players that described each of the rooms we visited which only enhanced our visit.
After the self-guided tour (about 3 hours), we then spent about 2 hours walking the gardens. Just absolutely amazingly beautiful! We had some lunch then 'splurged' ($17/ea) for the private 'Butlers Tour'. There were about 10 of us on the one-hour special tour, and we really enjoyed seeing how the hired-help lived and worked. An added bonus was seeing the basement where the power (the biggest switches I've ever seen) and heat rooms (coal stoked furnaces) were located.
We finished up our tour of the residence (mansion) then drove over to Antler Hill Village to see the farm. There is a Blacksmith there demonstrating real-life work, and he had his entire group listening to his every slam-of-the-hammer (he could get a nice acoustical sound going with the hammer hitting the anvil He narrated every step as he beat/heated/beat (over and over) on the hot metal as he made a leaf key ring.
We ended our day with a great steak at a nearby Texas Roadhouse (we'd never been to one and it was good!).
Here are some pics of the Biltmore and the Gardens;
We'll be heading out in the morning to visit/have lunch with an RVer you all know well...no...not Kahuna...we'll see him later in the day!
Keep poundin' them rivets because it's ALL worth it! Rosie & Tuppergal
Wednesday May 25th had us spending the day at the Biltmore. First, we had breakfast at one of my favorite places that we don't have in California...don't laugh...Waffle House. Yes, my favorite! After breakfast, it was about a 15 minute drive to the visitor center to buy tickets ($49/each today).
I can tell you now that this is a MUST SEE if you are ever nearby!!!!! What a GREAT day at the Biltmore!
The Biltmore is still family owned and now run by the Great Grandson of George Vanderbuilt. It is America's largest private residence and was completed in 1895....it has 250 rooms! We could have easily made this a 2-day visit as do many visitors.
While no pictures were allowed inside, I can say that I was awestruck during the entire self-guided tour. We rented the audio-players that described each of the rooms we visited which only enhanced our visit.
After the self-guided tour (about 3 hours), we then spent about 2 hours walking the gardens. Just absolutely amazingly beautiful! We had some lunch then 'splurged' ($17/ea) for the private 'Butlers Tour'. There were about 10 of us on the one-hour special tour, and we really enjoyed seeing how the hired-help lived and worked. An added bonus was seeing the basement where the power (the biggest switches I've ever seen) and heat rooms (coal stoked furnaces) were located.
We finished up our tour of the residence (mansion) then drove over to Antler Hill Village to see the farm. There is a Blacksmith there demonstrating real-life work, and he had his entire group listening to his every slam-of-the-hammer (he could get a nice acoustical sound going with the hammer hitting the anvil He narrated every step as he beat/heated/beat (over and over) on the hot metal as he made a leaf key ring.
We ended our day with a great steak at a nearby Texas Roadhouse (we'd never been to one and it was good!).
Here are some pics of the Biltmore and the Gardens;
We'll be heading out in the morning to visit/have lunch with an RVer you all know well...no...not Kahuna...we'll see him later in the day!
Keep poundin' them rivets because it's ALL worth it! Rosie & Tuppergal
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