National Trust - Snowshill Manor and Garden — Attraction in Tewkesbury

As we come to the end of summer and the end of september the recent heavy rain has signalled the emergence of the fungal fruit and it looks to be a good year. The many ancient woods are the home to speciality mushrooms sort after by many of the finer restaurants and hotels in the cotswolds and even further afield. Get there early to photograph them before they disappear. We had the pleasure of visiting here during a 4 day period of sun. The walk from the car park through the ancient wood land was quite magical with a carpet of wild garlic and blue bells. The formal gardens are just as spectacular especially with all the rain we have had. The Manor House and out buildings are fine examples of the architecture of the cotswolds. The Manor House is big display cabinet for the over 9000 of 19000 object dare collected by the late Charles Wade. Even the out buildings and garden display his collection. The items seem to have been hoarded by an innocent child or someone using medication or psychedelics, but non the less an amazing cosmopolitan glimpse of arts and crafts from around the world. If they only show about 45% of the collection at one time so you can move, I still don't know how he found the time to collect it all. You will need at least a morning or afternoon really look at everything and a torch. If it is a sunny day then allow a couple of hours to connect to the formal gardens. There is a nice cafe on site if a little pricey but be aware some of this property is 500 years old and must cost a fortune to keep water tight warm enough not yo be too humid. Allow a day to...

This was an interesting afternoon learning about Mr Wade and his impressive collection, although very wet, dull and gloomy outside, so the garden couldn't be appreciated much, plus we'd missed the snowdrops as visiting in March. The Manor is impressive though and so much to see and look at - a lot of little things like tiny jewel-like preserved scarab beetles in little jars, in beautiful, often inlaid, wooden cased display cabinets that were artefacts themselves. There's a room devoted entirely to wheels so old byciclea and penny farthings, one to beautiful and intricate costumes, including shoes, bags and hats, and one to musical instruments. However, the weather made looking at all the artefacts in this collection a little hard to see, as the house has small windows and not that much electric light owing to preserving all the amazing pieces from over the world. So using torches from our phones is a good idea. Look out for the room full of Samurai - impressive, odd and a bit scary looking (wouldn't want to fall asleep in that room!) And my youngest decided to count the clocks/timepieces as there were so many (I think 47 was finally count! How many can you find?!) As ever, the volunteers and staff were knowledgeable and friendly. We didn't visit the cafe as had our own provisions, so cannot comment on food service/food here, but otherwise all neat, trim and well tended to. Would be 4.5 stars, if there was a half; just not entirely my cup of tea as prefer more gardens. But well...

A lovely property to visit with beautiful gardens. The car park is a decent size and close to the entrance, cafe, gift shop and loos. There is an approx. a 15 minute walk time given up to the actual manor house from the entrance but this is wholly dependant on your mobility level. The path has some lovely views and some very welcome benchs, which I used! There is a golf buggy service offered to the houses gate but not sure how often it runs. I got it on my way back as still some uphill bits my knee moaned at lol. There is also a scooter parking space near the manor gates as well as more loos. The last bit of path left upto the lawned entrance, on the left, is a little steep but well worth it. There is a little second hand book shop to the right of the garden entrance. There are naturally cobbles, uneven surfaces and steps to negotiate around the property so I'd definately call first to make sure you get the most from your visit if you do have mobility issues, use mobility aids, scooters etc. I left my stick in the car but deemed it too far to go back for it once I'd started walking, so heads up! Make the most of the offered buggy if you are concerned. Obviously the house has steps, stairs, low ceilings etc etc all of which are familiar traits of a beloved NT property and all of which undoubtedly add to its charm and appeal. I'm so glad I visited. The team of room guides were very approachable knowledgeable and passionate about...