Anniversary Weekend in Asheville, NC and Home Tour of the Largest Home in America

For our anniversary this summer Brent and I decided to travel to Asheville, North Carolina. It’s only about a 4 and a half-hour drive away from Nashville. We’ve heard many people talk about their love of Asheville, so we thought we would check it out. A few things that drew us to the area were the Blue Ridge Mountains, the quirky culture of Asheville, and the enormous estate of The Vanderbilt family, Biltmore.

Since one of my favorite things is home tours, I thought it would be extra exciting to tour the largest home in the nation. Brent and I also have a love of gardening and heard the gardens are extraordinary.

Our Friday Festivities – Downtown Asheville

We left Nashville on a Friday morning and drove to Asheville. It was a scenic drive and we arrived at our destination by the early afternoon. We decided to stay at a hotel in Biltmore Village which is right outside the entrance gate of the Biltmore property. Brent found our hotel online, it was more of a long-term stay hotel but it was great for just our two nights. On Friday evening we hung out in downtown Asheville. We were able to find reasonable paid parking not too far from Pritchard Park, in the heart of downtown. The drum circle was in full swing!

We grabbed burgers and a shake from Farm Burger without too long of a wait then hit the Art Deco-lined streets to explore and soak in a night out on the town without kiddos in tow. So much was happening with live music practically on every corner. We popped into Mast General Store and had a ball picking out old-fashioned candy and vintage magic trick toys for our boys.

Our Splendid Saturday Plans – Biltmore Estate

We decided to set aside an entire day to tour the home and grounds of Biltmore. We found out that with the admissions ticket to the house tour you also get access to the gardens. The grounds opened at 9 am but our tour of the house was not until 1:15 pm. We were able to have a slow morning at the hotel, then we toured several of the gardens plus had a nice lunch at the Courtyard Market before our house tour. After the home tour, we were pretty tired and hot (it was late June) so we enjoyed ice cream from the Biltmore Dairy Bar and strolled the Italian Garden.

For dinner, we drove to Antler Hill Village which is on the estate, 5 miles from Biltmore House. Originally, the village was set up as a community area for the estate workers. After dinner, we enjoyed a stroll around Village Green while live music played. We took some time to walk through The Biltmore Legacy, a museum-type exhibition that provided a deeper dive into the lives of the Vanderbilt family. Access was included with our daytime admission.

The Gardens

I’m so glad we arrived at the estate many hours prior to our house admission ticket time. It gave us time to tour the gardens and grounds in the cool of the day. We visited The Terraces (I especially loved the Library Terrace with the Chinese Wisteria), Walled Garden, Rose Garden, and Conservatory which featured a botanical model train display among all the gorgeous plants and flowers. With nine distinct areas of gardens and trails, your eyes will feast at the awe and wonder of God’s creation.

As you drive onto the grounds 4 miles of approach road take you on a journey that shares no clues to the wildly beautiful home that is about to greet you. Once I saw the house, it took my breath away. That is one of the features Frederick Law Olmsted planned when he was designing the grounds and gardens. He’s also known for his design of Central Park in New York City.

The House

It is a sight to behold. I’ll just leave some pictures here, they are worth a thousand words.

Interesting Things I’d Like to Note (hopefully without spoilers)

• Be sure to find the room with gold wallcovering.
• There are 250 rooms in the French Renaissance chateau.
• The Music room has a very interesting history.
• There is a separate kitchen just for roasting meats.
• The home took over 6 years to construct.
• I appreciated that the servants also had breathtaking views of the mountains.
• Women had different outfits for all the various activities. They could change their clothes up to seven times a day – can you imagine their closets!

Tips for a Trip to Biltmore

• I would highly recommend reading The Last Castle to enhance your expereince. Although not endorsed by The Biltmore Estate I found it to be a wonderful read.
• Honestly, I don’t think it matters what season you visit, I imagine they all have their own unique beauty.
• Wearing a dress made the whole day feel fancy. Plus, I loved that my nails were painted.
• It’s a good idea to purchase your tickets in advance online. Be sure your ticket includes the audio guided tour headset. Brent and I loved hearing all the details about the house, it peaked our interest and left us wanting to know even more.
• Click here to see what time the admissions gate opens.
• Face coverings were required in all buildings.
• Reservations for dinner would be a good idea if you plan to eat on the Biltmore grounds.
• Be sure to check the current bag/purse size allowed in The Biltmore House.
• Walking shoes are a must. The garden trails go on forever, you don’t want hurting feet by the end of your day.
• For a second trip I’d consider afternoon tea at The Inn, the Backstairs Tour, Roof Top Tour, or the Expert Guided Small Group Tour.
• It really did feel like we were getting to experience what life was like at Downton Abbey.
• I found this article very helpful for first time visitors.

Thoughts About Bringing Children to Biltmore

My preference would be to visit Biltmore without children to give yourself more time to fully geek out and walk the gardens without little legs giving out. Although, there were many families visiting with children of all ages. Kids nine and under get free admission with an adult ticket. Youth ages 10-16 have a discounted rate ticket. I found out they have a kids’ version of the audio tour narrated by The Vanderbilts’ St. Bernard, Cedric. The ice cream shop could bring a nice pick-me-up and Antler Hill Village provided some kid-friendly entertainment with Pisgah Playground and a visit to the Farmyard.

Which room at The Biltmore would interest you most?

You may also like A Concrete Home Tour or Houses of Park City, Utah.

(All photos were taken by Franci and permission to post was granted by Biltmore Estate.)

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