Including Biltmore House, Biltmore Winery, and the Gardens
The Latest: Winter Specials at Biltmore | Festival of Flowers | Antler Village Opening Spring 2010
TIPS FOR VISITING BILTMORE ESTATE
1. Take your time exploring. Plan to spend the day, or perhaps two.
2. Wear very comfortable walking shoes.
3. Arrive early (9 a.m.) to avoid crowds.
4. Saturdays are the busiest days. The most crowded days of the year are Saturdays in April, May, October, November, and December.
5. Be sure to have an automobile since the drive to the Biltmore House from the entrance gate is three miles. It's another two miles to the Winery.
6. Bring a picnic or stop by the Ice Cream Shop outside the Biltmore House to purchase a picnic to go. There are many great picnic spots on the Estate.
7. If you arrive on the estate after 3 p.m., your ticket can be validated for the next day at the Reception & Ticket Center.
8. The grounds of Biltmore Estate are perfect for walking your pets, but please make sure to keep them securely leashed at all times. Pets are not allowed inside Biltmore House or other estate buildings such as the winery, restaurants, and shops.
9. Each guest is assigned a reservation time to tour the Biltmore House.
10. Go to the Biltmore Estate Web site for very detailed information and to purchase discounted tickets online.
11. Read more about Biltmore's current deals and specials!
OVERVIEW OF BILTMORE ESTATE
Biltmore Estate provides the ideal location for romance with a century old French Renaissance chateau. George W. Vanderbilt's 8,000-acre estate with its 250-room Biltmore House, 75 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens, and the nation's most visited winery offers plenty of opportunities. Download and print a PDF overview of visiting Biltmore Estate.
BILTMORE HOUSE: Share the wonder of Biltmore House, the largest privately owned home in America, with a priceless collection of arts and antiques original to the Vanderbilt home. Since the house is a self-guided tour, pay the little extra for the audio companion tour as soon as you enter the house. Excellent guided tours may be purchased to go "behind the scenes" like the Rooftop Tour. After touring more than 60 rooms in the house, stop at the Stable Courtyard for refreshments or a visit to several quaint shops (and one large souvenir shop). The Stable Café is great for sandwiches, burgers, and salads. Allow at least two hours for a house tour. Download and print a PDF guide of Biltmore House.
New!
Biltmore House Tour Reservations
Beginning July 1, 2009, guests to Biltmore will receive a reservation time to tour the House.
Guests who purchase their tickets online, by phone or in person at the estate Welcome Center will receive a reservation time. Guests who purchase tickets without reservation times (tickets purchased at a B&B, for example) may obtain a reservation time when they arrive on the estate at the following locations: Biltmore Welcome Center, Guest Service Desk (Stable Hallway), Biltmore House Reservation Desk (located under the covered archway between front of house and Stable Courtyard). Biltmore season pass-holders should make House reservations by calling the number above or in person at the Welcome Center.
New Rooms
Tour a suite of four rooms, the Louis XV Suite, that opened in 2009 for the first time. This is a major milestone for Biltmore, and one of the most revealing opportunities to date for Biltmore to tell the Vanderbilt family story. When guests tour through the suite, they will realize like never before that Biltmore was much more than a magnificent house when George Vanderbilt opened it on Christmas Eve 1895. It was a home, alive with family, friends and children. Having been restored to their original splendor, the suite of rooms – The Damask Room, The Claude Room, The Tyrolean Chimney Room and The Louis XV Room – is Biltmore’s first opportunity to fully portray Biltmore House as a family home and the Vanderbilts as parents. Biltmore’s Museum Services staff has spent years researching and planning for this restoration. Staff members have logged hundreds of hours of discovery and research, conservation and preservation in order to bring these rooms back to their original splendor. Read more.
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Listen to 5-minute Podcast about Specialty Tours | Biltmore Top 10 Of America's Favorite Architecture
GARDENS: Spectacular gardens and woodlands are perfect for leisurely strolls. From the house, walk hand-in-hand through gardens designed by renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, best known for designing Central Park in New York City. The lush and beautiful reflecting ponds of the Italian Gardens are a fitting entry into a stunning world of garden paths. A short walk takes you to the four-acre Walled Garden and adjacent Conservatory.
For a longer walk, follow signs to the Bass Pond to find a more secluded (and romantic) area, especially in the Boat House (above). In spring and summer, the Meadow Trail features wildflowers and grasses, while the Woodland Trail is ablaze with azaleas in spring. Stop by A Gardener's Place to shop or check into a guided garden walks during special events. For the best photo vista of the front of the house, walk up to the statue of Diana atop the hill facing the house.
OUR FAVORITE PHOTO SPOT: The most dramatic view of Biltmore House is en route from the house to the winery. Look for the small lake (Lagoon) on your left. There is a narrow unpaved road at the far end that crosses a small bridge and takes you around the lake for a stunning view of back of the Biltmore House. Add a blanket and a bottle of Biltmore Estate wine for an especially romantic outing.
BILTMORE ESTATE WINERY: At the winery, enjoy a self-guided "behind the scenes" tour and sample Biltmore Estate wines in the Tasting Room. Browse the Wine Shop. The Bistro Restaurant is an excellent choice for dinner, with its welcoming European atmosphere. Other culinary activities include cooking demonstrations, seminars, guest chef programs, introductory wine classes and daylong cooking classes featuring the estate's own chefs. Read more about the Biltmore Winery.
LIFE ON THE FARM: For those interested in learning about Biltmore's agricultural heritage, there's the Farm Village. The village includes the Historic Horse Barn, built in 1902 and restored in 2004 to communicate the rich farm life that the estate has supported for more than a century. In addition to displays of historic farm equipment, guests can explore the Kitchen Garden and meet draft horses, calves, lambs and chickens at the Farmyard. On select dates throughout the year, visitors can enjoy mountain music and see artisans including a blacksmith and woodworkers practice their craft.
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES: Behind the Biltmore Winery, you will find "Explore Biltmore Estate," an outdoor program with options for couples including hiking, biking, horseback riding, float trips, fly fishing and carriage rides. Special arrangements can even be made for a sunset carriage ride complete with Biltmore Estate sparkling wine. A horseback ride takes you along trails through fields and forests to a ridge overlooking Biltmore House. Splurgefor a private carriage ride around the estate. Or get in the driver's seat with the Land Rover Experience Driving School. Read more.
Segway Tours: Discover Biltmore trails on your all-terrain Segway personal transporter. Your two-hour guided tour begins with a training session. Then, you're off gliding along smooth trails past the lagoon, through rolling hills, and over scenic ridges. Daily, 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Sporting Clays: Experience the excitement of sporting clays with this two-hour lesson. Our expert instructor will guide you through the techniques of shooting clay targets with a high-quality Beretta shotgun. Daily, weather permitting. Go to the Biltmore Estate Web site for more.
Coming in 2010: Antler Village will open near the Winery. Read more.
HOW TO GET THERE
- From Interstate 40: Biltmore Estate is located just north of exit 50 on U.S. Highway 25.
- From Interstate 26: take Interstate 40 East, then take exit 50.
- From the Blue Ridge Parkway: take the U.S. Highway 25-North exit; Biltmore Estate is approximately 4 miles from the parkway.
HOURS AND ADMISSION
- Your daytime admission of $35-55/person includes a self-guided tour of Biltmore House, gardens, and winery. If you are a AAA member, check with them for discounted tickets.
TIP: Reserve a specialty tour for the next day and enjoy another full day on the estate at no charge. Or add a day for $10.
- You may purchase tickets at many of the inns and hotels in town.
- Save by purchaseing a Twelve-Month Premium Pass or a Go Blue Ridge Card.
- The Estate is open seven days a week, 365 days a year.
- The Admissions Gate and Reception & Ticket Center are open:
Nov 7–Jan. 4: 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m. (Daily)
Jan. 5–April 3: 10 a.m.–3 p.m. (Monday–Friday), 9 a.m.–4 p.m. (Saturday–Sunday)
For their events calendar and more, go to the Biltmore Estate Web site.
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