Hestercombe Gardens
Latest Reviews
Lovely restaurant/tea room. The formal gardens are pretty and the large grounds are good for walkers. Paths are not all well maintained yet and I would not be attempt without sturdy footwear. Lovely to see this house and gardens being restored.
Source: google.com
Beautiful peaceful gardens and walks. Fantastic restaurant with very friendly and helpful staff. Well stocked secondhand book shop, gift shop and plant shop.
Source: google.com
Normally I would rate this place as at least a 4...been before and gardens are beautiful. This time we turned off the M5 which was backed up with queues... looking for a lunch..which Hestercombe offers. Signage to get there not good... a bit of a weave through a housing estate cos we took a wrong turning I think.. avoided the houses on the way back and re joined M5 with no trouble.
Restaurant is indoor or outdoors under a canopy by a pretty fountain. We spoke to the waitress who found us a table and then we waited. And waited. An elderly disabled couple who came in after us got served first. When someone then came to take our order we mentioned that we were travelling and asked what was quickest ( soup and a cheese and pickle sandwich). We ordered and then waited over 20 minutes for food to arrive. Soup was good..homemade.. toast a bit meagre. Sandwich was made with white supermarket bread. Rather disappointing.
A bit pricey too..though ambience was nice..and maybe we wouldn't have minded so much if we hadn't needed to get food and go.
Restaurant is indoor or outdoors under a canopy by a pretty fountain. We spoke to the waitress who found us a table and then we waited. And waited. An elderly disabled couple who came in after us got served first. When someone then came to take our order we mentioned that we were travelling and asked what was quickest ( soup and a cheese and pickle sandwich). We ordered and then waited over 20 minutes for food to arrive. Soup was good..homemade.. toast a bit meagre. Sandwich was made with white supermarket bread. Rather disappointing.
A bit pricey too..though ambience was nice..and maybe we wouldn't have minded so much if we hadn't needed to get food and go.
Source: google.com
The visit started very well as the lady at the entrance was friendly and helpful. As a wheelchair user my wife and I were both charged half price. The route to the cascade was uphill but doable. The water mill was very interesting and the video excellent. The garden was partly accessible and very picturesque.We ended up eating in the restaurant which served interesting dishes at reasonable prices.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Very attractive gardens
Source: google.com
Wunderschön, für Gartenliebhaber ein Traum
Source: google.com
Extremely good day for all ages. Pleasant walks, and food. The staff are very friendly. Well worth a visit.
Source: google.com
Went to Hestercombe with our local Horticultural society yesterday. The gardens were beautiful with a wide range of styles from woodland areas to more traditional border planting. Hestercombe is set in the most glorious countryside so getting up to the high points is well worth it. The meadow field was stunning. We stopped at the Stables cafe for refreshments where I had the best Mocha I had had in a very long time and the cakes were delicious. The owners and staff had clearly spent time and effort was visible, even the napkins were decent!
Source: google.com
Amazing formal gardens: quite colourful at this time of year. Lovely woodland walk with great views from the top.
Source: google.com
Fab day out with our 2 dogs. The gardens were beautiful and staff friendly and helpful. The plants in the shop were excellent.
Source: google.com
Lovely gardens. Weather was typical British raining then sunshine but the gardens were nice to mooch around for a few hours. Very disappointed with the house though. No idea what the so called “art gallery” was meant to be. Very strange. Didn’t go in the cafe as I have been before and was expensive. Not too impressed that gift aid was automatically in the ticket price (unless you ask not to do it). I thought gift aid was free anyway? Not making the ticket price more. Need some sort of discount on prices also.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
We went to Hestercombe today using our Gardeners world 2 for 1 card. Entry for adults is £16.90 with gift aid or £15.30 without. There are plenty of loos dotted around with disabled facilities. There is a "Tramper mobility scooter" available if required but you must pre-book by email in advance. We went off on the many woodland paths and walked around the whole 50 acre site. Accessible paths are marked on the available map. We saw numerous buildings en route, many with fine viewpoints - Sibyl's temple, The witch house, etc. There is a cafe there but we brought our own lunch whilst sitting in the Rustic seat overlooking the Great cascade. There are numerous lakes, streams and cascades around the garden. In the lower part there is the Edwardian formal gardens a Victorian terrace and the house. That was a disappointment with nothing left inside as it had been used as Somerset fire brigades offices for decades previously. There are a few paintings in there plus the bookshop and gift shop.
Overall we were a bit underwhelmed as we expected much more colour and plants in the formal gardens. There are currently Delphiniums, Irises, Pansies in flower. Maybe if we returned in a couple of weeks then the Roses and Peonies will be in bloom. Even in the woodlands there was not much wild flowers and Rhododendrons and Azaleas were only few in number. Dogs on leads are allowed and there is a picnic area. There is also a nice plant sales area.
Overall we were a bit underwhelmed as we expected much more colour and plants in the formal gardens. There are currently Delphiniums, Irises, Pansies in flower. Maybe if we returned in a couple of weeks then the Roses and Peonies will be in bloom. Even in the woodlands there was not much wild flowers and Rhododendrons and Azaleas were only few in number. Dogs on leads are allowed and there is a picnic area. There is also a nice plant sales area.
Source: google.com
Feel so lucky to have this just down the road. Always something new to discover and dog-friendly too.
If you're local to the area, membership well worth considering
If you're local to the area, membership well worth considering
Source: google.com
Went to friends wedding reception there very good place garden's were very good
Source: google.com
Thoroughly enjoyed our day at the Spring Fair here. It was relatively quiet, there was a nice range of stalls and the formal gardens were beautiful. There was a lovely courtyard with a fountain to have a coffee and sit and listen to the entertainment (the wonderful Grey Dogs jazz band) and the house and exhibition were interesting. The refreshments (especially the ice cream) were quite expensive but I think the entrance fee was half what it usually is which counteracted that somewhat. We only realised on leaving that there was much more of the grounds we could have explored partly because the map we were handed on entering only covered a small area to show where the stands were. Would return for another visit.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Outstanding. The finest English garden design, complemented with an engaging woodland walk. A combination of empathetic and committed restoration with intelligent development of the facilities.
Source: google.com
Have been here many times with the wife and we have a wonderful experience on each occasion. Beautifully presented and filled with natural wonder. I never tire of it. It cannot be overstated how important it is to support the maintenance of such rewarding green spaces. I shall return many times over and encourage anyone to do the same
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Travelling up and down the M5 regularly I had noted the sign for Hestercombe , so on a beautiful May Day we decided to pay it a visit. The narrow roads near Taunton were a bit challenging, but we made it.
The house is unfurnished, and has not been lived in for a long time, but there was a modern art exhibition in some of the upstairs rooms, and the opportunity to take good photographs of the formal gardens through the windows. Interesting to read about what the estate has been used for in the 20th century, during WW2, and 60 years as Somerset Fure Brigade headquarters.
We walked over 2 miles round the interesting gardens, with both formal layouts, and banks of wild flowers. We loved all the lakes with connecting cascades and waterfalls, and I ended up with 100 photographs.
Spent 5 hours there, and really enjoyed our day out, including coffee and cake in Stables restaurant, and thought the main meals looked good.
The house is unfurnished, and has not been lived in for a long time, but there was a modern art exhibition in some of the upstairs rooms, and the opportunity to take good photographs of the formal gardens through the windows. Interesting to read about what the estate has been used for in the 20th century, during WW2, and 60 years as Somerset Fure Brigade headquarters.
We walked over 2 miles round the interesting gardens, with both formal layouts, and banks of wild flowers. We loved all the lakes with connecting cascades and waterfalls, and I ended up with 100 photographs.
Spent 5 hours there, and really enjoyed our day out, including coffee and cake in Stables restaurant, and thought the main meals looked good.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Beautiful place! The lady at the ticket desk gave our dog special allergy free treats and some extras as well so we thank you for that! We've been before and loved it both time. Spectacular gardens and so relaxing!
Source: google.com
A perfect setting whatever the weather. Glorious gardens and tranquility with glorious views all around. A place packed with a range activities throughout the year to delight all ages.
Source: google.com
There's quite a bit of walking if you want to see the majority of these gardens although the more formal garden is adjacent to the house. And they're lovely.
We chose to meander and look at the various follies and the waterfall and the stream and the various out buildings. Lots to see and it was nice and quiet and calm even though there was a Spring fair near and in the house.
The formal garden had lots of wisteria in flower. Stunning. Lots of photo. ops.
Inside the house was an ok shop and a gallery that had a number of pieces of modern art that was a bit beyond our comprehension.
Go for the gardens.
We chose to meander and look at the various follies and the waterfall and the stream and the various out buildings. Lots to see and it was nice and quiet and calm even though there was a Spring fair near and in the house.
The formal garden had lots of wisteria in flower. Stunning. Lots of photo. ops.
Inside the house was an ok shop and a gallery that had a number of pieces of modern art that was a bit beyond our comprehension.
Go for the gardens.
Source: tripadvisor.co.uk
Lovely craft fair and walk in the grounds
Source: google.com
Beautiful.
Source: google.com
Over twenty years since our last visit to Hestercombe...what a transformation.
The gardens are absolutely lovely, the views, surrounding woods and fields wonderful for walks.
The house sadly isnt furnshed, but there are some art instalations, the bonuses are the gift shop, cafe and restaurant for a spoil.
The gardens are absolutely lovely, the views, surrounding woods and fields wonderful for walks.
The house sadly isnt furnshed, but there are some art instalations, the bonuses are the gift shop, cafe and restaurant for a spoil.
Source: google.com
Lovely woodland walks, a formal garden, cafe, and plant sales. The house has gift shop with local crafts, art installations at certain times, and there is an excellent second hand bookshop. Everything you need for a great afternoon out.
Source: google.com
