Don't go for the house, but do go for the gardens! I enjoyed the various video explanations on the history of the house, the grounds en how this was one of the first places that boasted its own electricity supply. Lovely walks, good food in the cafe. Was not impressed with the service i the posh restaurant, we walked out before ordering anything.

hadn't visited in a while and a lot of work done to improve the gardens a great visit catching up with a friend topped off with a nice coffee and a piece of cake yum

Nice to visit for people who love trees, to me who found the Great Walls boring, this garden is a bit plain. Yes, I like trees, and some of the old trees are really something, but no more, the so called cascade is just a bit of water coming ten feet down and there it is. The few old buildings this and there and a Chinese hut, but the hut is equal to a toilet in the middle of a Hong Kong paddy field…

We always enjoy a good stroll around gardens. Worth having membership if you go more than once. Food at the end of walk is always very tasty 😀

I've visited Hestercombe Gardens on a number of occasions and have always had a great time. I have taken my younger sister when they had an Easter hunt and have also gone with adult friends. The gardens are gorgeous and I recommend going on either a sunny or Autumnal day. There is a great walk you can take and they provide you with a map with all the sites for you to see. I expecially love the waterfall and all the little buildings you come across. There is a sweet little cafe where you can get snacks and drinks. Hestercombe were also kind enough to donate some free tickets to me a few years ago for a charity raffle I was holding. This was very generous and I urge people to support this great attraction. Be aware, it's a little out of the way, so easier to get to by car! It's family friendly in as much as the activites they have but you may struggle with a pushchair or wheelchair, due to the uneven ground in places and some of the hills!

A wonderful combination of natural landscape and small lakes and walkways contrasting with formal gardens. The formal gardens were stunning and anyone who likes plants should visit. The restaurant is lovely.

Perfect place to while away some hours, enjoy the formal gardens and walk around the grounds. Lovely cafe area- make sure you check their serving times for hot food as we unfortunately were caught out and could only have cake!! (which was lovely).

This was an organised trip as a day out for 30 people. Most went on a prearranged guided tour and everyone agreed the tour guide was terrific. Those less able did what parts of the garden they could and enjoyed the wonderful lay out and the flowers still in bloom and some of the historic interests. As we arrived early everyone had coffee or a drink in the café before setting off round the 48acre garden and although we were a large party the café dealt with us quite quickly. Heavy rain had been forecast but amazingly did not arrive so we were all in good spirits for the excellent food served at lunchtime something for all price ranges. We did not partake in the wonderful afternoon teas served from 12noon in the upmarket dining area, but had a quick look, these ranged from £8.50 to about £21.00! Try it for a real treat but the café is fine and has indoor and outdoor seating. Toilets placed in strategic places and a nice shop that included plants. Plenty of parking and picnic areas and you can take the dog.

Allow 3-4 hours to properly explore the formal gardens, more naturalistic landscape, and the dozen or so follies therein. The courtyard cafe is reasonably priced (allow £20 for lunch for four) whilst the adjoining shop and plant nursery is compact but with a diverse stock range - visit there last, as it stocks many of the plants you'll have seen in the formal gardens. Book online in advance for a useful discount.

Hestercombe Gardens had been open for only about one year when we visited in August 2015 and there was clearly "still work to be done". The house and grounds are managed by a charitable trust.
The several formal gardens are very nice indeed: Well managed, colourful and nicely laid out.
There is also a longer walk around the valley to one side of the house, with various ponds, "temples" & "monuments" strategically placed for effect; and there are excellent views across the distant hills from several points. Some paths are not suitable for wheelchairs, but there is still plenty to see for those who are less mobile.
The ponds at the top of the walk are still in need of attention, and the lower ponds need a bit of aeration to get the water brighter, but you can see that the trustees have put a lot of work in to restoring these areas.
Quite attractive: However "not quite "Stour Head" " as one of our party remarked.
On the other hand, Hestercombe gardens welcome well behaved dogs on leads... which Stour Head does not... and there are places where children can "play with the water", so this place is far more "family friendly" than Stour Head ...and for that matter many other similar estates.
It is a good place for a family to visit and picnic for the day...but you need to visit for the full day to get value for the relatively high entrance fee.
We "took tea" in the cafe area. It was reasonable value for money, comparing well with similar sorts of outlets, and everything was clean. The outside covered eating area is OK, but the cafe serving area is in need of an "upgrade".
The house itself was, until only a few years ago, the HQ of the local Fire Service, and the scars of its use as an office block are still visible inside. The House has been built on the site of a much earlier one, though very little of the original building exists, and you will need to ask if you want to see it.
There were a couple of free exhibitions going on when we visited. We liked them, although they were probably a bit boring for children.
On the whole, well worth a visit.

Gardens are a real find, surprisingly quiet for a sunny day in August. Under 7s play ground was ideal. Cafe clean and great food - worth going for this alone! Stunning location. Please go!

We went here on one of their school holiday Monday events. There were craft activities on and the kids had fun doing that but not as much fun as they did pretending to be animals and swinging in trees, playing on rocks etc. The walks through the parkland are lovely but it is hilly so people with mobility issues be aware. We had coffee and cake at the cafe and it was very nice. It is very similar to a National Trust property (but it is NOT National Trust owned).

We stopped off at Hestercombe to break our journey from the south west to the midlands. It really is a great place to stop. The cafe does an amazing Sunday roast, one of the best we've had and the 40 acres of grounds including the Jeckyl and Lutyens formal gardens are well worth the visit. Staff were really polite and efficient in the cafe. They are members of the HHA too so we got in for free! We will definitely be returning to explore the gardens further.

My friend and I chose Hestercombe to spend an afternoon out and sadly we were both a little disappointed. Firstly it is vastly overpriced for what is offered. I am 60 something but was very surprised to find there was no Seniors discount, and £10.50 out of a pension is steep especially when all you get is a couple of hours stroll around the garden. On the plus side the gardens were beautiful and the views stunning and fortunately the weather was lovely, but not sure how we could have done the walk if we were less able bodied or if the weather had not been good. Having enjoyed the walk we were looking forward to visiting the house and art display....this is where the visit went horribly downhill! The two open rooms on the ground floor were empty barring a large table in what we assumed to be a conference room (for corporate use). We would have loved a little period furniture to get the feel of the history of the house. Instead we were given an A4 sheet for us to read 'the history of the house' - not quite what we expected!! The first floor took us to the gallery with photographic display by a renowned artist who we had never heard of, and I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder but a few photo's of allotments and dead leaves did nothing for us !! It was so bad my friend and I sadly found it very amusing. (not very becoming for a couple of mature ladies) Anyway, finally we thought a nice cuppa would end the afternoon on a more positive note but all we found was overpriced tea and cakes, so sadly we left to make our way home for afternoon tea. Our overall impression was that its a lovely stroll in beautiful surroundings if you are fit, but massively overpriced and the house visit is a complete waste of time. My advice would be to half the price for the walk and do something with the house to make it worth walking through the front door.

We were driving through the area and saw the Hestercombe signs and thought it would be nice to have a stroll through the gardens for about an hour and a half.

We could not walk far as my father-in-law has mobility challenges with his walker as he gets tired fast. So really it would have been a short stroll, maybe a walk around the art gallery, a browse of the book & plant shop and a cup of tea.

We drove in and could not see any signs to an information desk or booth or welcome center so we drove down the driveway until we came a building where I went in to inquire on a short-period admission. Turns out this building was the Art Gallery.

Unfortunately we were told that this would not be possible and we would have to pay the full £10.50 per person admission fee.

I inquired if there was a reduced admission fee for disabled persons and the gentleman at the desk was not sure about this and directed us to inquire at the main office. He also mentioned that there were no elevators in the gallery so my father-in-law would only have been able to browse the lower level. I also wanted to know if we could visit the Garden Shop & Plant Centre and Book Shop without paying a fee and he also did not know.

As we left the driveway, we noticed the steep steps and rough garden paths and realized that it would have been very difficult to tackle with a walker.

We then decided that paying more than £40 for a short stroll was just bad value, especially as my in-laws would not have been able to have easy access of the gardens or see the gallery in its entirety. It does look beautiful and maybe one day we’ll return to enjoy a day out there.

My recommendation to Hestercombe's management is to ensure that staff in all departments are trained to provide basic information to customers as we were not impressed that simple questions about admission could not be answered. And also to consider a short-visit or half day admission fee.

Wandering around the gardens is a very pleasant way to spend a morning or afternoon. The garden centre, gift shop and cafe are very good and the shop has some interesting quirky products.

Now that the whole, both house and gardens, are under the control and management of the Trust, this has become an excellent venue for the mature visitor. The famous formal garden by Getrude Jekyl and Edward Lutyens is a delight, if smaller than some might expect, but is vividly contrasted by the amazing woodland, hill and lakes, informal gardens by the Bampfylde family extending for acres up the hill to the north beyond the house. A truly excellent venue, both for dining in the new restaurant, with a small but excellent menu of quality, but also for less formal eating in the courtyard cafe. There is great scope for wonderful walks through the woodland setting. Weddings, generally conducted in the orangery, with the spreading lawns beyond, have the benefit of a beautiful view over Taunton Vale. In addition there is the amazing hall for major events, public meetings and for hire. There is a small garden centre selling plants, a second hand book shop and and a nice gift shop. Entrance fees do seem a bit expensive. Apart from walking and the cafe eats, this is possibly not the ideal venue for groups of small children.

A walk around these most attractive gardens is made at your pace and can take between two to three hours. There is such a variety of shrubs, plants, trees and other items of interest. Towards the end of your journey there is a feast of formal gardens - just delightful. The small nursery (where plants may be purchased at reasonable prices) is worth a visit. At journeys end there is the restaurant where you can enjoy a variety of delicious snacks and drinks.

Amazing what can I say, absolutely stunning, lovely walks, amongst superb plantings , gardens fabulous, tea rooms served tasty food and were reasonably priced. We bought some lovely plants too.

Had a lovely walk with my partner and our dog. Then we had a nice cold drink and a huge piece of cake in the cafe. Lovely morning out.

Lots of nice walks around a very picturesque setting, plenty of information available comprising of Videos, old photos,and booklets etc.Good shops and food on site ranging from hot drinks and cakes to a full meal , not overly pricey unless you go to the column room restaurant where you can pay £9.50 pp for a cream tea, £18.50 for afternoon tea but probably worth it if you fancy a little decadence..Overall a very pleasant day out

The garden and the surrounding larger estate are fantastic. Had not been here for some time booked on the internet for a small discount. The staff were so friendly from the reception staff to the lady in the shop. And what lovely plants in the shop and very reasonably priced. Unfortunately the gallery in the house was not open so will be back to see this. Next time will have a meal in the house. The food was excellent in the lovely partly covered café Well done to everyone connected with Hestercombe

We enjoyed a train journey from North Hertfordshire to get here and we are glad we did. It was a most beautiful, sunny, warm day and the garden looked spectacular. You can see both the hands of Gertrude Jeykll and Edward Lutyens in both the hard landscaping and garden planting as you wander around this beautiful garden. It has wonderful sunken areas, seating in out of the way places, terraces and orchards as well as woodlands walks and large ponds to gently walk around and enjoy the shade and places to sit. In the distance the hills and beautiful Somerset countryside. We did not go into the house but enjoyed the cafe nearby which was very busy. We sat for our tea in an open courtyard which had, above our heads, an open girder-like structure which, to our minds as it was a very warm day, could have been covered with shading to give some relief from the sun. A very enjoyable visit but pick a dry warm day and you will not be disappointed.

This is a lovely gentle walk on a spring or Summers day, but the entrance price is quite high for the privilege.

Lovely formal gardens that have been beautifully restored whilst the walk around the woodlands and waterfall are well worth the effort, as the views are tremendous. Met a group of friends and we enjoyed morning coffee, lunch and afternoon tea in the cafe! Plenty of walking in between and also a visit to the art gallery in the house. Hopefully they will be able to make more of the premises in the future - in time for my next visit.