If you're ever in Asheville, North Carolina, an absolute must-do is Biltmore, the George Vanderbilt Estate. When you go through this gate, you're instantly transported to a very different place and time. The Vanderbilt family still owns and runs this estate. They are a big employer in Asheville.
This approach road is lined with an artful combination of native and well adapted non-native trees and shrubs. The grounds were designed by Fredrick Law Olmstead, the father of American landscape architecture, and designer of New York's Central Park, among many other famous urban parks. For you Portlanders, Laurelhurst Park, the Oregon State University campus, and many more were designed by John Olmstead, Frederick's son. The acres and acres of forests that surround the estate were planned by none other than Gifford Pinchot, the revered father of American Forestry. Ted's forestry friends and Pacific Northwesterners know who he is, for sure.
Eventually, you get to this. There is no way anyone's photograph could do justice to this magnificent, 250 room, French Renaissance Chateau.
The details that Architect Richard Morris Hunt built into his plan are astounding. Gargoyles such as these inhabited just about every corner. They are more daring in length than those we saw in Great Britain.
This knight, along with two lions, guarded the entrance.
This sculpture sat atop the atrium. No photographs were allowed inside, so if you want to see it, you'll just have to go there.
The Italian Garden is the view from the entrance.
The ponds featured several different varieties of lotus.
From the Italian garden, you walk into the shrub garden,
Along the side is this shaded, trellised walkway featuring fountains, statues, and a beautiful rock wall.
Further down is a rose garden with trellises of many different shapes. Single row English roses with small, rather plain blossoms climb on this one. You quickly realize that visits at different times of the year will yield varying floral displays.
A bit further is this magnificent conservatory.
This was one of many gorgeous denizens of the orchid room. Fyi - you do NOT need valet parking, but the valet parking did make us feel like Vanderbilts-for-the-day. There are shuttles from the parking lots. You DO need the self-guided tour handsets. If you reserve your tickets seven days in advance, you save $15, which pays for the self-guided tour handsets.
It is not cheap (about $60/person), but if you come here, plan to spend the entire day, including dinner at one of the many fine restaurants on the estate. Well worth the time and money.
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