The Palace of a Modern Magician (Cragside)

Member Name: collingwood21

Product:	Cragside
Date:	29/04/03 (170 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Dramatic setting, Totally unique, Plenty to see and do

Disadvantages: Expensive for non-members, Cafe service slow, Bad signposting at the exit

Cragside House is surely one of the most prominent National Trust properties in the north of England - and probably the most remarkable, too. Having lived in the north east since I began university in Durham back in 1997, I have been well aware of its proximity but frustratingly unable to visit it until very recently. You see, as with most of the National Trust's great houses, it is out in the middle of nowhere, inaccessible to the non-motoring public (*mutters under breath about inadequacy of public transport*). However, this April began with me getting my very first car - and an eagerness to start seeing the region I lived in properly for the first time. First stop: Cragside on its opening weekend.


- Getting There
Cragside is situated in northern Northumberland, just outside of the village of Rothbury (15 miles NW of Morpeth, 13 miles SW of Alnwick). Getting to this remote spot is fairly straightforward though, as it is not that far from the A1 - just take the junction for the A697 that is marked with a brown National Trust sign, and keep on following subsequent signs that will bring you to the estate. It took me an hour to reach Cragside from Newcastle, but I would have thought that it was possible for a day trip from as far away as Edinburgh or Durham.


- When you arrive...
Just inside the entrance to the estate you will need to stop outside a toll booth to gain admission - so make sure you have your membership cards or entrance fee to hand. Admission is free to members of the National Trust, with non-members paying £7.20 for adults, £3.60 for children or £18 for a family ticket. All visitors are given a free map of the estate with their tickets. The estate itself is absolutely huge, with there being four main areas to visit - the house, the stable block, the gardens and the rest of the grounds.


- The Stable Block
This is the first port of call for most visitors arriving at Cragside, as it is
where the toilets and café are located! The stable block also has a visitor information centre though, making it a good point to begin finding out about the estate. The displays include a 3D model of the estate, leaflets mapping out walks through the grounds (at 20p each) and a small exhibition on Lord Armstrong, the builder of Cragside. The display is pretty basic, but it does allow you to get some idea of how and why the house was built - and of the engineering genius of Armstrong, who amongst other things invented the breech loading canon and established Armstrong College in Newcastle (now part of the university).

The café - which I of course sampled in order to bring you a full report - is of a reasonable size, with plenty of seating and home cooked food on offer. National Trust cafes tend to have a reputation of being expensive but serving up excellent food, and this one was no exception. The café serves a choice of three meals each day (one meat, one fish, one vegetarian), a soup of the day, sandwiches and cakes; not a huge selection, admittedly, but all of it was good quality and the food I had was delicious (toffee apple pie - mmmmm). However, as the house itself does not open until 1pm, you tend to have a lot of people arriving on the estate intending to have lunch in the café before going up to the house - which means there is a huge rush of people all trying to be fed between 12.30pm and 1pm. I would really recommend you try avoiding this time if you want to eat here, as the queues were very long and the service was slow; by the time I actually managed to get seated with my food it had started to go cold as I had been waiting for so long to pay for it. The other thing I would advise is to consider taking a packed lunch if you have a large family, as otherwise your bill will be through the roof - there are plenty of picnic tables in attractive spots though, so this will not be much of a hardship. ;-)

Also located in the stable bl
ock is the shop - no National Trust property is complete without one! The goods on sale are pretty much standard across all properties; such things as NT and local history books, toys and badges for children, speciality foods and things such as mugs with Cragside pictured on them. Again all good quality, but not cheap. Personally, I rarely buy goods from these shops for myself, but have found them to be a useful source of gift ideas.


- The House
Built in the 1880s, Cragside House certainly lives up to its name - it is built into a rugged hillside overlooking Rothbury and the surrounding moors and forests. At the time of building, it was thought of as a "palace of a modern magician" by Victorian society, as no one had never quite seen anything like it. Lord Armstrong had applied the engineering genius that made him wealthy to creating not only a mansion in the most dramatic setting, but also into equipping it with the very latest in innovation. To start with, Armstrong built a pumping house to bring fresh water up to the house from the river running through the valley below. He then used this water to provide en suite bathrooms, showers, a Turkish bath suite and hot running water throughout Cragside. And if that wasn't enough, his house also had a passenger lift, fire alarms and central heating - and was the first house in the world to be lit by hydroelectricity.

Although occasional tours of the house are on offer, for most visitors it will be up to you to make your way around the house. Small guide booklets can be bought on the way into the house (around the 80p mark as I recall), and there are volunteer stewards placed in most rooms to answer any questions you might have as you pass through. Having worked as a volunteer in a National Trust house, I can tell you that most of these stewards are highly knowledgeable and are usually eager to share this knowledge with interested visitors - so don't be afraid to ask
. In fact, I would positively encourage you to ask about things as it will only increase your enjoyment and understanding of what you are seeing.

The interior of Cragside House is a mixture of styles, ranging from Victorian Gothic to décor from the mid-twentieth century, giving it a very mixed-up and eclectic feel. You won?t see the ballrooms and imperialist splendour of the older country house that NT visitors might be more familiar with, mind, but what you will see is something truly unique and remarkable. The whole time I was there I had to keep reminding myself that this house was built 120 years ago - Armstrong was so ahead of his time that Cragside manages to feel very modern, while at the same time retaining some of the more traditional elements of the gentleman's country residence. It really stands out in my mind from all of the other properties I have visited (and there have been many, I can tell you). Touring the house will take you 1 to 2 hours.


- The Gardens
Now, I will be the first to admit that I am not a gardener. I know nothing about plants and usually find the gardens to be the least enjoyable part of any visit I make to a NT country house - probably because I don't have the same understanding and appreciation of them as I do of the historic buildings. Cragside, though, is very different to what you might think of as a NT garden.

From its perch on the hillside, Cragside House overlooks one of the largest rock gardens in Europe (and I am talking large enough to have its own signposted walk through it) that leads down into the valley below. In the valley - amongst the seven million trees that make up the forest garden - is the Armstrong Walk that will take you through the most significant parts of the estate. This walkway has a clearly marked and signposted path and leads visitors to the pump house that brought water up to the house, the formal gardens, the river and gives you ample scenic views t
o the house and over Rothbury. Although the path is not very long, it is uneven and quite steep in places so is unsuitable for wheelchair access and anyone who is unsteady on their legs. I would strongly recommend that anyone intending to do this walk should make sure they are wearing something suitable on their feet - not necessarily hiking boots you understand, just something strong enough to walk comfortably in and that you wouldn't mind getting a little muddy.


- The Grounds
The Cragside Estate covers an impressive 1000 acres of woods and open country. Although parts of these grounds are designated wildlife and conservation areas, the National Trust has mapped out numerous pathways for you to explore at your leisure. The use of the grounds for walking is very popular in the local area, and when I was there I saw no end of people in hiking gear turning up purely for this. If you do intend to do some walking around Cragside, then you can buy guides for 20p each from the stable block information centre that will give you routes of varying length and difficulty. Do remember that you need proper walking shoes/boots and kit such as bottled water and waterproofs with you to do this - away from the gardens it is serious walking territory and you need to be adequately prepared for your own safety and comfort.


- Worth a visit?
I have to say that yes, Cragside is certainly worth a visit - I thoroughly enjoyed mine, despite having to wait 6 years before I could get there! Although admission prices are quite steep if you are not a member, you get a lot for your money and can easily spend a whole day there. There is plenty of parking, good food, great views and one of the most amazing historic houses I have ever visited on offer - not to mention the fact that by visiting you are helping to support the work of Europe's largest conservation charity. My only real complaint about the property is that the one-way system of roads
means you exit a long way from where you came in - and the signposts are awful. Given that there will be many visitors who are non-local, the powers that be really need to do something about this. I got lost trying to find my way back to the A1, and although the diversion wasn't serious, it does end the day with you cursing the NT a little for neglecting their visitors in this way.

Overall, recommended. Suitable for outdoors types, history lovers, garden fans and families. As long as they have cars.


- Details...
Cragside is open this year from April 1st - the house closes on November 2nd, but the grounds are open until 21st December. The estate is open 10.30am until 7pm (11am to 4pm November and December), the house from 1pm to 5.30pm (4.30pm September to November). The shop and café are open from when the estate opens its gates until when the house close. Last admission is 30 minutes before closing.

National Trust members enter for free. Non-members pay £7.20 for adults and £3.60 for children, with family tickets at £18.

Wheelchair access is available to most of the house and to the shop and restaurant, but not to the gardens.

Contact Cragside on: cragside@nationaltrust.org.uk or on (01669) 620333.

As with all NT properties, heeled shoes are not allowed to be worn inside the house and indoor photography is only allowed with prior permission from the manager.

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