A few weeks ago, we took our first long road trip as a family of six. As we headed down the east coast to see friends and relatives as far south as the Gulf Coast of Alabama, one of our stops was Asheville, North Carolina, where we visited Kim's grandfather. After a nice Sunday morning at church and lunch afterwards, we spent an absolutely beautiful afternoon at the Biltmore Estate.
If you ever find yourself in the Asheville area, the Biltmore is a must-see! Designed by architect Richard Morris Hunt and brilliant landscape architect Frederic Law Olmsted (designer of Central Park in New York City, as well as many famous neighborhoods through the country), and touted as America's largest home, it is a stunning tribute to the opulence of the Gilded Age.
Commissioned in the last decade of the 19th century by George Washington Vanderbilt II of the famous Vanderbilt family, I was stunned to learn that the huge house was the residence of only three people: Mr. Vanderbilt, his wife, and his daughter. This is a little bit of a funny statistic, though. The guides at the house confirmed that, in addition to numerous guests frequenting the estate, there was a house staff of more than 30, and that at one point, a census recorded 400 people working on the grounds of the estate!
The house is really beautiful and in the style of French chateaux. Unfortunately, photography was not allowed inside, so you will just have to take my word for it. On the other hand, I could not take enough photos of the gardens surrounding the house! The landscape around the house is delicate mix of natural landscape and formal landscape. During our visit in late April, the estate was celebrating its annual Festival of Flowers. Stunning!
The view from the main entrance back toward the front lawn.
The ground at the back of the house drops away in a steep hill.
The terrace to the side of the house is a great place for kids to run around after having been calm for so long on the house tour!
The stunning view to the mountains . . .
. . . from this arcade on the first floor.
A wisteria-festooned pergola leads down from the house to the main flower garden.
The walled flower garden in early spring is a stunning sight indeed.
The trellis-work in the walled gardens frames the many varieties of tulips.
On the other side of the walled garden is the greenhouse.
The greenhouse was filled with tropical plants, including palms and orchids.
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