October 9, 2019

The Biltmore: Making the most of your visit

There are so many place on my must see travel list that it’s hard to imagine being able to get to all of them. The Biltmore has always been on the top of that list. A few months ago we we finally made it there recently to see it in person.

It is always fascinating being able to get a glimpse into others houses. It’s why I love browsing house listings on zillow. One of my favorite activities during the year is our towns annual tour of homes at Christmas. You get to tour the historic houses, perfectly decorated for the holidays and imagine the lives lived in those beautiful homes. Second to that fascination is seeing how people lived in past time. I’m sure that might just seem like I’m nosy, and maybe I am, but I love learning all the details.

Luckily for me the Biltmore’s entire purpose is to invite thousands of visitors every year to do both of my favorite things. Learn about the past and tour a beautiful house.

Facts about the Biltmore

  • The estate house sits in the middle of 8,000 acres of private property. Can you imagine managing that much land? We previously lived on 1 acre and it was too much for us to handle. The entrance road to the main house leads you through this beautiful forest.
  • The home took about 6 years to build, employed over 1,000 workers, and was completed between 1889 to 1895. The 250 room “castle” built by George Washington Vanderbilt II, was originally built to be his bachelor pad. It ended up being the family home for himself, his wife, and daughter.
  • The home was opened to visitors by his daughter Cornelia in 1930 as a way to weather the Great Depression and boost local tourism to the town of Asheville. In 1942 the house stored priceless art from the National Gallery of Art, to keep it safe during WWII.
  • The house is an astonishing 170,000 sqft and covers 4 acres of land. It houses 33 bedrooms, 65 fireplaces and 43 bathrooms. The home is built on a limestone base that is visible on the walls in the expansive underground basement hallways. It is the largest privately-owned house in the United States, still to this day.
  • The inspiration for the house came from George’s many visits to France. The home was designed by architect Richard Morris Hunt to resemble the beautiful grand chateaus all over France.
  • The beautiful gardens surrounding the home were designed by Frederick Law Olmsted (fun fact: there is a portrait of him hanging in the guest living room on the second floor). They cover more than 10 sq miles.
  • While Vanderbuilt wanted the forest surrounding the house to remain untouched, he did hire Gifford Pinchot and Carl A. Schenck to manage the forest. They in turn started the forst forestry education program in the U.S.
  • In additon to the house and gardens the property houses a few hotels, the Biltmore village and there are even stables.

Tips for visiting the Biltmore Estate

The Biltmore is one of the top attractions in North Carolina, and by far it’s the top attraction in Asheville. There are thousands of people touring the house and grounds every week. That means that the house can get crowded. It is by definition and tourist attraction, but it is 100% worth visiting.

1. Buy your tickets in advance

You can buy tickets when you arrive at the house, but everything we read recommended we purchase them in advance. This option allows you to pick your day so you are guaranteed to get in. During busier seasons they DO often sell out. It also saves you time because the ticket booth is an additional stop on your way in and is not located at the main house. Also make sure you print your tickets at your hotel before heading out because there in not an option to present tickets on your mobile device. We also saved $10 per ticket purchasing out tickets at least 7 days in advance.

2. Purchase the audio tour

When purchasing tickets you will see the option to add on the audio tour. The tickets to the house are not cheap, I highly recommend you add this on. The audio tour is an extra $12, but it guides you through the house and tells you about each room you walk through. We saw plenty of people with out the audio tour just walking through the rooms. However, out of the three stories the public can tour there was only a docent talking in 2 rooms, the grand hall and the library. The audio tour made the experience better as we really enjoyed hearing the stories and knowing exactly what each room was.

3. Go early in the day

Sleeping in is usually a priority on vacation, but make sure to head tothe Biltmore early in the day. We thought it shouldn’t take long to tour the house, but with the audio tour this large estate actually took about two hours to complete. Then it was off to the gardens.

4. Don’t skip the Gardens

There are 30 acres of formal and informal gardens around the house. The ones most worth seeing are located pretty close to the house, but you can travel all the way down to the Bass Pond located about 1/2 mile from the main house. The conservatory is especially beautiful with it’s glass roof letting the sunlight in and toy trains running through out the rooms overhead.

In addition to the actual gardens the estate also offers 20+ miles of beautiful walking and biking trails.

5. Book a Specialty Tour

In addition to the self guided tour there are a number of addition tours you can add on that let you see and learn about additional parts of the house that are not open to the public tour. Two of the most popular add on tours are the Rooftop Tour (which takes you to the 4th floor which houses the original blueprints for the house and George’s “man cave.”

You can find all the tour options here.

6. Enjoy lunch at the Estate

There are lots of options for eating during you visit at the Biltmore. They have everything from farm to table with fresh salads and flatbreads to the smoke house offering Carolina BBQ and southern favorites. You can find info about all your options here. We choose to try the BBQ and it was very delicious and served right outside the main house with lots a nice outdoor seating to relax while you eat. Don’t be afraid of the tourist prices because the food was very reasonably priced.

The highlight though was finishing our day with a treat from the creamery. Inspired by the original Biltmore Dairy bar and serves everything from pastries, to cupcakes, to delicious hand scooped ice cream!

7. Check out the Winery

Just like the french chateau’s that inspired George Vanderbilt to build his dream house the Biltmore has it’s own vineyard/winery. While George had and extensive wine collection, it was actually his grandson William Cecil that first planted the vines that led to the Biltmore Winery. The winery opened to the public in 1985.

The good news is that your admission ticket to the Biltmore includes a free wine tasting. So head over to the winery to take advantage and learn about all the wines made at the Biltmore. There are also specialty tours of the winery available if interested. Enjoy the store and be sure to take a bottle or two home to drink while reminiscing about your trip in the future.

8. Visit the Antler Village

It is tempting to skip Antler Village after spending a full day at the main estate. It’s located about 5 miles from the Biltmore House and has so much additional info and activities. There’s shopping, craft demostrations, an exhibit on the Vanderbilts, and lots of outdoor adventure options. This is also where you can find the Winery.

Make sure to check the Biltmore’s events calendar before your visit because during certain season of the year there are additional activities like Jazz music at the band stand or Popcorn and movies under the stars.

If you’re wondering where to stay while you are visiting the estate there are plenty of option on the property or even right outside. All of them are great options, but also might be a little pricey depending on your budget. We stayed a closer to downtown Asheville because we wanted to explore the rest of the city as well.

While the Biltmore is a a must see in Asheville there is so much more to explore around Asheville. Make sure you check out my post on all the other great adventures Asheville has to offer.

If you have visited the Biltmore, let me know below what your favorite thing about your visit was. If you enjoyed this post please share it so everyone can learn about this awesome place.

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