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Growing up in NC I have been to the Biltmore several times and always enjoy my visit. My boyfriend booked us tickets to stay at the Inn around Christmas and take the house tour as a mini getaway. The decorations are truly breathtaking and worth the visit to see. Side note-My sister just visited within the last few weeks and they seem to no longer be allowing large purses/backpacks into the house so be aware prior to your visit. There are lockers near the bathrooms if you don’t want to leave your bag in the car. …
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Date of experience: December 2020
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Went during covid so it was a lot slower. Couldn’t imagine waiting in long lines. We didn’t do the gardens. Definitely do the audio with your tour. It’s only an extra $10ish. It’s a drive up and then walk so make sure you go 30 mins before your tour time.
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Date of experience: January 2021
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The Biltmore is worth the visit. It was uncrowded and the self audio tour was well worth it. Enjoyed every minute.
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Date of experience: January 2021
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The Biltmore was nice but not out of this world. I don’t think it is a place you need to return to but definitely a nice visit for the bucket list. We went with a toddler — the elevator of the estate only goes to the 2nd floor so if you want to go up with a toddler you have to take them out of the stroller. The gardens are nice but you can also drive to them — since we visited in the winter all the trees were bare. Make sure you go with a clear bag - if not you have to store your stuff in a locker. You don’t need a whole day - 2 hours is more than enough. …
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Date of experience: January 2021
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Unfortunately, Biltmore is no longer a desirable and “a time gone by” type place to visit. The TV commercials would have one think it is all just a laid-back and carefree place to visit, but it is a different story once you approach the house. Good luck on just randomly showing up one day and entering the house at your own leisure. Even before COVID-19, house reservations became a requirement for every day…and the place is NEVER overly busy. One problem is that the entry staff is not consistent on honoring house reservations. One time I had a 10:15am reservation, I arrived a little before 10am, and was told I would have to wait until the time stated on my reservation. However, while I was waiting, I saw people with a 10:30am reservation walk right in ahead of me. It seems like you go through 5 checkpoints before entering the house and walking at your own leisure. I have even seen one party get through the first two “checks,” then by the time they got to the third, had to turn around and wait even longer before entering the house! This was because the first two employees saw nothing wrong with letting someone go in a little earlier than printed on their confirmation, but the third employee did! The straw that broke the camel’s back happened with “Melanie” and her accompanying and overbearing male co-worker. She accosted my mother, who is nearly 80 years old, and told her she would have to dump the entire contents of her small purse into a plastic bag. When I questioned the motive, which had never been done on SEVERAL prior visits within the last 6 months, she changed her story so many times on the “procedures” that I could not keep up…and then she got defensive about it. A purse no larger than 6.5x4.5” is allowed in, and while I do not normally carry a ruler around with me (and neither do they), I am pretty sure my mother’s purse met this requirement. I got so flustered by the unprofessionalism of these employees that we decided to leave the estate and I received a refund for the time remaining on our annual passes, which was about half of a year. I would suggest anyone else do the same who is tired of seeing untrained employees harassing innocent patrons who just want to visit what is supposedly a reverent place in some people’s eyes but really just a vehicle to keep generating income for the Vanderbilt and Cecil families who are already insanely wealthy. Biltmore – preserving history or preserving the wealthy with an elitist attitude?…
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Date of experience: January 2021
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