Chatsworth House: A Stunning Day Out – But Is It Worth the Price?
Chatsworth House is undoubtedly one of the most impressive places we've visited so far on our travels around Britain. The house is spectacular, the gardens are enormous, and there's enough here to keep you occupied for most of the day.
“Grand dining room inside Chatsworth House, featuring a long formally laid dining table, crystal chandelier, deep red walls, gilded decoration, historic portraits and an ornate decorated ceiling.”
But there's another side to visiting Chatsworth — the cost.
Mrs PJ and I recently spent the day exploring Chatsworth House and Gardens, and while we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, by the time we'd paid for admission, parking and something to eat and drink, it certainly wasn't a cheap day out.
Arriving at Chatsworth
Chatsworth sits in the beautiful Derbyshire countryside, and you get a sense of the scale of the place before you've even reached the house.
Parking was straightforward, although one thing immediately caught my attention: parking cost us £10.
Even Blue Badge holders are now charged for parking, which is something disabled visitors should be aware of before travelling.
How Much Did We Pay?
Admission for Mrs PJ and me came to around £60 for the two of us, and then there was another £10 for parking.
That's £70 before you've bought a coffee, something to eat or even started wandering around the gift shop.
We were also given the option of adding a 10% donation when buying our tickets. We declined it — £60 admission plus £10 parking already felt like a substantial contribution!
Inside Chatsworth House
Whatever you think about the price, there's no denying that Chatsworth House itself is magnificent.
“Inside Chatsworth House, showing the magnificent Painted Hall with its grand staircase, black and white chequered floor, ornate gilded decoration and spectacular painted ceiling.”
The rooms, artwork, architecture and history make it a fascinating place to explore, and we spent plenty of time simply looking around and taking everything in.
One of the things I enjoy about making Explore Britain with PJ is being able to take you along with us rather than simply showing a collection of pretty pictures. Hopefully, when you watch the video, you'll get a much better idea of what it's actually like to visit.
The Gardens
The gardens are almost an attraction in their own right.
They're huge, beautifully maintained and contain far more than you might expect when you first arrive. We spent enough time exploring them that I've actually made the gardens into a separate video.
That video will be going live on the Explore Britain with PJ YouTube channel tomorrow.
Accessibility
Accessibility is something I'm going to pay increasing attention to as we visit places around Britain.
Chatsworth covers a very large area, so anyone with limited mobility needs to take that into consideration. There are accessible facilities available, but distances between different parts of the estate can still be considerable.
I'll continue pointing these things out in our videos because knowing whether somewhere is genuinely practical to visit can be just as important as knowing whether it's beautiful.
Coffee... Don't Get Me Started!
Naturally, at some point during the day Mrs PJ and I needed a coffee.
It wasn't particularly cheap.
And unfortunately, it wasn't particularly good either!
Food and drink can quickly push the cost of a Chatsworth visit considerably higher, especially if you're bringing the whole family.
By the time we'd paid for admission, parking and refreshments, we'd spent somewhere around £100 on the day before even counting the fuel to get there.
That's something worth knowing before deciding whether Chatsworth fits your budget.
So, Is Chatsworth Worth Visiting?
Yes — but with a qualification.
Chatsworth House and Gardens are genuinely impressive and we're glad we went. There's an enormous amount to see and it's very easy to spend an entire day here.
But I can't ignore the price.
For a couple it's already an expensive day out. For a family, admission, parking, food and drinks could turn it into a very expensive one indeed.
That's exactly why we're building Explore Britain with PJ.
We're not just going to show you beautiful places. We'll tell you what they cost, what the facilities are like, how accessible they are and, most importantly:
Would we spend our own money to visit again?
Keep exploring!
PJ & Mrs PJ
Explore Britain with PJ
