Bantry House & Gardens 1) Please COPY the ENTIRE FORM below and paste it into an email to start 2) UPDATE your information carefully. We check it, but might not notice any errors, etc. 3) Prefix the SECTION HEADERS with: *** - Example: ***Opening Days: (new info) 4) email the ENTIRE FORM UPDATED back to us ASAP: wd (at) armchair-travel (dot) com **************************************************************** **************************************************************** Garden Name: Bantry House & Gardens Last Modified (we set this): 16-02-2013 Garden ID (we set this): 0516 pic (we set this): 0516_Bantry.jpg NOTE: If "missing", then please send us a picture for which is at least 1000 x 1000 pixels in size. Thanks! Garden Owner: Mr. & Mrs. Shelswell-White Address: Bantry Co. Cork Postcode: County: Republic of Ireland Country: tel: +353 (0)27 50047 fax: +353 (0)27 50795 website: www.bantryhouse.com public email: info //at// bantryhouse.com admin / private email: (add here for GG-only usage) group master website: English Heritage Grade (I, II, II*): Opening Days & Times: April - October; Tuesdays to Sundays (Closed Mondays); 10am-5pmNew for 2013: Every Tuesday at 2pm, Sophie Shelswell-White, daughter ofthe owner will give a guided tour of the House. €15 per person, duration 45 minutes. Parties / Coaches (Yes/No): Yes Parties / Coaches Comments: No appointment necessary unless guided tour for groups desired Viewing by Appointment (Yes/No): Yes Viewing by Appointment Comments: No appointment necessary unless guided tour for groups desired House Open for Viewing (Yes/No): Yes House Open Comments/Dates/Times: April - October; Tuesday to Sunday(Closed Monday); 10am-5pm; last admission 4.30 National/Scotland Garden Scheme days (Yes/No): No NGS/SGS Comments (PLEASE include DATES and Times): Best Times of Year to Visit: May, June & July ...To see (pair by line with Best times to visit): Wisteria Circle, parterre, hundred steps, woodland walks sunken garden Admission Prices: Adult €11; Concessions €8; Child €3; Family day ticket €26; Season Garden Pass €7.50Garden only: €5Includes (self-guided) tour of the house. 12 (Yes/No only) items follow here- Parking: Yes Lavatories: Yes Disabled Access: Yes Shop: No Plants for Sale: No Lunches: Yes Teas: Yes Refreshments: Yes Picnics: Yes Dogs allowed: Yes Only on Lead: Yes Events: Yes Other Facilities or Comments on (Yes/No) items above: Limited access for the disabled. Groups needing lunch should book in advance.Please check for upcoming events on own website. Special Features, Events/Dates and other comments: Wisteria Circle, Hundred Steps, Italianate Gardens & Fountain and spectacular viewsHouse contains an important collection of furniture, tapestries and objets d'art National Collection: Garden Designer: Second Earl of Bantry Description of Garden: The second Earl of Bantry terraced the land around the house, seven terraces in all, with the house sitting on the third terrace. A parterre facing south surrounding a wisteria circle, which again surrounds a fountain was also created. From there rise the famous Hundred Steps, a monumental staircase built of local stone, set amidst azaleas and rhododendron. Garden History: The structure of the garden as we know it today, dates back to the second Earl of Bantry's travels. Both he and Mary, his wife, travelled with notebooks and sketchbooks (now in the Archive at University College Cork) at hand, which helped to transform the small house at home into a "palazzo" comparable to those he had seen on the continent. The 'Cardinal Rule' to be applied was that house, garden and site must be a unit, as if one could not have been conceived without the others. The garden, indeed the whole demesne, had fallen into great neglect over many years. In 1997, due to the offer of EEC grant, the decision was taken to start restoration work on the garden. The grant came to an end in 2000, but thankfully work in the garden is ongoing. Woodland is being cleared and maintenance of the restored areas kept to a high standard.Bantry House is the ancestral home of the Earls of Bantry, still lived in by their descendant Egerton & Brigitte Shelswell-White, and their family. Local Inns (name, town): Accommodation (name, town): Accommodation available on B&B basis in the east and west wing Restaurants (name, town): On site Village/Town/Sightseeing: Bantry West Cork