Mount Stewart - National Trust. A day out with our Grandson

We've had both English Heritage and National Trust memberships over the years, but this is the first time we've had both at the same time. Where we live we have a couple of both organisations running places near us. English Heritage suited us better when the children were smaller and we used it a lot when we were on holiday. National Trust has suited us better since we moved back to the UK what with having a dog, but now we find that with having a camper van and travelling a bit further, that we're actually using both some membership of the two was a logical decision and we're in credit with both within a couple of months of joining having visited numerous places far and wide already.

We're currently in Northern Ireland visiting family and took our Grandson out for the day. An hours drive away on the edge of Strangford Loch is Mount Stewart, a 19th century house and gardens in County Down.

There was so much to see and do at the house. Our 3 yo grandson was fully entertained for the entire visit from the tea rooms where he could do some colouring in where he was able to eat his packed lunch while we had coffee, sandwiches and cakes to exploring the house and being given little challenges by the staff to find certain objects in each room, and found the hidden toilet hysterical, to running around the grounds, watching the swans on the lake, hands on experience in the look out by the car park before we even entered the grounds, the nature woodland play area to buying new bed time books in the second hand book store. He even got to see his favourite tele handler outside the main house and was fascinated with the number of fallen trees after storm Éowyn. 

I'll do a follow up next week of the rest of the house and grounds and the things I go to look at when Peter wasn't reading all the information boards and I got a chance to take photos without worrying about a 3 yo slipping under the ropes and touching things.