Woodchester Mansion Trust, Stroud

Woodchester mansion is an amazing Grade 1 listed building frozen in time when all construction stopped in 1873 on the passing of it's owner William Leigh. The mansion, managed by it's own trust & volunteers, is a fascinating place to visit to discover it's amazing history. There is a shuttle bus service down the valley from the National Trust car park, cafe & gift shop inside the mansion, toilet facilities, also surrounding woodland walks and a series of ponds with boathouse. Highly recommended to visit!

A lovely walk! The Mansion looks lovely but at the moment it looks like it's undergoing structural improvements, if you are there to see the Mansion and not to walk around the grounds maybe wait for a month or two to see it in it's full glory. The grounds in my opinion are the most interesting part, mainly because of the animals and the free aspect :p. Some parts of the trail can be quite challenging as it's steep and muddy in areas but it's a gradual incline so just take your time and wear walking boots :) it's really worth visiting. There is also a mini bus that can take you to and from the Mansion to the car park if you find it challenging to walk long distances, this is about 3 times a day, I'm not sure if it's free or not as we chose to walk instead. Also don't bother with their car park, you can park up by the free car park and walk across to the entrance of the land but it is a lot steeper to park there than their car park so it's up to you whether it's worth the £3 or not :) The free car park also has an amazing view so if you do choose the trust's car park, stop there before or afterwards to look at the view. Google free car park near me and it should come up once you reach the top of the hill. All in all a great day out :)