Biltmore Estate Christmas

Biltmore Estate Christmas - visiting the Biltmore Estate at Christmas is truly magical.  It is one of our favorite things to do while in Asheville, NC.  Christmas trees decorated everywhere, poinsettias in the conservatory, it's all wonderful.

Biltmore Estate Gift Cards

Last Christmas our daughter gave us a gift card to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina.   We saved it because we knew we wanted to use it this year at Christmas.

I just want to say that I think gift cards like this make such a wonderful gift.  We had been talking about visiting the Biltmore at Christmas for years (we had been before many, many years ago.)  We somehow never got around to it, but having this gift card allowed us to make it happen.

Biltmore Daytime or Evening?

The first thing that you have to decide when going to the Biltmore at Christmas is do you want to go during the day or to a Candlelight Christmas Evening.  Since also on this trip, we were doing some other nightlife events, we decided on a daytime visit.  We went on a Wednesday, which was an open day, meaning that we could go at anytime.  Some other days (and all of the evenings) are by reservation and you choose a time.

We thought that a Wednesday afternoon in November might not be too crowded.  We were wrong.  As you can see in my photos, it was a steady stream of busses dropping of people.  We tried waiting for the line to die down, but it never happened.  It was just busload after busload.  We eventually got in line behind a busload of high school kids.

When we go back (and we will) it will be during a reservation time, where I would think that they would be better able to control the stream of people.

Christmas Decorations at the Biltmore

Of course, when you are doing something like this, it is so hard to capture how really pretty everything is!  There are Christmas trees and decor in almost every room.

Besides all of the Christmas decor, there are other fascinating areas of the house.  The kitchen, the sinks in the huge laundry room, the pantries, the underground pool, even the bathrooms were so interesting.

Many people were walking around with what looked like cordless phones, they were taking the audio tour of the Biltmore.  I'm sure it was interesting and they probably learned lots more about the house than I did.

The Biltmore Conservatory

I think my favorite part was The Biltmore Conservatory.  It is a small walk through the gardens to the Conservatory.  The bus tour groups did not go there, so it was a lot less crowded.  I could walk through slowly admiring all the gorgeous plants.  It is included in the price of admission.

The Biltmore Estate at Christmas

Also included in the price of admission is the gardens, Antler Hill Village and a free wine tasting.  We drove over to the winery and had lunch at Cedric's Tavern, which was wonderful.  By the time we finished eating, we were tired and it was raining so we didn't visit the winery.

We had a good time, will definitely go back again at Christmas at a reserved time.  We would also like to go back in the spring to see the gardens.

If you are looking for lodging near The Biltmore, you can read about our stay at Aloft Hotels Asheville Downtown.  You might also enjoy review of Sierra Nevada Brewery - a must see in Asheville!  While at the Biltmore, we ate at Cedric's Tavern - so good!