I love to see a glimpse of the National Trust properties dressed up festively; they look so magical. While in Yorkshire at the beginning of December, I was able to see the property in its full festive glory. I first visited Nostell in 2020 when a couple of National Trust places had reopened after being closed for months during the pandemic. Only the ground floor was open, so we did not get to see much, and I was pleasantly surprised that we were able to see a few rooms upstairs on this visit. (You can read about my first visit and see photographs here.) Nostell was the first stop of the day, and we arrived early for a snack and a browse around the shop before the house opened.
It is a short trek from the parking to the house and cafe. Near the parking is a little information kiosk, and it had a gingerbread village inside it.
The stables near the house was the first stop as this is where the cafe and shop are located. There were also some decorations here. One of the little rooms of the stables was decorated as a "retired reindeer home", and a little poem accompanied it, hung on the wall for all to read.
The stables courtyard had some other decorations and a Christmas tree. I enjoyed these gourds arranged like snowmen.
When inside the house, the first proper room to visit (outisde of the servant entrance hallway) was the dollhouse room. The dollhouse was on display and dressed for Christmas. The chef was also dressed festively in the kitchen of the dollhouse, and the little mouse can be discovered here if you have a keen eye to see it. Children love to spot the mouse.
The main entrance hall contained three trees, and the fireplaces on either side of the room contained festive garlands. The theme of the Christmas decorations in Nostell this year was woodlands. Each room had a hidden woodland animal to discover on a board when you enter the room. So, that was a fun game to enjoy while looking around the house.
After exploring part of the ground floor and locating some woodland critters, seeing a few other decorations, and having a chat about a large painting, we headed upstairs. The dining room was laid for a Christmas meal.
The next room was amazing, and I did not expect it to be so beautiful. It was the "wow factor" when I entered the room. The fireplaces on both sides of the room were decorated, and the largest Christmas tree in the house was set as the feature for this room. This is the musical room. We had a chat to the volunteer in the room about the owner of the house and the scandals of the family.
The next room contained a lot of paintings, and we learned a little about one or two of them. The Christmas decorations in the room were blue, and it was a fox in this room. He is sitting on the sofa.
The bedroom was next, and we had a good chat with the volunteer while we took in the beautiful room. We learned about the fire damage that happened to this room. This was the last room to visit before heading downstairs. The volunteer mentioned a library, but it didn't appear to be open as we were directed downstairs.
There was a final room to check here, and the other more "museum" rooms were shut. This room was the kitchen, and it was laid out with some festive treats and jelly moulds.
I loved seeing the Christmas decorations in this house and speaking to the volunteers here. I can't wait to go back to visit when the whole house is open to the public.
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