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Bellingrath Gardens and Home
Categories: Landmarks & Historical Buildings, Museums [Edit]
12401 Bellingrath Gdns RdTheodore, AL 36582
(251) 973-2217
2 reviews for Bellingrath Gardens and Home
While in search of yarn during my visit to Mobile, we traveled down to Theodore. On the way to Wellslee Markeplace, we came across signs for Bellingrath Gardens. Thanks to the technology of the iPhone, we learned that it closed around 5 p.m. and our yarn excursion would be the adventure for the day.
The next day, the bf and I headed to Bellingrath Gardens and Home. Both of us had never been there, so I didn't know what to expect. It definitely wasn't a plantation house where I could reenact my Gone with the Wind fantasies, instead, it was a cool house and gardens experience that I throughly enjoyed.
After paying the reasonable admission fees by Chicago standards ($18 person for gardens and home), we ventured through the gardens. The gardens are well marked in directing you where to go. First, we encountered the rose garden which I can only imagine how beautiful it will in the spring. We then walked into the greenhouse filled with neat plants. The gardens are huge and expansive while lining the surroundings of the house.
After touring the gardens and the porcelain gallery, we had the best tour ever given to us by the housekeeper. She showed great enthuasism for her job and the house's history. The house is amazing. I fell in love with the lush linens that Mrs. Bellingrath adorned her home with. The modern bathrooms showed Mr. Bellingrath's love of technology. My favorite room of the house was the kitchen. It's such a dream kitchen, white with German nickel countertops. The cabinets are lined with amazing cookie jars that Mrs. Bellingrath won in an auction lot. I wish that the gift shop would reproduce it because I really liked them. I also wished that they reproduced some of the neat prints that lined the walls of the home especially the one near the bedroom of a camellia or magnolia with Mrs. Bellingrath's signature on it. So cool.
After our great tour, we continued to walk the gardens for another hour or two. The different gardens were great to explore and admire. I had so much fun spending a lazy day touring the gardens and home. I would recommend to anyone to visit Bellingrath Gardens because it's a fun time with some history, flowers, and a beautiful setting.
Just stopped in for a stroll the gardens/grounds ($10 ticket), which for a medium paced walker would probably take an hour. The beginning part of the grounds wasn't particularly impressive, but it gets better as you walk through them. Maybe it's different later in the season; I went in early April and a lot of the flowers looked they still had a few months to go. But by the time you get to the house area things start to pick up. Some nice big open lawns and spaces. The very last part of the park is this kind of funny faux-Asian garden. Cute if not quite authentic feeling.
Seems like a very healthy schedule of events at Bellingrath also. The day I went there was an antique car show; a couple of sweet Model-Ts lined up on the grass.
A pleasant place, though I was a little bit disappointed in the lack of flowers. Something nice to see if you happen to be in the area, but not a place I'd drive hours and hours just to visit.
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