Address: Threave Estate, Castle Douglas, DG7 1RX, United Kingdom
Phone: +441556502575
Rating: 4.6
based on 181 reviews.
Gardens
Pros:
"The garden is well maintained and there are lots of paths and areas to discover."
"Gardens are just amazing and you can totally see the amount of work and care that goes into maintaining them."
"Beautiful gardens with many different areas to explore."
"A lovely place for an afternoon visit with beautiful formal gardens, a walled garden, less formal gardens higher up the hill, and beyond those, some native woodlands."
"Especially loved the vegetables and fruits growing in the walled garden."
"Beautiful gardens with an interesting house to visit."
"The entire garden is beautifully designed and meticulously maintained - a jewel in the Trust's crown."
Cons:
"The other sections were OK but a bit samey."
"Parts of garden were lovely. Other parts rather neglected."
"The 'woodland walk' was somewhat overgrown and had stinging nettles in some parts."
"Some of the paths are very muddy, the garden of contemplation especially so if you are in a wheelchair it will be hard to use."
"Only slightly tarnished by the massive ride on mowers buzzing about during our entire visit, seemingly without anything to do, which made a lot of noise and made it a bit hard to relax with a toddler who loves exploring."
"Walled garden hard going as shingle though."
"Some of the paths which were gravel proved a little challenging for our wheelchair."
Accessibility
Pros:
"Entry is overly expensive and while it is accessible it's by no means an easy place to push a wheelchair around."
"Our party of 4 included a wheelchair user and we were really impressed by the accessibility of the gardens."
"There's ample parking including disabled spaces and the staff are friendly and welcoming."
"Very accessible from main roads."
"They do have a couple of electric scooters if required."
"It is a bit hilly in places so be aware if you have walking problems however it is fully accessible if you are in a wheelchair."
"The provision of a motorised scooter and a pre-planned route rounded off the great experience."
Cons:
"THEY ARE NOT. Steep gradients, Mum nearly fell out at one point, took 2 to hold the chair back, rough sloping poorly maintained tarmac paths, grass paths, gravel paths, crazy paving paths with deep cracks impossible to push chair through."
"It’s very steep. No good for a wheelchair, you’d need an electric chair or scooter."
"The doors are very narrow and it was difficult to get in (I am a manual wheelchair user)."
"Unfortunately, dogs are not allowed anywhere inside the gardens nor in the facilities."
"No maps or signposts in the gardens."
"Outrageous entry cost to walk around a lot of lawn steep hills and trees."
"Sadly it poured with rain when we arrived. The café said they had water pressure problems and we couldn't have a hot drink but some customers were offered tea."
Cafe and Food
Pros:
"The cafe was pricey but very tasty with generous portion sizes, so is well worth a visit."
"Staff very friendly and coffee and scones very tasty."
"The coffee shop was reasonably priced and the service was excellent."
"We went to the cafe and had the sausage roll followed by wonderful cake and coffee."
"The café does delicious food."
"Prices are not too dear with good portions of high quality food!"
"Lovely cafe with some hearty fare."
Cons:
"Food from cafe was quite basic and not worth the cost."
"The cafe had a limited menu mainly of soup or pasties and when we tried to leave a tip for the waiting staff we were told National Trust for Scotland does not allow tips!"
"Cafe is a bit overpriced, we easily spent £30 on a panini, a couple of rolls and small drinks."
"Called in for lunch and found out Restaurant is closed until March."
"Sadly the scones did not live up to our expectations and were a complete let-down from the usual standards at Threave."
"Very disappointed that I couldn't have a cheese and pickle toastie..... although I could have had it in a sandwich!"
"They lose a star for the cafe though....despite what others have said, I think they could do better. Limited range of cakes and snacks, and eye wateringly expensive."
Staff and Service
Pros:
"Even a couple of cafe/tearooms to stop for refreshments."
"Staff very friendly and coffee and scones very tasty."
"The staff are very friendly and helpful."
"All the staff we encountered were friendly and helpful."
"The helpful attitude of staff (special thanks to Chris whose support was outstanding)."
"The gardeners are only too happy to answer questions."
"A fabulous location, garden and staff. A real pleasure to visit and wander among the well cared for plants."
Cons:
"Wasted trip and alienating potential visitors. Two women on till quite snooty!"
"Welcome staff can be a bit grouchy so make sure you give them a big hello when you arrive."
"Only reason for not giving a full 5 stars is because there are no bins throughout the gardens whatsoever so you have to carry all rubbish until you get back out to the car park and entrance."