Mount Stewart

We are National trust members and visit on a weekly basis. Mount Stewart is an Excellent property, stunning grounds etc/ reception staff are 1st class however it’s badly let down by a very poor cafe. Food is awful , hygiene standards are very poor, trays of scones are never covered. Tables are never promptly cleared and cleaned after use, some of the staff seem to think is acceptable to lift used dishes but leave crumbs and stains, this even happens during off peak periods. We visit on a weekly basis and it’s nice to have a coffee after our walk, unfortunately we nearly always have to ask for a table to be cleared and cleaned, I dread to think what the food prep area is like. We have highlighted these issues before on the comments card but nothing seems to happen.

Surely Mount Stewart can run an efficient cafe with good hygiene standards this is even more critical during the current pandemic .

Very disappointed with the decision to restrict the gift shop (and cafe) to paying visitors only. Unfortunately after making a trip to buy a few NT items as a gift (and a coffee with guests), I was told there was a £13 entry fee per person. Granted the unfortunate reason was that people were accessing the garden through the gift shop. Surely that’s a logistical problem rather than making a gift shop for paying members only? I assume the gift shop was good for generating further income - perhaps even on a pouring wet day or dark winter afternoons? This is the ONLY NI National Trust property to adopt the members/paying guests entry into a gift shop. Beggars belief that sadly because of some flaunting the system every one else is locked down. Unfortunately the only option is to buy NT cards and gifts is via another more user-friendly property.

We had a lovely time here today. My husband and I decided to take a guided tour around the house. As it is winter not all of the house was open. Ian was a very friendly guide. He was very knowledgeable and expertly guided us around the house and was able to give us an insight into life in the house.
After the tour we went to the cafe for a pleasant lunch, served by pleasant, friendly staff.
We finished our visit to this truly lovely NT property by a walk around the lake.

Mount Stewart is a magical place with beautiful gardens all year round. Staff are friendly and there is a lovely gift and book shop. Tour of the house is very interesting.

My only gripe is the cafe - I paid £6.25 for a bowl of soup and had to pay an extra £1.50 for some wheaten bread with it. The bread was wrapped in plastic and taken out of the refrigerator so was hard and dry. Nearly £8 for a bowl of soup and 2 slices of dry bread in a cafe where you have to queue up with a tray is a bit ridiculous! Next time I'll bring a picnic.

What could be nicer than a walk in a beautiful garden?
Well, that's what I thought anyway as I paid the exorbitant fee for entry at 2pm (two and a half hours before closing time). I intended to have a short walk around the lake and visit the red squirrel hide as I only had a short space of time. Two hours later I was still wandering in a monotonous forest of spindly sycamore (who the heck plants sycamore?) and pine trees following the black arrows on a path that didn't appear on the map at all. At least I had the comfort of knowing that if I scrambled over the high wall I would be back in what passes for civilization down the 'Ards, as there was a busy and very noisy road alongside the boundary wall. I thought, wouldn't it be nice if a tunnel was built to take the traffic underground and away from the forest? This would have the added advantage of permitting access to the beautiful shoreline, so near and yet so inaccessible. I eventually reached the end of the path and was somewhat mollified to discover a wonderfully abundant crop of sweet chestnuts on the ground, some of which I have now planted. This brought my rating up by a few points. Only when I reached my car did I realise that there was an alternative map on the back of the guide booklet detailing the route I had accidentally taken. Wouldn't it be nice if the receptionist had pointed this out? It would certainly have saved me from feeling like Gretel sans Hansel.
Overall, frustrating and more exercise than I had planned, but some enjoyable glimpses of natural beauty. Next time I will have a full day to spend, survival pack and GPS.

Have been around the house and garden before but, being a nice day, thought we would go back for a walk around the estate. Ha, big mistake!! £11 each admission fee even if you only wanted a walk and even if you only wanted a cup of tea. National Trust are slowly making their properties out of the reach of the ordinary person. Rip off!!

I organised a trip with friends to the area recently. I planned a morning coffee stop with a little shopping at the estate. Two of us had membership cards. We were asked at reception to pay house admission for the 2 non members to avail of the tea rooms and shop. It was so embarrassing and when I explained we only wanted morning coffee I was advised to go on up the road to Harrisons.
Point 1 .. 2 of us could have availed of the shop and sent our friends to wait for us in the car which we would not contemplate.
Point 2 .. I have read the rational behind this decision on another negative post concerning this policy and am so disappointed to see the National Trust enforce this system.
Point 3 .. we did go to Harrisons which was exceptional.. we spent a considerable amount of money in their restaurant and shop which could have been spent in Mountstewart.
Point 4 .. having gone on to Greyabbey it is questionable whether we would actually return to Mountstewart having found better value and service elsewhere.
Very disappointing 😕

Perfect, beautiful, plenty of different walks, a small cafe, (a bit pricey and portions are small but this is usual for national trust), kids natural play park accessed by an inclined pathway which may not be suitable for someone with walking difficulties (no dogs in this kids area). There are NO picnic tables. Dog friendly on leads with a large exercise off lead field. Friendly staff. House tours available. Gift shop and small library. The only down side is that the information leaflets on the ground are limited (because they want you to buy tours or books presumably) so if this is your thing prepare in advance as there's so much history and interesting facts as you walk around it's a shame to miss out. For example the famous Dodo garden figures have a story attached. Find the cork tree, the wooden mushroom hidden by the lake (I say it's were he wood fairies dance when everyone's gone home), visit the rose garden in season, look out for the little pet name plaques for beloved heaven sent pets. Note that if you come in winter that some of the walks are closed so check in advance.

What a magnificent place to spend several hours and to walk the beautiful gardens and view the Manor. The guides in every room were very knowledgeable and friendly. Telling us so much about the family and their history. The gardens and hiking trails were unbelievable and you could bring your family and pets for a wonderful walk through this fantastic area.

The small cafe had wonderful scones with the perfect pot of tea.
The used book section had a multitude of books (all less then $3 Euros).
The gift shop had fantastic local artist wares for sale.

Go! Have a wonderful time and don't forget your camera!

Took a lovely relaxing walk around the grounds of Mount Stewart. The scenic views were fantastic and the walks were pleasant. The main House was open with guided tours available at no extra cost. After our walk, we called into the coffee shop. The food was nicely presented and tasty. So if you have some spare time then Mount Stewart is well worth a visit.