Things to see in Polesden Lacey house

Discover a house to impress

Polesden Lacey was a stunningly renovated weekend retreat famous for the many lavish parties that took place here and famous guests who attended, by invitation of the Honourable Mrs. Margaret Greville.

The house the Grevilles bought in the early 1900's was practically a new building. They employed Mewès and Davis, the architects of the Ritz hotel, to help transform the interiors of their new weekend retreat. One thing's for sure – Mrs Greville wanted her house to impress.

'I want a room I can entertain Maharajas in.'

– Margaret Greville

Polesden Lacey was gifted to the National Trust on Mrs. Greville’s death in 1942, at a time when only celebrated 'show rooms' were considered worthy of visitor attention. Apart from the kitchen, which is now a conservation store, most of the downstairs is as it was in Mrs. Greville’s day, with sumptuous interiors from the stunning décor in the gold Saloon to the inviting library and intimate tea room. Margaret Greville's extensive collection of books, ceramics, objets d’art and paintings are beautifully displayed throughout.

Upstairs, the servants’ quarters were converted into apartments, and later into offices. Most guest rooms were also lost, though some have since been made available as part of bookable tours, and others turned into exhibition spaces, which the team use for innovative and engaging exhibitions to tell the stories behind Mrs. Greville’s remarkable collection.

Visiting the house

Our popular “Unseen Spaces” tours reveal upstairs rooms that are not always open to the public, including Mrs Greville’s apartment and the suite used by the likes of King Edward VII and George VI. These 20-minute tours are volunteer-led and bookable at the front of the house when you arrive, subject to availability.

Due to the nature of the historic interiors of the house, we ask that buggies are not brought inside. We have hippie carriers for infants and baby carriers for newborns available, so please do ask for these as you enter the house lobby. We'll show you somewhere safe to leave buggies while you enjoy your visit.

Similarly, we may not be able to accommodate large wheelchairs (a small one is available to use in the house). An accessibility shuttle bus is available to bring those with restricted mobility from Visitor Reception to the house, though may not run every day.

 

See the Polesden Lacey homepage for details about opening times.