The National Trust Swindon reviews

★★★★★ 1/5

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Just visited Colby Woodland Gardens in…

Just visited Colby Woodland Gardens in Pembrokeshire. Specifically went to visit Bothy Tea room for cream teas. NT web site says open until 16:30, no 16:00. Walked around the gardens and returned to tea shop at 15:00. Asked for cream tea, sorry no scones. All freshly made and run out. This isn’t good enough, an hour left (or should be 1.5 hours). This is very typical of NT refreshments toward the end of the day. Are these places run by amateurs or volunteers on no pay. Get your act together and learn how to estimate visitors, nothing will waste if kept for the next day. Your prices are high and your service is very poor. I have been a member for over 15+ years and it’s always been the same. Get your act together PLEASE!

Julian · 23 May 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

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£168 for a 1 year subscription

£168 for a 1 year subscription? Are you mad? Considering that you are bequeathed these properties, with stipends and inheritance money… with all the footfall that you receive on a yearly basis…. Are you absolutely having a quiet chortle? How in the world do you think this is amenable to the populous, unless of course you are a conservative organisation, wielding power and status to the rich? Absolutely disgusting!

San · 10 April 2026

★★★★★ 1/5

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Bought tickets to Dunham Massey lights…

Bought tickets to Dunham Massey lights event. Unfortunately one of the party was hospitalised and we were unable to attend so called to cancel and get a refund. Even though I gave over 24 hours notice, they refused to refund. Making the already stressful situation much worse. Contacted the complaints department, they took my details and said someone would be in touch to try and rectify the situation. No one has been in touch. Tried to reach out on social media. No one has replied. I have been going to NT events/venues for decades at multiple venues and can't believe they would treat a loyal customer like this. My advice - don't attend events as they don't care what the reason is if you cannot attend. Even if someone is hospitalised.

Melanie · 9 January 2026

★★★★★ 1/5

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Membership renewal

Had to renew our membership. What a palaver! Would not recognize our address. After 45 minutes on the phone to them, going through every address I could think of, turned out our membership was linked to my brother's old address ! How or why was a mystery. This was despite NT sending out cards, handbook, magazines and renewal letter to our address. Yes we are both Mr & Mrs but surely their system can cope with 2 different accounts. Was then told I could not pay online with a debit card, then told of course you can. Agents were understanding, but what a faff!

BigM · 15 May 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

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Want to buy a gift for a gift for

Want to buy a gift for a gift for a couple of people in their 70s saw on site the senior citizens price was just over £100 for a couple and I thought this would be a great gift as price and a way of supporting a great Charity at a price I could afford but then I found out you only get a discount if you been a member for 3 years and the price was over £150 Which was more than I could afford I am sure I am not the only person in this country who is being priced out of the National Trust The C.E.O who earns a lot of money should should take in to account that not everyone income is as high has theirs and most pensions and working people only receive a year what they earn in a month and if the price was more reasonable they would get more income

Mr · 11 May 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

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NT are not dog friendly

I'm a lifetime member of the NT, purchased many years ago. I now have a dog and am so bitterly disappointed with the NT attitude to members with dogs. They say they are dog friendly, however the are not and the approach across the properties is inconsistant. At a very few NT places dogs can go in the cafe and in the shop, at most they can't and very rarely if ever can they go in a garden. Many other places have no problems allowing dogs in cafes, shops and gardens i.e. many English Heritage sites, arboretums, other gardens ive visited, so why not the NT too. My recent visit to Powys Castle was very restrictive as the dog couldn't go anywhere except in the courtyard! Later i walked all round the garden without the dog - absolutely no reason i could see as to why the dog couldn't be allowed on a short lead in the garden - all gravel paths. Very very disappointing.Just had the usual response back from NT ie its a balancing act between members wth dogs and those without blah blah. Well i have a few suggestions to improve the balance because at the moment it is much more geared to NON dog owners. These suggestions are not rocket science and are applied with no problems by many other organisations1. Provide sectioned inside cafe space for dog owners and non dog people2. Allow dogs in shop on v short lead3. Allow dogs in garden on v short lead4. Do an all member survey to see what the actual views of the majority of your members are. You might be surprised to find that the balance lnce might be tipped the other way if you were more inclusive of families with dogs. Currently it is VERY difgicult to provide any feedback - you dont even have standard feedback or comments forms at your properties.

KJ · 10 May 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

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Really disappointed that the National…

Really disappointed that the National Trust take your membership fee a month before it renews and then doesn't allow you to get any refund when you realise you cannot afford it this year. There is a cost of living crisis going on but they don't care as they have a no refund policy. Will not be supporting this organisation again, Tried to help them when I could afford it, now I can't I'm now nearly £100 down and can't afford to pay my bills. At least I can go and visit a country house I guess.

Nic · 10 May 2024

★★★★★ 5/5

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Croome Courst visit

Our visit to Croome Court and Worcestershire on 7th May was wonderful. Not our 1st vist but the first for 6 years and the staff and volunteers could not have been more friendly and helpful with lots of interesting knowledge. The cafe food was excellent and great value served by friendly and helpful staff.Well worth a visit plus an excellent RAF museum again with friendly and knowledgeable volunteers with an interesting story to tell of the use of Croome during the last world war.

Robert · 8 May 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

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I have not been a fan of national trust…

I have not been a fan of national trust for some time now, especially when they let stately homes become ruins and not restore and maintain them, or ruin them in their own way by doing some daft modern glass roof , more recently iv heard that the national trust refused a Christian film maker to film a documentary at a historic location as the national trust don't entertain anything political or religious, so yet another woke organisation trying to erase British culture and history, well my friend who is elderly has no kids but has a lot of wealth and was going to leave his estate to green peace , they pissed him off so he decided national trust would benefit, well not now, after this i am now the beneficiary of said estate, thank you national trust 😉

Darran · 3 January 2026

★★★★★ 1/5

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NT inept as ever! Wasting visitors, time, effort and money.

Congratulations to the NT on continued ineptitude and poor customer service. Today i checked the website in preparation to go to Fountains Abbey in N Yorks. All looked ok, open, all car parks working and I planned to park at West car park. Travelling from York, via Knaresborough, Ripley, via rural road to the car park. Whilst there was some old road signs implying the rural road was closed at some point, those signs were removed to one side and not functional. I got within less than a mile of the car park to find the road totally blocked by a very large barrier across the road by a cottage and very close to the downhill access to the west car park. …. So no access. In front of me we’re 2 cars turning round, i did the same i then stopped 4 more cars on the road telling them there was no access. Every driver i spoke to had checked the website for access and opening hours. SO none of us realised that this long journey would end in failure. The road block was substantial, not an emergency job or a quick fix. So thanks to NT for not posting up on the fountains website that there was a significant road a closure so the west car park could not be accessed via a popular route from Ripley Castle road to the Abbey. . I came home, both disappointed and annoyed that i had checked the NT sitter before the journey, BUT I then knew I’d wasted my time and a journey of 40+ miles. Whilst i could have driven back to Ripley, then to Ripon and go towards Fountains via Ripon, this would have taken much longer and my experience had wrecked my motivation to go. No wonder the NT’s membership are leaving in droves….I joined the ARTFUND and found that good, as lots of options there.

Country · 3 January 2026

★★★★★ 1/5

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Cancelled my membership this year

Cancelled my membership this year after 31 years, you care more about your carbon footprint and all the other green nonsence than your members, i suppose closing all those cottages had members in mind aswell, and not honouring the thousands that had already booked. Such a shame.As you can see by the reply they dont care

Peter · 7 July 2026

★★★★★ 1/5

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Facilites

The toilets at Brean Down Cove cafe were disgusting and really dirty: wet and toilet paper on the floors. I overheard the manager telling a customer a contractor cleaned them. I wonder what oversight there is and if the staff preparing food in the adjacent cafe use the same toilets. This is not acceptable especially as most visitors spend money in the cafe and footfall is high. There is no excuse. See complaints in Western Daily Press 12,13 April 2024 from others

Cherry · 15 April 2024

★★★★★ 2/5

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Seems to me that we pay more and more…

Seems to me that we pay more and more each year for less. After being shouted at by a member of ticket staff today for daring to turn up to a site without booking as suggested, I will not be renewing our subscription this year. NT need to remember who pays their wages.

Lindsey · 22 July 2026

★★★★★ 1/5

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People do not matter

Full amount of all holiday bookings must be made at the time of booking. NO other camping organisations that I know of adopt this ridiculous policy. Who do the NT think they are. There is too much competition and most people will not comply. Also, camping fields are left unmowed to encourage wildlife. A large percentage of campers have children who want to kick a ball, fly a kite as they are on holiday, well forget it, obviously the moths and bees MUST come first.

Linda · 16 July 2025

★★★★★ 1/5

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Sly autorenew - stuck for another year

Took the annual direct debit a whole month early - but I wanted to cancel annual membership nearer the end of the month. I should have had a renewal letter apparently, but it never arrived. Won't refund the direct debit payment as it's already been taken. Good membership to have if you're into the historical houses etc - but weren't enough kid friendly options for us to make a proper use of it (Waddesdon is great, but limited in the winter while they monetise the light trail). But the way they take the renew payments is very shady and I suspect is done to trap a lot of people into another year - be warned!

Maisie · 8 April 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

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CHARTWELL CAFE

Chartwell Cafe. Having been members of the NT for 30+ years, Chartwell has been a favourite venue: Close to home, good walks, nice gardens, and of course Churchill's home. We have witnessed the gradual decline in the value offered by the cafe. Recently they switched their soup bowl from a generous size to one akin to a coffee cup whilst increasing the price. Their stock control leaves a lot to be desired also. Example: Their excellent Cornish Pasties, a favourite of mine, are seldom available after 12 noon because, they say, "sorry- sold out". So why not increase the order? Replenish the display when needed, at least until the end of the lunchtime period. Not good for business and certainly a customer relationship issue easily remedied. On my more recent visit they had stopped selling their pasties and sausage rolls "because we have a chef in the kitchen". The so-called "chef" was offering jacket potatoes with baked beans or tuna, and an unappealing couple of main courses. They need to get their act together or else give up their attempt to call it a restaurant. How about inviting Costa or Cafe Nero to run it asa franchise?

PETER · 4 April 2024

★★★★★ 5/5

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Every property is a joy to visit & free member parking

Every property is a joy to visit, visitor facilities are usually to a high standard, but our biggest benefit of membership is free use of car parks for coastal & countryside walks (esp on holiday in Cornwall & Pembs). There are constant improvements and we’ve noticed more effort going into improving & protecting natural wildlife habitat on National Trust land as well. Latest visit was Lacock. Although the house itself was closed for winter, the photography exhibit, abbey cloister, second hand book shop and cafe (for a cheese jacket) were all open. Staff & volunteers v helpful. Shop is in the pretty village a short walk away. A national treasure.

Tudor · 1 March 2024

★★★★★ 2/5

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We visited Attingham Park cafe in Courtyard.

We visited Attingham Park, Shropshire on 23/02/24. Went to cafe in the courtyard and ordered 2 hot chocolates which when arrived were luke warm. My husband took them back and was made to wait at least 10 minutes while the staff served others. Eventually they acknowledged my husband and they replaced the drinks with slightly warmer but lumpy hot chocolates. There were about 6 members of staff messing about which is not very professional. The girl that served the drinks asked another how to make a hot chocolate but as she made both of them she obviously wasn't properly trained. As you know the cafe isn't cheap. I am dissapointed that the staff weren't interested in customers and think re-training in Customer service would be a good idea. Definitely won't be going back to that cafe.

Sheila · 26 February 2024

★★★★★ 4/5

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Beautiful properties but two minor gripes….

We had absolutely no idea how many beautiful properties and gardens were on our doorstep in Northumberland until we got our puppy and joined NT. Gibside, Cragside and Wallington are so relaxing to wander around. Also saved an absolute fortune around the Lake District car parks being a NT member! So I do have a couple of very minor gripes….. I didn’t renew my membership until today (24/02) and it seems to be back dated until 01/02 meaning I lose a few weeks. I called NT customer services with an enquiry as to whether we could use our expired cards to gain entry as email said 21days for new cards. Very friendly, answered query quickly and I had temporary cards via email before I even hung up phone. The other….as a nature conservation charity with an app readily available in iTunes etc, wouldn’t it be better for the environment with less of a carbon footprint to have our membership cards available digitally for Apple Wallet rather than processed paper ones sent in envelopes (all made from trees), issued through Royal Mail’s CO2 belching system before entering the high energy using recycling system at the end of their life cycle? All we need is the QR code on a digital pass. Also, maybe make the handbook an option? Everything is already on the app. Just saying…..

Lee · 25 February 2024

★★★★★ 4/5

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My small black working cocker spaniel…

My small black working cocker spaniel Bella and I have for her nine years ( long may she continue) visited Dunham Massey Park usually twice a week. Always have a lovely welcome - especially Bella- from the reception staff. Our visit finishes with a visit to the cafe adjacent to Reception then sitting outside with a” shared” scone . Again the counter staff ( and scone makers) are excellent.All these staff members help create a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere.I have been a NT member for many years so can park for “free”. However I normally walk in ( usually via the canal) from one of the 5? public entrances. With a little planning and a doable walk to an entrance there are a number of parking opportunities. It is also on an active bus route.I have deducted a star owing to the expensive parking charges which are per person and have witnessed considerable upset from unaware car passengers. The charge is especially heavy for families as children are also individually charged.Also there does appear to be some dissatisfaction from volunteers about recent policy changes.

John · 9 February 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

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Nymans House and Gardens

We had a walk around Nymans House and Gardens in late November 2025 and couldn’t believe how pushy they were at the entrance at trying to push for a second membership for my girlfriend. Compared to RHS Gardens which is half the price and allows one guest for free. We then went around the gardens to see most of it roped off. Then we ate at the restaurant which was incredibly pricy served by grumpy staff. We had a small bowl of sweetened vegetable tagine and stale bread for £7.30 and a can of artificially flavored elderflower soda drink for £3,70. Half the plants in the shop looked very poor quality experience and very pricey. Something has to change to give customers a better wxperience. I won’t be renewing my membership.

Robert · 24 November 2025

★★★★★ 2/5

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White Edge Lodge

The property has blistering, peeling plasterwork in both the lounge and bathroom. The master bedroom has black mould around the window. You should also know that there were hundreds of ladybirds hibernating in the building…we quite like them so not a problem, but possibly not everyone’s cup of tea. Lovely views but wouldn’t really recommend staying here…at the price point there are other less dilapidated options available

Esme · 12 March 2026

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

Awful website and even worse customer service!

Awful website and even worse customer service. Everything is scripted and copied and pasted from a generic script. I’ve explained in great detail several times to NT about my issues when trying to either login online or renew my membership online and they simply do not care. They can’t even create a basic complaint case because apparently “all the NT members are in the same boat”. It’s a wonder how they still manage to keep going with such poor service. I certainly won’t be renewing my membership this year - I mean, it’s not like I can anyway! I’m not spending half an hour waiting in a call queue on the phone to be told the fees have increased again anyway. Failure to provide a basic technical platform that enables users to login to manage their membership accounts in the form of the website in 2024 really is baffling…

S · 23 January 2024

★★★★★ 1/5

Trustpilot

BEWARE WHERE YOU PARK AT POWIS CASTLE

BEWARE WHERE YOU PARK AT POWIS CASTLEOn the 18th June we thought we would have a day out for Father’s Day. It was a choice between the national trust (we were members) in Gloucester or wales (Powys Castle). Powys Castle was highly recommended so off we went. It was a beautiful warm sunny day, the journey was great. We arrived at Powys where we were marshalled into our parking slot. We decided to start the day with coffee and cake, we relaxed for around 20 minutes then made our way to the castle. Once inside there was a notice on the wall asking all owners of the following car registration numbers to return to their vehicles. we headed back to the car park and to our horror we saw what looked like a tree covering our car and several others. Our car (a Range Rover Evoke) being hit the hardest. It was totally crushed. Words could not describe how we felt, we were in total shock! National Trust staff were on the scene very quickly to comfort us and their garden staff moved very quickly to clean up (hide the evidence), fortunately we took many photos of the damage and also the tree. It was actually a branch that had fallen and not the whole tree. The extent of damage to 8 cars was extensive…… once home and over the shock we proceeded (as one would) to inform our insurance company and make contact with National Trust and Powys Castle for damages. Our Range Rover was completely crushed through no fault of our own, a right off! We put in a claim with our insurance company and started proceedings with the National Trust Powys Castle through our solicitor, this went on for several months. We contacted them monthly for an update, but told Powys had not made a decision. We sent them photos of the damage to our vehicle and photos of the tree trunk from where the branch had fallen. It was clear from the photos the branch had been weak for some time and clearly their forestry team had not checked this particular tree for damage. Oak trees are known to shed branches during the summer months, we were marshalled into the parking space beneath this Oak tree. Clearly the fault was with the National Trust Powys Castle and we would receive some compensation for the total loss of our vehicle and the fact that we were marshalled into the parking slot they chose. On the 19th of December we received notification through the solicitor acting for us, National Trust Powys Castle have refused liability on the grounds of ‘Summer fall.of which is a common phenomenon and we are to receive nothing! so BE AWARE of where you park at Powys Castle or any other National Trust car park……. Several months later, we are still devastated for the total loss of our lovely Range Rover, but grateful that no one was injured in the incident……Since the incident there has been no contact from the National Trust.

Ian · 21 January 2024