Insole Court
ENTRY
Free
SETTING
Outdoors
WHERE
Cardiff
What it’s like
A Victorian mansion with ornate gardens to wander, a walk-through audio drama exhibition, and a café for cake afterwards.
The gardens are the free bit and the reason to turn up even if you skip everything else. They're properly ornate, the sort of grounds you can let a pushchair roll around for an hour while somebody else has a wander, and the ground floor of the mansion is free to look round too, donations gratefully received rather than demanded.
Upstairs is where the money goes, if you want it to. The heritage exhibition, "This House is a Stage", is a walk-through audio drama, suggested donation £5 for adults and £2.50 for under 16s. There are also proper guided Mansion and Garden tours at £6 each if you want someone to actually tell you what you're looking at rather than guessing from the plasterwork. Worth doing at least one of the two, since the house has clearly got stories the plain rooms don't give away on their own.
The Potting Shed Cafe runs 9am to 5pm (4pm in winter, kitchen shutting at 2:30pm), doing locally sourced seasonal food, coffee and cakes, and there are picnic benches dotted round the grounds if you'd rather bring your own and just buy the coffee. Parking's on site and free, though they ask for a £3 donation, and it's first come first served so don't leave it too late on a nice day.
Dogs are welcome around the site on a lead, including in the café, which is a nice touch if the walk was originally meant to be for the dog and the mansion just happened to be there. Wheelchair access is decent, with accessible toilets in both the Stable Yard and Mansion and an accessible pathways map for the gardens, plus baby changing in a couple of spots.
Facilities
Need to know
- Parking
- Free on site, suggested donation £3
- Food
- One café serving locally sourced seasonal dishes, coffee, cakes and bakes
- Picnics
- Picnic benches in grounds for takeaway orders
- Wheelchairs
- Disabled access toilets in Stable Yard and Mansion
- Dogs
- Welcome on site on leads. On leads on northern drive and car park
- Getting there by bus or train
- Bus: approximately 25 minute ride from Cardiff city centre
- The £5 exhibition donation and £3 parking donation are suggested, not compulsory
- Parking is first come first served, so don't leave a sunny day too late
- The café kitchen closes at 2:30pm in winter even though the café stays open longer
- Mansion Tours and Garden Tours run separately from the free wander, £6 each
Plan your visit
Is it free to get in?
The ground floor of the mansion and the gardens are free, with donations welcomed. The upstairs heritage exhibition is also free entry technically, but they ask for a suggested £5 donation from adults and £2.50 from under 16s.
What are the tours and how much do they cost?
There's a Mansion Tour and a Gardens Tour, £6 each, if you want more of the history than the free wander gives you.
Is there parking on site?
Yes, free parking on site, first come first served. They do ask for a £3 donation towards it.
Can we bring the dog?
Dogs are welcome on leads around the site and even in the café, as long as they stay off the furniture and out of the kitchen. Keep them on the lead in the car park and on the northern drive.
What food is there?
The Potting Shed Cafe does locally sourced seasonal dishes, coffee and cakes, open 9am to 5pm (4pm in winter). There are also picnic benches in the grounds if you bring your own.
What are the opening hours?
The Mansion House and Gift Shop are open 10am to 4pm. The café runs 9am to 5pm, or 9am to 4pm with the kitchen closing at 2:30pm over winter.
Is it wheelchair accessible?
There are accessible toilets in both the Stable Yard and the Mansion, disabled parking near the Gift Shop, and a map of accessible pathways through the gardens.
How do you get there without a car?
It's about a 25 minute bus ride from Cardiff city centre. Get off at Rookwood Close on Fairwater Road and walk back 150 metres to the north gate.
Is there wifi?
One day codes are handed out at the Potting Shed Cafe and Gift Shop for the 'Insole Court Free Wi-Fi' network.
Can we take a picnic?
There are picnic benches dotted around the grounds for anyone who's brought their own food, or bought a takeaway from the café.
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