bgwfreak Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 Last Saturday a friend and I headed up to Biltmore House(Asheville, NC) which is about 2 hours from Charlotte. Unfortunatley we are forbidden from taking pictures inside, something about 500 year old tapestries or something. grrrrr But I did get a ton of shots on the grounds and other stuff. So enjoy and Merry Christmas! Here's my video I shot as well! TPR version: http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=32320 You Tube version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wl8vRJQGbG0 This guy has a serious overbite. And that's all for this time...more to come! And if I get around to it, a video too! This is for you James. Never seen these chickens before. They have feathers covering their feet! Have you seen Babe? Bert and Ernie. If you want to waste $250 a night, then by all means stay at the Biltmore Estate Hotel! or you could stay across the street for $80. Somethings wrong when water is more expensive than soda. By the way, RC Cola is pretty much only found in the South. Eggcelent! Get it? Egg.. oh nevermind. Merry Christmas. There I said it. I am not PC. For all you equestrian enthusiasts. This is for you Elissa. It's no donkey, but he is cute! I wonder what will happen if I touch this hot pocker thingy? Doesn't this guy remind you of someone? Snow sighting! I haven't seen snow in about 2 years before this. Rose stop flirting with Santa! Rose decides to check out the barn. The horses decorated for us! How nice! Ooooooooh. It's the HISTORIC barn! Aren't you impressed? No? Basically Biltmore is a very cool estate, but no one lives there anymore. They just make $$ off the tourists. Is Derek here today? Gimme some candy or I'll eat Wes! Yo! I'm a scary gargoyle type person. Gimme some candy! EXTREME CLOSEUP! So yeah, the grand staircase is cool and all (under the American flag) but you can't see it because it's INSIDE! Wow we made it to my summer home, er...wait...I mean it's Biltmore House! The biggest (privately owned) house in America. This is Rose, one of my friends and she is also cold...and mad at me for taking this picture. So hello all TPR! This is Wes, your roving reporter waiting for my shuttle to Biltmore House! It's cold! Hurry up shuttle!
Homer Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 I've been to Biltmore Estate before, again, pretty big house. Fact: The movie "Richie Rich" was shot here, the house was used as his mansion. However, there was no McDonalds inside .
bgwfreak Posted December 17, 2006 Author Posted December 17, 2006 ^ Yeah they've used the house in several movies: Being Here (I think that's the title), Spys like us (I think, it was one of those 80's spy comedies) and a few others. They've also used the grounds some in a few movies as well. But Richie Rich probably had the most shots of the house that I've seen in any of the movies.
the sound Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 Looks like a massive house. Although, i am sure that i have seen bigger in Australia. So, do people still live there?
bgwfreak Posted December 17, 2006 Author Posted December 17, 2006 ^ I see that you read my posts. LOL No...noone lives there.
darklingscribe Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 I don't know, Hearst Castle could give it a run for its money as the largest home. <> I didn't notice that you typed privately owned.
ParkTrips Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 Hearst Castle = Approx. 60,000 sq feet Biltmore = Approx 176,000 sq feet
darklingscribe Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 Interesting. Google satellite image of Biltmore. and a Google satellite image of Hearst Castle.. Yeah Biltmore looks bigger, but I still think Hearst castle has a cooler pool. Just for fun here is a satellite image of my other favorite mansion The Winchester Mystery House even though it is much smaller than the two places above. Awesome trip report by the way. I love looking at places like this.
cfc Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 I'm taking my parents there after Christmas. This was also Gary Oldman's mansion in Hannibal (the sequel to Silence of the Lambs).
ginzo Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 The Biltmore tour is neat, but very long. People really take their sweet time looking around, and you get stuck behind them, because the tour is basically one big line. I also find it amusing at how poorly decorated the place is. Sure they have priceless tapestries and paintings, but nothing is coordinated properly. All the colors clash. It's kinda gross in some of the rooms. I also dunno if it's worth $40.
bgwfreak Posted December 17, 2006 Author Posted December 17, 2006 I also think it's kind of bizare that the Victorians were all about being prim and proper and the women being covered up to their eyeballs. Yet around every corner there are paintings and statues of naked women and men.
ginzo Posted December 17, 2006 Posted December 17, 2006 That pool in the basement is kinda cool, but creepy also.
bgwfreak Posted December 20, 2006 Author Posted December 20, 2006 Here's the second batch...enjoy! Some interesting facts about the house: Opened in 1895. They had to build their own railroad to the property to get supplies in. One of the first homes to have elecricity and running water (toilets too!) The main Christmas tree inside is around 50ft tall and the original tree in 1895 had electric lights! The house has its own pipe organ. House has 3 working elevators (lifts, for our UK friends) (from 1895). The company was a brand- new company called Otis! See! You thought I was joking didn't you! Ooh! Dark Castle! Get it? Dark...oh nevermind. That's about it for this update. Hope you enjoyed the pics. I might compile some of my video footage eventually. This used to be the estate's stables, now it's shops and a restaurant. You actually can eat in one of the old stalls where the horses slept. LOL We'reeeeeeeeeee off to see the wizard!! The tour was cool and they have opened up the 4th floor some now. Time to check out the shopping. Sir...Sir! You can't take that camera inside! Just kidding, but this is the last pic I could take for a while. Finally! It's time to go in! V for Vendetta! Oh wait, I mean Vanderbuilt! (the guy that built the place) A lot of these faces are kinda creepy. That's a pretty tall building, thingy, uh there. Please sir. May I have a little more? For some reason this little guy on top reminds me of Oliver. Not too shaby for a back yard. Do you think those cars were there in 1895 when it opened? hmmm... Time for our tour of the house...oooh! Biltmore through the trees! This was (part) of the line for the Winery tour. We skipped it since we had been through before. They closed the dairy years ago and converted it into a winery. And they say the South is slow. Oooooh! Winery through the trees! They also had authentic looking cars that just pop out of the ground. For some reason they had a pack of dogs running around the grounds and looking cute.
bgwfreak Posted January 9, 2007 Author Posted January 9, 2007 I finall got around to the video... Enjoy! TPR version: http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=32320 YouTube version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wl8vRJQGbG0
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