The Biltmore house is beautiful, yet powerful looking from the outside, yet regal and intimate once you tour the inside. I took the normal tour when I visited last week, but I can say, without a doubt, there are very few houses that can impress as much as this one. It’s ridiculously grandiose, with seemingly no expense spared. There’s a room for this and for that, for one reason or another. Each room larger than the size of my last apartment (which was many) had their own fireplace. There are hidden doors and secret passages, and there are servant quarters, as well as several buildings strewn throughout the grounds. Everything the Vanderbilt family built in or for the house, as well as around the estate was built with complexity, and with great detail and no ceiling for funding.
While the entire experience of touring the Biltmore Estate can burn up most of the time in a day, a simple walk from the parking lots to (and around) the house is quite an enjoyable experience. Sure, it may make you feel almost destitute by comparison, but there is a lot of beauty in grander. Plus, you can find a lot of great American history in the story and the art of the Biltmore House.
(First two photos – by © Brandon Elijah Scott / Eye & Pen + Last two photos – via Biltmore.com)