Just a few miles south of Manchester, and a short distance from Knutsford lies the magnificent Tatton Hall & Gardens.
This is one of the most complete historical estates in Britain, set in over 1000 acres of gardens and deer park.
On your approach into Tatton Park entering Cheshire off the M56, you’ll pass endless Mansions (just where did they all get their money from??!!). It’s almost an entire ‘season’ of MTV cribs sat next door to each other (some classical others slightly garish and Gatsbyesque). You then enter the park (off a cheeky ‘you might miss it’ turn) and progress for what seems miles before you enter the park proper. This is a National Trust property but NT members will still have to pay for certain parts of the park unlike other properties (I assume it’s only half owned by the National Trust).
As you approach you can see hundreds of deer on either side of the route: what’s odd is that two different types of deer seem to be separated by the road with not an inkling of desire to mix with the other breeds…no melting pot for these country folk.
There’s a pretty extensive children’s play area next to the large car parks, always handy for keeping the kids entertained for some time (and thus subduing them). Following this you come to the main courtyard/stables area of which you’ll find a large café/restaurant, shops (gift and garden) and a place to hire bikes. This yard includes many outdoor tables either for picnics or for ‘refreshments’ (I find that such a queezy word) purchased from the café.
Just outside lies the fantastic farm shop where you can pick up farm foods (not frozen turkey alphabets et al) such as venison, sausages, organic pterodactyls and locally reared wine bottles. A few of these items are not cheap but they taste the business undoubtedly.
From here you can either enter the extensive gardens or enter the lavish old Hall. You are charged entry for both park and hall but you can buy a one off ticket for all attractions.

The gardens are enormous and beautifully nurtured. Aside from the smaller individual sections of the garden (the initial stage takes you through the vegetable and fruit gardens, Italian gardens, vines etc) there is a large arboretum (containing hundreds of species of trees including a huge, and strangely soft to the touch, Californian Redwood) and a stunning Japanese garden (noted many times as one of the greatest in Europe). You can walk around the perimeter of this Japanese garden when the park is open but they also carry out tours a couple of days a week in which you can enter fully.

The house itself is packed full of history (and ever so slightly histrionic staff…really…place one foot over the barriers, gently place you hand on something you shouldn’t and they’ll be over you like a rabid rottweiler! Interesting to see many names I associate with Manchester (such as Egerton, Wilbraham) all originate within Tatton Park. The house is definitely worth a look around and for kids there’s a quiz they can take around with them.
Alongside all this is a Tudor hall and a traditional 1930’s farm (with rare breeds) and in the summer they host the Tatton Flower Show (Cheshire’s version of the Chelsea Flower show) plus concerts hosted by the Halle orchestra.

I visited Tatton Park for the RHS show and it was fabulous. I wondered just how big this park is as it seemed to stretch on for miles and miles. I went back with my mum for a wee visit later that year and it was great just to wander around and discover things.

There are so many different sections and attractions at Tatton Park. Being a massive animal lover, I particularly loved the farm. It would be great for kids you can feed the hens and see lots of rare breeds there. The Neo classical Mansion is open to visitors, it has lavish rooms and has fine art and furniture collections. You can wander round it on your own or take a guided tour. As well as a 1000 acres of Parkland there is 50 acres of gardens, which include a Japanese garden a Rose garden and maze. My mother and I walked around the gardens for hours, at one point we got a bit lost in the cone forest and we thought it had started snowing (in the middle of summer) until we realised the squirrels were attacking the trees for food much higher up and they were discarding the bits of cones they didn't need!

There are also shops and a restaurant, 1000 acres of Open Park offer trails for you to explore, fishing and horseriding. Herds of Fallow deer roam freely across the park, while in the summer, flocks of sheep graze on its grasslands.

There's definately enough there for a full day visit, and so much to do for all the family.