blenheim palace and sudeley castle

In my opinion you should give Blenheim 2-3 if not longer. If the weather is good and you want to look at all the gardens, butterfly house, etc., it would be more like 4 hours. Sudeley Castle 1-2 hours would be good.

I agree with Robin. Blenheim palace and its environs are massive, and you could easily spend three hours there. If you have a car, you might want to stop in the small village of Bladon, about a mile south of the palace. The cemetery contains the grave of Winston Churchill.

You requested opinions on Sudeley Castle and I thought it might help you to have Michelin's opinion: they (along with all other guidebooks I've seen) give Blenheim 3-stars, highly recommended and worth a special trip; whereas in comparison they give Sudeley 1-star, using their definition: 1-star is interesting to do, if you're in the area for some other reason or passing close by--but not justifying a special trip in the way Blenheim does.

Of course you can't compare Sudeley to Blenheim, but Sudeley is a 15th century structure and one of Englands's finer stately homes. Catherine Parr the sixth wife of Henry VII lived and died there. Her tomb is in the chapel there. It has great gardens and peacocks.

Blenheim Palace has a new exhibit that opened last year. It is an animated, audio, video presentation explaining the building of Blenheim Palace. This took about 30 minutes. (No charge). Very interesting and enjoyable. You "need to stop" and have your tea, scones and clotted butter along with exploring the Palace. My husband and I spent 3+ hours at Blenheim. The gardens were a wonderful exploration. Don't short yourself on time here. I have not been to Sudeley Castle but after visiting Caernarfon and Conwy, some Castles start looking the same.

I've not been to Sudeley Castle, but Blenheim can certainly take as long as you want it to. I don't really recommend "The Untold Story" unless you have kids - but between the guided tour, walking around the palace itself, the gardens, the Churchill Museum - it can definitely take 4 hours if you want. However, you can do it in 2 if you have to (skipping some of the gardens). In the brochure you get when you get there, they give you suggestions of itineraries depending upon how long you want to give it.

Blenheim Palace is well worth a visit. We regretted that we did not visit Churchill's grave in Blaedon. We had a British Heritage Pass which covered Sudeley but when we got to Winchcombe where Sudeley is we discovered it was closed for a special event. We were told this happens frequently so be sure to check ahead to be certain it is open.

You may want to check the website for Sudeley. The actual house is only open Tues-Thur and has a separate admission. You can tour the grounds, chapel, exhibition on Henry VIII, gardens at any time for one admission. Also, children were not allowed on the house tour. We did not know of these rules when we went so were very disappointed. The gardens were very nice though.

Thanks everyone,

Very much "good to know" info. I think we will definitely be checking out Blenheim and we will see about time for Sudeley. Thanks again!