Apsley House: Wellington Museum
 

I'm thinking of adding this one to my visit list. Read where it won the 2001 Small Attraction of the Year award from the London Tourist Board.

Exterior looks impressive and I've heard its got an outstanding collection of paintings, porcelain, silver, sculpture, furniture, medals and memorabilia.

Any rants or raves? Ideas about other nearby attractions or place to eat or drink are welcome.

APSLEY HOUSE
HYDE PARK CORNER
LONDON W1J 7NT
020 7499 5676
www.apsleyhouse.org.uk

Tube: Hyde Park Corner

Buses: 2,8,9,10,14,16,19,22,36,38, 52,73,74,82 and 137 stop nearby

Hi Degas,

I went there when I was in London in January. I enjoyed it. It does have nice collections as you have heard, and the rooms are what you'd expect - very high ceilings, tall windows, ornate draperies and colorful walls.

The nice thing about it, too, is that it doesn't take very long. If you are pressed for time, you can do it in less than an hour (depending on how much you linger looking at the collections, of course), and it's not expensive. Plus, the square across the street is a good photo op, too.

I don't recall what's nearby - we took the tube there, saw the house and square, and then tubed off to somewhere else.

Enjoy London!

Karen

Karen, thanks for the input. It did look like a good place for some photos.

The place is amazing. I went there in 1999 and did it in about 2 hours. Get an audio guide and this way you will not missing anything important. I liked the way the paintings are organized on the walls, the house also features retractable walls which allows them to fill every inch of the wallspace with paintings. Don't miss the statue on the ground floor.

It is great - it's address is Number 1 London, which tells you a lot about both its location and how important Wellington was.

It is in a great location for walking/sightseeing since it is at Hyde Park Corner which links Hyde Park, Green Park and B'ham Palace Gardens.

The collections are really high quality - especially the Goyas, Rubens and others masters.

janis and IgorVodov, my list grows and grows, but its full of good ones. Just starting to weave the days together so I don't zigzag back and forth across town. Easy to underestimate how long it well take to actually get there and find the places.

I was there a few years ago and really enjoyed it. you have plenty of options nearby for sightseeing and eating too. close to a lot of swanky hotels as well (should you decide to stay in the area).

flygirl, if the stock market keeps going up, maybe I can step up a few notches from Budget to Swanky!

Go NASDQ! Go NASDQ!

Hi Degas,
I like the places you plan to visit. Didn't reply to the Wallace Collection and F&M questions but I adore Fortnum's, also the lower floor for GREAT hampers and china. I have been to London 12 times and the Wallace Collection is on my list for my September trip - when will you be there? My sister-in-law (who lives in London) tells me that Marleybone High St (very close to the Wallace) has good shopping also. BUT, back to this question!! I loved Apsley House and as Janice says the fact that it's address is #1 London is quite cool!! Before the war it was the first of many mansions that stretched along Piccadilly - there is a great book called Mayfair - A social History by Carol Kennedy that I think is a must read for anybody that loves London. Enjoy it if you can. Also another book that I loved, unfortunately I cannot remember the author but she wrote 84 Charing Cross Road also - she writes in this book about her first trip to London in the '70's. She talks with such passion for the city that I couldn't put it down - makes me want to be there so much!!!!
Enjoy!!!

Hi! kmowatt - that was also a movie with Anthony Hopkins, and I think Anne Bancroft?

Degas, another memory I have of this place (yes, Number 1, London, really does sound too cool) is standing in his great dining room, where he met all the dignitaries and contemporaries of the day, and standing right behind where the great man 'held court' - right behind his seat at the table. just imagining what went on in that room, the important people who were there, you almost felt like you could reach out and touch it.

kmowatt - thanks for the tips. No firm date yet for my trip. Expect it will be late nov/early dec - watching for winter airfare sales and trying to nail down my vacation time. Some friends are going in Oct and I agreed to help them plan so thats why I'm doing research now.

I looked up your writer. Its Helene Hanff. The trip is captured in The Duchess of Bloomsbury. Amazon had lots of good reviews. I put it on hold at the library.

Anyone who's planning to be in London in June might be interested to know that Apsley House always has special programs during "Waterloo Week" (the week around the anniversary of the battle of Waterloo), and admission is free on Waterloo Day (June 18) itself. I went to Apsley House on Waterloo Day this year and heard an interesting talk by the director of the house about the "Waterloo Banquets" (annual banquets celebrating the victory at Waterloo that were held at Apsley House every year until the Duke of Wellington's death).

The only drawback to going on Waterloo Day is that it's much more crowded than it is on ordinary days: I couldn't get close to the Velazquez painting, "Waterseller of Seville," which is one of the highlights of the collection, because it's in the room where the talk was being given, and people were sitting on folding chairs in front of the painting. Even so, going there on Waterloo Day was kind of a cool thing to do.

By the way, Apsley House's website (http://www.apsleyhouse.org.uk/) says that they'll be doing a "Victorian Christmas" celebration on dates to be confirmed in December, so anyone who's going to London in December might want to check the website later for more details on that.

bree, thanks for the insightful input- good to know info.