I've always wanted to visit Stourhead and Wilton House. We'll be in England April 19-24. Would there be much in bloom at Stourhead at that time. Are both Stourhead and Wilton House doable in a day trip from London? Thanks for any advice.

Vanne - April's a bit early for Stourhead - it's really at its best in May/June. It's a beautiful place any time of year though ...

Both as a day-trip? By car, certainly.

By public transport? More difficult ...
You'd need an early start. The nearest station to Stourhead is Gillingham - from where you'd need a taxi.

Hope this helps ...

Steve

We walked through Stourhead the first week of May 2000. Even though the day was a bit drizzly, it was beautiful. At that time the azaleas and rhododendrohns were blooming. Of course I'm not sure when they started. I do remember that when we went to one of the gardens on the Roseland Penn, a lot of blooms were already past.

It's never easy to predict the evolution of any English spring precisely. And this one's tougher than most: it stayed cold and dry longer than most of us can remember, so everything was way behind till a couple of days ago.

But with more typical mild, damp weather, there's been an explosion of spring round here in the past few days. And, although the lambs (no respecters of anything) popped out at the normal time, a lot of farmers kept them inside till last weekend. Now they're gambolling all over the place.

Some alleged experts are claiming that around mid-April we'll be seeing blooms from several seasons at once. And bluebells are normally coming out by mid to late April anyway in Stourhead.

Whether they're right or not, most of us townies haven't the faintest, and my gardner refuses to be drawn. I'd guess most of the cycle from daffs to tulips will still be flowering, and the hedges will be turning to leaf. The grass has finally hit its going green stage. But check before setting out, as things this year really are very unpredictable.

Stourhead and Wilton House are reasonably easy in a day by car, as long as you get a decent route from your hotel to the M3 and leave by 0700. I suspect - but am far too lazy to search - it's not really feasible to do them both before the second closes if you're using trains and buses.

Thanks Steve James, hopingtotravel and CotswoldScouser for your advice.
The descriptions sound great, so we'll check when we get to London and see if the flowers are in bloom.