Britain on the Cheap

The Royal Oak Foundation, the American arm of the National Trust, wishes everyone a happy holiday with a lovely photo gallery of National Trust gardens in the snow and frost. Enjoy 14 images from The Telegraph, sweeping from Kent to Suffolk to Northumberland.

The Royal Oak Foundation, the American affiliate of the National Trust, is offering a 2-for-1 voucher to the newly restored Gothic castle Strawberry Hill outside Richmond. The home, Britain’s finest example of Georgian Gothic Revival architecture, was transformed from a modest 1698 home into a castle by Horace Walpole, son of England’s first prime minister. [...]

It’s not too early to think about Halloween in the UK. The Royal Oak Foundation, the U.S. affiliate to the National Trust, has scouted out scary happenings at medieval castles and venerable estates, and suggested nearby overnights at National Trust properties. Royal Oak members receive access to more than 300 historic houses without paying an [...]

The Royal Oak Foundation, the American affiliate of the National Trust in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, is sponsoring two lectures during the AVENUE Shows Antiques & Art at the Armory in New York. A Family Affair: Treasures from the Rothschild Collection at Waddesdon Manor will be presented by Dr. Ulrich Leben, Associate Curator of Furniture, [...]

Have you ever yearned to own Sissinghurst Castle Garden or even Snowdonia National Park? It’s all within your grasp with the new National Trust Monopoly, the first charity version of the famous game. The Royal Oak Foundation is selling them for $100, and half of that is a tax-deductible gift to the foundation.

Fascinated by Rossyln Chapel in Scotland, a crucial location in Dan Brown’s “Da Vinci Code”? The Countess of Rosslyn will discuss “Rosslyn Chapel: Fact and Fiction” 4 p.m. Sept. 26 at the Albany Institute of History and Art in Albany, N.Y. The countess is the owner of Rosslyn and director of the Rosslyn Trust. This [...]

Have you seen Sir John Soane’s Museum in London, with collections on the walls, ceilings and even under the floorboards? If you can’t make it to London right now, you might want to hear Tim Knox, director of the museum, speak on “The Strange Genius of Sir John Soane” 6 p.m. Sept. 25 at the [...]

Can’t make it to Hidcote Manor Garden, one of England’s great gardens, this year? Glyn Jones, head gardener at Hidcote in Chipping Campden, north Cotswolds, will be discussing “Lawrence Johnston’s Hidcote: A Paradise Enclosed,” along with horticulturalist Ethne Clarke. This Royal Oak Foundation lecture is 2 p.m. Sept. 24 at Filoli in Woodside, Calif. $25 [...]

Members of The Royal Oak Foundation save 25% off room rates and breakfast at three Historic House Hotels, plus a complimentary room upgrade. The hotels, all at least 300 years old, are Bodysgallen in Llandudno, Wales, Middlethorpe Hall near York, England, and Hartwell House outside London. Nightly rates begin at $260 before the discount. To join [...]