Set in the Grade II-listed Victorian dairy, the Cow Barn restaurant has been a popular haunt for local residents and tourists
The National Trust property has started to charge people to use its popular cafe. Until now, the Cow Barn cafe and restaurant at the Wraxall property was free to enter and a popular meeting place for locals who didn’t want to pay to visit the house itself.
But a new ‘welcome wall’ has been introduced which means the cafe and shop are now within the site that costs to enter unless you are a National Trust member.
The full £12 adult entrance ticket price is now charged to enter the cafe and children over five will be charged £6. Under-fives can still enter for nothing.
Set in the Grade II-listed Victorian dairy, the Cow Barn restaurant has been a popular haunt for local residents and tourists since it opened.
The Tyntesfield website makes no mention of the fact visitors now have to pay to enjoy the facilities that were previously free.
It says: The Cow Barn at Home Farm is the perfect place to pop in at the start of your visit or to refuel and relax after exploring the estate. We’ll be serving a limited range of hot and cold drinks, freshly made snacks and hot bites as well as Marshfield Farm Ice cream.
A spokesperson for the National Trust said: The National Trust opened a new visitor welcome building at Tyntesfield in May 2021. Located between the car park and historic Home Farm buildings, which house a café and shop, the new building has been designed in response to visitor feedback.
It creates a clear welcome point for all visitors and a simple entry route from which they can explore the entire site. The new building has also been designed to address capacity issues on peak days with fast-track entry for National Trust supporters, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said: To access these areas visitors will need to be either a National Trust member or pay the entrance fee. The National Trust is a charity and relies on money from supporters for the care and conservation of Tyntesfield and other places for future generations.
