wilderstein historic site

Wilderstein should be on everyone's list for the holiday season to see the decorated mansions. The house needs a lot of work and the donations will help with that. The house is so steeped in history and in beauty but don't expect some long tour. Only part of the house is open and the parts that are open need some work but they decorated for the holidays so nicely you felt like the family invited you for the day. The ground will be really nice in the Spring and Fall.

Enjoyed a perfectly lovely & informative docent led tour by Donna, one of the many volunteers that keeps this very special piece of American social history alive. Tours are confined to the first floor but there is much to see in this Victorian gem, of special note was the hand-tooled leather wallpaper in the foyer and the small but impressive library.I really enjoyed the fact that this house is a work in progress and restoration on it is being done so thoughtfully. Impressive.

Just the views from the grounds high on the hill and the sight of this elaborately painted polychrome Victorian mansion exterior that has now been completely restored was worth the trip out of Rhinebeck to see where Daisy Suckley lived. This was the Roosevelt cousin who gave Franklin Delano Roosevelt his dog Fala and the person who was his personal confidante (not mistriss, that was someone else) for many, many years. Daisy was born in the house and lived to be just shy of 100 years old and she kept this house and its furnishings as her family had back in the days when they were wealthy. Before and after pictures of the house and its rooms as astonishing and the public group that looks after the house and runs its giftshop are amazing people. There is Tiffany glass in some of the windows and although you only see the ground floor of the house, you can envision what this looked like in its hey day. My only complaint is that, to preserve any fabrics or furnishings, the light levels in the house are so dark it is hard to see much. I liked that the guide carried a flashlight to illuminate some of the interesting highlights and pictures on the walls. If you are seeing all of the Roosevelt houses in Hyde Park, you cannot miss this place since Daisy was such an integral part of the Roosevelt story and was with FDR when he died in Warm Springs Georgia. Be sure you watch the video where you can see Daisy and her sister talking about their lives in the house. Be forwarned, however, the house is only open from noon to 4PM, so you have to make sure you schedule your visit appropriately. The last tour of the house is 3:30PM and we almost missed it. Although we were there in the fall during the fall color time, it seems that not too many people come here, which is a real shame. It is a fascinating place and even if you just sit on the grounds in the bench looking down the lawn at the Hudson and then look back at that grand house and the amazingly structured porch, that is worth the trip.

We took the tour and I'm very glad we did. I learned about a more private side of FDR. The house is gorgeous. I hope the money will be available for more renovations. The grounds are breathtaking.

If we could line anywhere, it would be here in Rhinebeck. We loved the town and it's historic area is simply fantastic. Great shops and eateries here. Highly recommended.

I went to Wilderstein for a wedding on this past Friday. It was absolutely gorgeous. Everyone was so nice and it was amazing.

I enjoyed my visit to Wilderstein. It's a nice Queen-Anne style house, but nothing stands out as particularly special about the place. The entryway is dark, with lots of lovely dark carved hardwoods. The tour only covers the first floor.For anyone interested in the 'scandal' aspect of Daisie, who is rumored to be one of FDR's mistresses, or tour guide was having none of it, and the little bit she covered it was to emphatically reject the idea.

I had been looking forward to touring Wilderstein for some time, but because I give tours at another Hudson Valley historic site, I am usually working during all of their open hours. My enthusiasm for visiting then made the low quality tour I received even more disappointing. I was at least 100% more excited to take the tour than the guide was to give the tour. She may have been having a bad day, but she seemed annoyed by the size of the group and the fact that she was giving a tour. There were several simple questions that she could not answer. At one point I was reading a panel about the exhibit that was in the house (that was not explained or mentioned at all) and she looked at me and said "Come on" in the rudest voice possible. There were still others behind me and she may have been speaking to all of us, but I was appalled that I was spoken to in that tone and in that way.I truly hate to give another local site a poor review especially one that relies on volunteers to run, but I was just so disappointed in this tour. It sounds like others have received excellent tours and I hope to return one day and have a better experience. I wish my impression of the site was better, but it is hard to shake a poor experience.

As always this was so amazing and beyond! The story is so interesting. Just a continuation of Hyde park and the FDR family. If you like history it is just up your alley! Beautifully restored. The guides did an excellent job explaining and answered most questions. Worth the admission price!

This is a beautiful restored home [you can only however tour through just 5 rooms [the upstairs is off limits]. Amazing views from the porch and lawn of the Hudson River and Catskills Mountains beyond. Interesting learning about one of FDR's mistresses.

What a treat Wilderstein (pronounced Wilderstine) . Most of the first floor has been carefully and painstakingly restored so the tour is worth the few dollars they charge ($10 or $9 for seniors) but the real charm is the gorgeous views of the scenic Hudson River from several vantage points. A small book is sold in the gift shop that explains the history of the three generations that lived in this home and how they squandered their inheritance over the years. I would recommend a visit and the tour. Finding out that the last person to live here was the Daisy that became FDR's confident for 20 yrs. and was with him when he died made the visit all the more interesting.

If you are like me, you would mostly be interested in the Wilderstein home to learn more about 'Daisy' (Margaret), who was FDR's cousin and trusted confident. Unfortunately, because of an overly talkative person in our tour group, we actually learned little about her and more about the family history. The guide had some trouble controlling this individual, so it's difficult to know what a normal tour may comprise. It is limited to the first floor and takes about an hour, including an informative video where Margaret and her sister are featured - quite charming to hear them reminisce about the good old days. If you have time on your hands while visiting the area, I would still recommend it. The view from the house is the most beautiful that we saw of all the grand homes in the Hudson Valley area and the foundation and volunteers have done a wonderful job of restoring the exterior.

IT was a great place to visit. The people working there were very nice and happily answered questions. The only issue that I had was there were only 4 rooms to see. A small kitchen (used by the help, the owner when she was a lone, dining room, library, music room. For the price I would like to have seen more

We toured a number of mansions along the Hudson River Valley and this was one of our favorites. It is charming and we can imagine living there. The view of the Hudson River is wonderful. Both the exterior and interior are beautiful. We caught the last tour of the day (3:30pm), so it was just us and two others. After the tour, we walked down a short trail down to the carriage house to take a quick look. It is in disrepair but it is their next restoration project. I am sure that when it is finished, it will also be lovely.

This is one of my favorite mansions along the Hudson, perhaps because I can actually imagine myself living here. I can imagine sitting on the bench overlooking the river with a cup of coffee and a good book. I can imagine a less pretentious life-style than would be possible in many of the other mansions that were built during the guilded age. This cottage is colorful and well-maintained, although preservation and restoration is on-going.Our guide, Joan was exceptionally knowledgeable about the estate and history. She took our group of 7 relatives through the mansion at a pace that was quite pleasing. She answered questions & helped us envision life as it once was in this place.