Ordsall Hall and The Gnome Trail

Ordsall Hall in Salford is a gorgeous tudor house, once a statley home. Now a fantastic and FREE museum for all and extremely family friendly!

Me and my two youngest headed to Ordsall Hall nice and early this morning. Due to the roadworks in Manchester and the fact its half term, I wanted to be there for when it opened.

There’s a pay and display car park at Ordsall Hall that takes coins only, it fills up early so if you’re visiting over the half term I would definitely suggest being early.

As I pulled into the car park I was surprised at this beautiful building right in front of me. It’s such an amazing building that’s sort of out of place! It’s right in the middle of modern houses and work places.

The hall is open everyday (except Fridays and Saturdays) 10am-4pm. We entered the hall at 10am and was warmly greeted by members of staff. The staff at Ordsall Hall were all extremely friendly and very helpful.

We had come to visit to take part in their half term activity – Gnome Trail. We were given some trail sheets where we had to explore the hall for these spooky and scary ghoulish gnomes that had taken over! More information about the Gnome Trail can be found here.

My family love a trail (as many of my readers will know). I love how family friendly Ordsall Hall was also. The trail kept the children interested and excited as we moved from room to room. The hall has also been decorated for Halloween and looked fab, there was spiders, pumpkins and much more everywhere!

Me and the kids loved exploring the rooms. Each room had different things to look at and most had something in to keep the children entertained too, whether it was some colouring sheets or even a game!

We searched high and low and eventually found all the gnomes! By now the hall was getting busier and busier, full of families enjoying the half term activities too.

Whilst we were visiting Ordsall Hall, a lovely member of staff told us all about the Halloween Grotto that was running today and tomorrow. He was kind enough to give me and my little ones a sneaky peak!

We were welcomed by a friendly witch who showed us to into her witches grotto! It wasn’t too scary at all but my two were a little wary. She showed us some spells and asked my two for some help but I think they were a little overwhelmed. Joshua, my 6 year old son would have loved saying spells and helping with potions!

My 2 year old twins did love the light in the witches grotto, they were mezmerised! The witches grotto is open tomorrow (Thursday 25th October 12-3pm) also. All those that are brave enough to enter her grotto will recieve a special gift! See more details here about the grotto.

After we had finished the trail, we stopped for a cake and a drink in the cafe. There’s a small cafe near the entrance that sells snacks and drinks. The three of us shared a yummy chocolate muffin and I enjoyed a good cup of coffee!

Once we were refreshed, we headed back outside to check out the beautiful building and its grounds. My two were obsessed with the lovely swans sculpture near the car park.

We headed around the building to see the rest of the gardens. The building is truly beautiful, I instantly fell in love with its exterior!

We walked towards a vegetable garden and the kids soon spotted some little watering cans. Well my two were in their element, they could have stayed watering these plants and vegetables all day! It’s the little touches like this which makes Ordsall Hall great for families and little ones.

We three had a lovely morning and we will definitely be back soon. We want to bring Joshua and their daddy to show them the beautiful building and its grounds. More information about Ordsall Hall can be found here.

Out And About Mummy Top Tips When Visiting Ordsall Hall:

*if possible I would say leave the pram in the car. There are lifts for wheelchairs but due to space I would definitely say it would be easier without a pram. A baby carrier would be an easier option.

*definitely get there early if you can. I’ve heard how busy it has been during the half term and people having no where to park. I had no issues as I turned up nice and early.

*have change for the car park.

*although it’s FREE entry, the hall does rely heavily on donations. There’s plenty of opportunities to donate, there’s even plants near the entrance for you to take home! All that’s ask is a small donation!

*remember the hall is closed on Fridays and Saturdays!