Stopped by this historic spot for a relaxing walk on a nice day. There was plenty of parking. I didn't participate in the tour or go inside any buildings, but the grounds are beautifully kept with lots of open space and nature all around. The walking trails are lovely—peaceful paths winding through trees and fields, perfect for a leisurely stroll and spotting some wildlife. All the structures you can see from the outside look well maintained too. Great spot if you're looking for a quiet outdoor escape with some history in the background. I'd definitely come back for more trail time!
Excellent historic house. Guided tour well worth it as I enjoyed it thoroughly .It was one of better tours I have been on. Jefferson is a fascinating person full of contractions' that is explored here. The site has a full and fair discussion of the great contradiction that was Jefferson as well as many of the founding fathers.
We attended the wine festival today. My advice - Do NOT pay for the VIP experience. The food was scrappy. They went cheap and began running out before 1:30. The venue was broken down 45 minutes ahead of the stated time. There were no wine vendors at the VIP tent. Definitely not worth the $275/couple price!
While enjoying the fall colors in the surrounding Lynchburg area, we decided to pay a visit to amazing historical site. We made our way to the property using Poplar Forest Parkway. The area along the parkway is popular with locals who enjoy getting outdoors and walking/running and biking. There is a $26 charge for visitors. For that, you are able to enjoy a 15 minute movie to start your tour. You are then guided around the property and the main part of the home. You are able to take a self-guided tour but we were very happy that we took the guided tour. Our tour guide, Linda, was amazing; so knowledgeable on Thomas Jefferson and general history, and more than willing to answer the array of questions we threw at her. It was a great time of year to visit this property. We had about two hours there and that was really not enough time. We could have easily spent another hour here. There was some additional sites on the property, including an active archeological site, that we did not get a chance to see. We also learned that they have a wine festival taking place this weekend and other events that occur throughout the year. Definitely worth the visit!
Really had a great day here. Takes maybe 2hrs to walk the property so it’s not a long visit. You should find thought it is definitely worth the stop of you like history and are interested in Thomas Jefferson. The self guided tour using the app is excellent. You can easily go room to room and sit and listen to the provided information and then on to the “Offices” you will find the app give a guided tour there as well. Beautiful place !
Beautiful grounds and nice exhibits. It was a little costly for what I felt like was there, but they seem to take painstaking care to be faithful to the original building and appearance of the property, so I'm sure that isn't cheap. Great guides doing the tours that seem to really care about the subject matter and are very knowledgeable!
This place has been beautifully restored to its original splendor birthed by one of the great historical figures of our nation, Thomas Jefferson! This place is a treasure trove of history, and can definitely understand why this place was so restorative to Mr. Jefferson and his family. I would recommend this spot for historians, families with children, architects, etc.!
The property and house were amazing!! I downloaded the app and took us on a personal tour. They have decent to take you around if you prefer, but the app was very detailed and helpful. I found the app tour to be a nice private thing just for the two of us. The little gift shop was adorable too!!
We opted to not do the paid tour and instead walked around in the 'free' area. We could not get close to the house but close enough for a few pictures. The grounds are very well-kept and pretty. There is a free "window" you can peer through to see many nice 'artifacts' which I found very interesting.
Enjoy Thomas Jefferson’s architectural genius on a smaller scale with a visit to Poplar Forest which has been beautifully restored. Portions have been left in a way you can understand the construction techniques used in the building and restoration of the house. Much attention is given to the enslaved people who made it all possible Tour guide was great and answered a mirage of questions thrown her way. Poplar Forest is a hidden gem deserving of more attention. A debt of gratitude is due to the Lynchburg leaders who years ago got together to save this very special house!
Interesting house and history. Fairly empty as far as the house goes. Enjoyed that you could do a guided tour or the fact that they have an app that you can download with a guided tour on it as well if the tour times do not work for you. A couple hours is plenty of time to see the area. Most of it is buildings no longer standing. But there are some other building there that you can go in. Monticello is doable in the same day. Make a day of both houses. We did!
Not a lot of signage to get there-so we ended up going through what looked like a service entrance (or so it said). Video was great, tour guide knowledgeable and passionate about the restoration. Love the house and grounds, but it’s missing more period artifacts - would have loved to see clothes or quilts or more than just a few dishes and books. Great overall and I definitely recommend it if you have a few hours.
Gorgeous grounds and amazing trees, classically Jeffersonian architecture. A bit expensive and busier than some nearby national historic landmarks but certainly worth a visit.
What a fascinating out-of-the-way historic site! If you enjoyed Monticello, definitely visit Poplar Forest. I learned so much about Jefferson’s life (both the good and the bad) and the docent did a fantastic job. Guided tour is well worth your time. Great place to honor and study one of our most fascinating Presidents.
We got an excellent tour of Thomas Jefferson's retreat, Poplar Forest, which, like Monticello he designed and built. This octagonal building is the first of its kind in the US and has all the hallmarks of Jefferson's architectural and design prowess. Even the pribies are octagonal in shape! BEWARE: The Lynchburg address is misleading. Put Poplar Forest, Forest, Virginia as your destination in your GPS. Otherwise, you will be driving up and down Forest parkway.
I wouldn't pay full admission, but as a combo ticket with the D Day Memorial, it at least made up for how sparse the memorial was in material. I specifically bought the combo ticket to just see the architecture.
It was enlightening to see that some of Jefferson's enslaved children birthed by Sally Hemings were builders of Poplar Forest.
It's awe-inspiring to look out from the north portico and envision what Thomas Jefferson may have seen looking in the same direction. Historic and peaceful.
The buildings and grounds have been well preserved and maintained. Such a beautiful location, full of history. We also enjoyed the wildlife that casually strolled the grounds. A great day trip!
So glad to see Poplar Forest restored to its present state. We had a very enjoyable Saturday afternoon. Beautiful grounds, walking trails, and a very informative tour of the inside of the house itself. There's also a nice gift shop. Looking forward to attending more events here in the future.
We loved it here! So much history to experience. Our guide was Bob Golcheski and he was amazing! He was so knowledgeable and made it interesting for us all. He answered every question my boys had and made it so memorable for them. They attended school the next day and was so excited to share all the information they had learned. It is beautiful here and they are doing an amazing job with the restoration. Highly recommend visiting here!
What a great place! Grounds are open to the public to walk around and enjoy. House tours are available for a fee and give lots of information on the history of the house and things happened daily on the property. Don't miss the house tour! It is money well spent. Very well maintained. Beautiful scenery Small gift shop onsite.
Jefferson was an interesting (and complicated) fellow. There is no doubt in my mind he would be a total tech junkie were he our contemporary.
I enjoy Poplar Forest more than Monticello.
There is more to understand about the construction of the house - the first octagonal house built in the Americas. Notice that from any angle you can only see three sides. I like it but don't find it "livable" the spaces are odd, beautiful, but too much from another era.
It's typically not crowded and you can roam a bit.
There is much history here and you can piece together parts of the complicated relationship he had with his enslaved persons of color.
I wish he had possessed the internal fortitude to free all his enslaved persons. Complicated, yeah?
Well worth the visit. Great family trip or history buff. Amazing and well maintained grounds. We learned more about Thomas Jefferson, family, and slaves that worked the land. The house, buildings, and garden are beautiful.
This was a very neat experience. I loved that they have this open to the public even though they are doing work to restore and recuperate some of the original stuff from when Thomas Jefferson was living here. The tour guide was very informative. She definatley knew her stuff. I will for sure be coming back in a few years to see what new stuff they have found or restored.
We took the guided tour. Well worth the money. They did a great job explaining all about Thomas Jefferson and his house and grounds. The gift shop had quite the selection of his items, American history items, and other interesting items. We would definitely go back if in the area again.
This is a great part of U.S. history. President Thomas Jefferson built this retreat to get away from things including Monticello his home. It is smaller but has a 2 mile driveway through 600 acres on 4000 acres of land making it his personal retreat. He made wine in both places but his library here was much smaller I only saw a few shelves that could be used for books. It was a great experience.
What an Incredible an intricate detailed house Thomas Jefferson designed. The tour guides are great, friendly and give you an in depth tour of the house. Make sure you spend sometime in the bottom portion of the house. If you love history this is a must stop.
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