Going out for the day as a couple or family is becoming less of the norm for many as prices of day tickets and parking charges eat into household budgets, let alone the cost of grabbing a hot drink or a bite to eat whilst there. I've managed to save double the amount I would normally spend on days out using a specific membership card.
Since signing up, my boyfriend and I have had free access to parks, stately homes, and avoided hefty car parking charges on a handful of popular nature walks and woodlands, and it's all down to having a National Trust Membership card.
As a young couple saving to buy our first home we've really started to cut down on how much we spend and certainly don't do lavish dates and weekends away, but it's near enough impossible (in our opinion) to find things to do cheaply at a time when the price of everything is going up.
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In the seven months since joining I've saved £130 with a membership that costs £38.40 a year, it's made the 'little days out', which actually end up costing a good £30 a pop, a lot more affordable for us. We live up in Yorkshire but in the months since joining we've used it on a range of sites across the UK, including nearby (ish) in the Brecon Beacons.
In fact, we've probably had the most out of it when we least expected it, including at Formby beach in Liverpool where a spontaneous meet-up with friends in the heatwave last year saved our group £14.50 just on parking (for two cars).
A place near us is Wentworth Castle Gardens and it's become a regular for us on weekends as we now don't have to pay anything to get in. If we didn't have the card it would cost us £3 to park each time, and £5.50 each just to enter the grounds. We've been at least four times (that I can remember) so that's at least a £56 saving.
Other savings for us include £32 at Mottisfont in Hampshire, £24 at Nostell Priory near us in West Yorkshire and a random £7.50 saved in parking charges when on a weekend away last year in the Brecon Beacons, walking Pen y Fan.
I have to admit I was entirely sure if we'd end up making a saving after the initial membership costs but even at times when we weren't trying to cut costs (like on the weekend away in the Brecon Beacons) we've ran into little savings here and there.
There are loads of different membership options to choose from which makes it easy for couples, families, and individuals to use as they wish. We both have an individual young person membership (ages 18-25) which is half the amount of a full adult charge of £76 a year.
Looking at the different options I'd say the family type is one of the best 'savings' to go for. At £133.80 a year it includes two adults (over the age of 18 living at the same address) and their children or grandchildren (17 and under), there's no limit on the amount of children per couple and any child under the age of five goes free.
Of course, the properties I've listed above that we've visited will not be relevant to everyone but that's the beauty. With more than 500 National Property sites across the UK there's a lot of options when it comes to making the most of the membership. The full list of National Trust sites across Wales can be seen, here.
Welsh National Trust properties where you can take advantage of this offer
Here are a few Welsh sites and how much you could save on admissions if you had a membership card. The savings range from £3 per adult for the ruins and waterfall in Neath Port Talbot or as much as £12 per adult at Tredegar House.
- Dyffryn Gardens - Without membership costs £8 per adult to enter, £4 per child or £20 for family
- Tredegar House - Without membership costs £12 per adult, £6.10 per child and £3 for parking
- Aberdulais - Without membership costs £5 entrance
- The Kymin - Without membership costs £3 per adult and £1.50 per child
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