Fursdon House

Fursdon House is a country house in the Exe Valley countryside near Exeter, home to the Fursdon family for more than seven centuries. Visits are by guided tour of the house, which takes around 50 minutes and is led in an informal, storytelling style, with tales of family life, a ghost and a dragon along the way. Featured on the tour is a family museum showing 18th and 19th century costumes, archaeological finds from the estate and historic photographs, and the displays change each year. Outside, around four acres of hillside gardens have been restored, with an old walled garden, a dahlia border and views over parkland towards Dartmoor. A coach-house tea room serves cream teas and home-baked cakes. The house is open on set days in summer, so it suits a relaxed afternoon for families with older children who enjoy history, dressing-up style costumes and open green space.