"A timeless glimpse into a way of life that has disappeared."
 Llanerchaeron nestles in a wooded valley a few miles inland from Aberaeron on the Cardigan Bay coast. It's a rare example of a Welsh gentry estate, dating from the 18th century. And the good news is that it is gradually being brought back to life.
Everything is here, complete and intact - a beautiful house designed by John Nash (who was also responsible for London's Regent Street), courtyard with bake oven and brewery, servants' quarters, and fascinating array of rustic outbuildings. There's also a magnificent walled garden set amongst acres of beautiful grounds, which are still farmed.
Unlike other Trust properties, Llanerchaeron is not a grand, imposing place. It's a window into the everyday world of people who worked on a local estate hundreds of years ago, a glimpse into a way of life that has disappeared. It's probably the last Welsh estate of its kind to survive in its original form. And it's miraculously complete - the house and servants' quarters still stand, along with the farm, outbuildings, workshops, 'pleasure grounds', parkland and walled gardens. Amazingly, no part of the Llanerchaeron jigsaw is missing.
The estate's central feature is a beautiful late 18th-century Georgian house, currently under restoration. This architectural jewel represents just the first chapter in Llanerchaeron's story. It served as the focal point for a self-sufficient country gentleman's property, the entire 670 acres of which still surround the house.
It's worth seeking out the estate, in a hidden valley near Aberaeron, just to see the house in its idyllic setting. But there's more - much more. The adjoining courtyard has a dairy, cheese presses, smokehouse, and even a brewery. A short walk brings you to a large range of buildings, the Home Farm complex, where all the serious work was done. It's a sprawling, fully fledged farm - threshing and corn barn, hay barn, cobbled yards, bailiff's house, cowshed, granary, kennels, gamekeeper's store, carpenter's workshop, stable yard, calf and poultry sheds and carriage house. And next door there are two enormous walled gardens which have been replanted with vegetables, fruit and flowers.
Don't expect perfection at Llanerchaeron - it's not that kind of place. What it does offer is a truly fascinating look into a vanished age on a Welsh country estate, and the way in which it is all being brought back to life, gently and sympathetically.
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