Winchester Mystery House To Reopen Garden Tours
SAN JOSE, CA — The famed Winchester Mystery House in San Jose is reopening its gardens Friday for self-guided tours after weeks of closure due to COVID-19 mandates.
Garden visitors must wear masks and social-distance, while enjoying the "touchless," outdoor tour with 20 stops throughout four acres of the estate's Victorian Gardens.
The legendary residence, the former home of Sarah Pardee Winchester, heiress to the Winchester Repeating Arms fortune, renown for its bizarre design, stairs to the ceiling and secret passageways, remains closed, along with the property's gift shop and cafe.
Tours of the gardens — in full bloom — will be offered Thursdays through Sundays and tickets must be pre-purchased prior to arrival, Winchester staff said.
“We are thrilled to begin welcoming guests back to Sarah Winchester’s estate with a phased approach focused on the safety and comfort of our guests and employees,” said Walter Magnuson, Winchester's general manager. “As springtime blossoms abound, the Victorian Gardens surrounding Sarah’s mysterious home have never looked more beautiful."
Guests will be provided with links to an audio guide and digital map that will be accessible on their own devices upon check-in. Tickets are $19.99 for adults, $15.99 for seniors, and $9.99 for children, available online here. Garden-tour ticketholders will receive a 50-percent discount to mansion tours of the Winchester Mystery House when those resume.
"We are happy to offer an opportunity for guests to enjoy (the gardens) with a zero-contact, self-guided tour complimented by informative visuals and educational sound clips," Magnuson said, adding that along with required masks and distancing, such precautions as hand-washing and sanitizing stations are located throughout the estate, and tour sizes are restricted to visitors' immediate household. Get Garden Tour tickets here.
For those who prefer a stay-at-home, Winchester Mystery House experience, check out the Immersive 360 Tour, a virtual walk-through that allows viewers to independently roam each level of the iconic residence, from the basement to the rarely seen fourth floor, including many rooms previously inaccessible on standard tours.
This online tour costs $8.99 and can be accessed here, and includes one complimentary pass for a future tour when the estate reopens.
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This article originally appeared on the Campbell Patch
