Great experience with a very friendly, knowledgeable tour guide. Gives a little more context into the beginnings of Alexandria, the architecture of the times, and touches upon the slave trade (so as to give a complete, transparent history of the Carlyle household). We visited during a period when they were remembering the John Carlyles death and the home was dressed to represent what it would have looked like at the time of his death when the household was in mourning. (I think you should expect that from Sept-Oct every year.) Thumbs up. Worth the visit!

Me and my husband have lived in Virginia for a year now and have attended three events so far at the Carlyle House. They are always genuinely friendly and always find a new way to add a new adventure to your visit to the house. Gary and Susan in particular have gone above and beyond kind and willing to explain things about the house and its history. We cant wait to attend more events in the future! This has definitely become our favorite place to visit.

The tour guide really brought the place alive, an Alexandria treasure that was nearly demolished after falling into disrepair. Its had many lives but was a fabulous way to step back in time and see how the rich lived and how the country was divided and formed. Wonderfully welcoming staff, happy to see us and our kids!

I love history. I love stories. This place has it all.My tour guide was Steve K. He had so much to say I may have actually reached my information peak. I had questions he had all the answers. I did get a one on one tour. I went on a very slow day.I would recommend this tour while you are in town.When you go tell Penny I said, Hi. I’m absolutely sure she still lives there.

Quick stop for a $5 tour that gets your mind in gear for the history of Old Town Alexandria. Was an excellent first stop for our weekend visit. Very enjoyable!

This is a great museum to appreciate early American history in Alexandria. The house has been restored to near perfect replica of its heyday. The staff are really friendly, welcoming and very knowledgeable of the history of the home as well as Alexandria as a whole. We will definitely be back to learn more (you need more than an hour tour to really take the history in). Thanks!

The place is amazing and rich in history. The tour guide was super helpful and informative. I learned a lot during my tour and she was there to answer every question. The fees are 5 dollars but it is totally worth it.

Very cool place to visit! The bf and I happened to be walking by during a free event. There were live demonstrations, volunteers in every room (including outside) to answer questions, and actors in period costume. I would relate this visit to visiting Mt. Vernon but on a smaller scale and probably a little cheaper (I think you have to pay to visit). I would definitely visit again and ask for a private tour as there was a lot going on that day to all the questions I wanted to.

Awesome tour and a beautiful house. The tour guide, Kerry, was great.

I have lived in the area for many years and never took a tour until yesterday and was absolutely impressed by the tour guide. Its not enough to just look at the house, you need to have a guide explain the houses history and the history of the area to truly appreciate it. Our tour guide was fabulous and gave us such a fascinating look into not only the residents of the house, but the times in which they lived - the house and the town came alive with those details you would never know by just touring the house. The tours price of $5.00 is well worth it and I encourage anyone touring the house to get the tour.

Fantastic and quaint space for a variety of activities.

They provided a personalized tour of the very old and restored house. The amount of restoration and research to keep the place as original as possible is impressive. The staff is friendly and helpful.

Beautiful little garden and historic home in the heart of Old Town. Perfect spot for a small wedding or photos.

Lovely, Great Docent-led Tour!

Ben gave my wife and I an absolutely excellent tour Sunday afternoon of Labor Day Weekend. He was very knowledgeable and thorough in his descriptions of each room in the house and the historical period overall. Id highly recommend this tour and plan to come back again in the future with the kids.

A really well done house tour. Our guide Penelope was excellent. About 45 minutes long.

The tour was excellent. Our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable and kept the conversation on a casual, comfortable level. She informed us of the Carlyle family as well as the history of the building and its role in the growth of Alexandria. I highly recommend this tour to anyone with an interest in historic homes or the history of Alexandria. Well worth an hour of your time and in super easy walking distance of the King Street and waterfront area.

So glad this wonderful house was saved. What a wonderful history lesson. Do the tour. $5 well spent

Lots of good information about prerevolutionary times. If youre a history buff then this a great place to visit.

Beautiful historic home open to the public. Learn more on the footsteps tour from the visitors center.

Best tour experience! An intresting house with people who really know what theyre talking about.

What an historic gem! Painstaking restoration with an interesting history. Love that one room was left as it was found so you could see the original structure.

Went to old Town on Scottish day and we passed by the Carlyle house which happened to be open to the public for free on this day because of his Scottish heritage. It was cool to get a peek into his house. Glad we accidentally passed by this house.

Enjoyed the tour, learned alot....if you love history you will enjoy this.

Cool spot to stop. Relax and take a few pics in old Town.

I loved this place and you will too visit it

Such a lovely historic property and the tour guides are very knowledgable. Free admission for military vets.

This house is very attractive and the grounds are quite beautiful. Its a modest size mansion. The owner wasnt famous in the national sense but his name is well known in this area. He was also related to George Washington so there were some interesting things related to that. Not sure how accessible this house is to persons with disabilities. There are no self-guided tours of the house--you must go on a tour led by an employee. I believe they leave on the hour. Check the hours. They are definitely closed on Mondays. The gift shop has some fun, eclectic items. There is one green chair in each room that people can sit in. However the remaining furniture is not roped off which can be confusing for children.

Great tour of the Carlyle House with an informed, interesting guide. Lots of history.

Just did a quick walk around the exterior following brunch. It has a beautiful courtyard and historical information for passersby.

Another Historical gem in Alexandria. Beautifully kept grounds. The tour is well worth your time, blending local history of Alexandria with greater American history.

Carlyle House is full of history and is a great way to experience the colonial way of life in one of the best preserved towns in the United States. The tour is $5/person and last about 45 minutes to an hour. It is a fun activity if you are interested in architecture, history, colonial America, or just looking for something to do.

A lovely building and garden that many people dont even know they can visit. Lots of history and the guides know much of it. And when I mean lots of history I mean a ton. They know about what material was used to make the building, they know about the family histories, they just know everything. Built between 1751 to 1753 by John Carlyle, a Scottish merchant, for his bride the house become the center of social and political life in Alexandria. Even used by General Braddock as his HQ in 1755.

Nice tour. Overall very informative. My family from out of town enjoyed learning about the early history of the American colonialists. Use the restroom in the basement before the tour. No working toilets in this mansion.

Me and the family had a good time hear

This venue is full of history, it is amazing to know that this house still alive after the revolutionary and civil war. I really liked the garden with the Gazebo at the back, it is a great spot to get Instagram pictures!

So much history. Great docents.

Historic home and estate open to the public for tours.

A nice public space outside the Carlyle house. The house itself is a great opportunity to see life and explore history. Overall, its a great place to visit and explore

Great!

Beautiful house with a fascinating history.

Very interesting history! Fascinating to be standing in the same place George Washington and Thomas Jefferson partied! Staff is very friendly and knowledgeable. Recommend getting the City Pass. Has numerous passes to various historical sites of Old Towne. Pass pays for itself with one visit.

This is a great place to visit to see and hear a lot of the history of Old Town. The volunteers did a great job of providing information as well as answering questions

Great history here. Learned some things i did not know. Worth the $15 tour.

Historic place not really attractive garden is pretty and good for photoshoot.

I enjoyed every minute in this wonderful and historic site, and the tour guide was well informed.

Took a tour and really enjoyed it. Very informative and enriching stories.

Where the American revolution, believe it or not. Amazing tour guide. General Braddock met the Colonial governors here and formulated the disastrous plan for the French and Indian War and ordered the taxation of the American colonies, which eventually led to the American war. Carlyle was a Scotsman related to Washington. He left Scotland because primogeniture disinherited him. His house rivals Mount Vernon.

This was an excellent tour well worth the 5 dollar fee

Very nice tour and a beautiful home from the 1740s.

This is an interesting tour, with really informative docents. I learned a lot I did not know about the Carlyle family, and of Old Town Alexandria. I recommend the tour!

Beautiful little place with a nice garden. Interesting flora. Quiet and secluded.

Amazing place to explore, if you love history, museums and how people live 200 years ago this is a good place to visit, very friendly people working here

Really well done, great place to visit!

The history of the family and the house is great, but your emphasis on slaves seems to denigrate the history of it all. We must remember they were people of their time. We our people of ours and should stop judging them by our standards.

Very decent docents, nice and knowledgeable presenters and beautifully restored 18th century mansion

Staff very friendly and answered all our questions. Tour very informative and definitely a must do!

Superb House Museum from Colonial era. Scrupulously maintained and authentic, a must see.

A great place to visit to hear about the history of Alexandria. Very friendly and knowledgeable staff.

Definitely something to check out.

We are so glad we took the tour of this historic mansion. Thrilling to think that the forefathers of our nation met here before the revolution.

Amazing tour. Highly recommend

Interesting old house museum saved from the wrecking ball because it was hidden behind another building. George Washington & Thomas Jefferson had a meeting in the house at one point so its historically important

Great look into the past

This is the home of one of the founders of Alexandria. Great tours that will let you know what Alexandria was like in the early days and how people lived. Almost like being there at the time.

Great staff, great tour. Really interesting to see what life was like in Alexandria 250 years ago.

The most beautiful garden and the house is a colonial style. Real European

Butifull PLAC

We really enjoyed seeing the house, having just moved to the area and seen it on Mercy Street. It was a nice little tour of a house with a really intriguing history.

We did a ghost tour and our last stop was the Carlyle House. Very interesting and fun.

Lovely tour. The guides are friendly and knowledgeable.

I went on a tour and had a wonderful docent who really knew a lot of information!

Great tour! As a local I had never actually been on the tour but the rich history learned on the tour is worth the $5 and 45 minutes. Our tour guide, Patty was extremely knowledgeable.

Cool museum that lets you look at upper class life in the 1700-1800s. The guides are friendly and knowledgeable.

Nice garden to have a wedding

One of the classic Old Town wedding and photo sites. Great historic setting, and wonderful staff/volunteers.

Great piece of Civil War history right in the heart of old town. If you watch Mercy Street then I would highly recommend seeing the real thing.

We just had our wedding at the Carlyle House, awesome venue, if your looking for a place to do your ceremony, this is a great place! 100% recommend, the staff is awesome, super friendly and professional!

Interesting history

Great little $5 tour with lots of history about the building a surrounding.

Great tour. Very interesting

What a fasinating piece of history, lovely education tour.

Amazing history that we did not learn in our books and the garden is peaceful.

Great little corner of Old Town for small weddings!

Fun little plot of history in a pretty developed area.

Alison and Penelope are fantastic, and the garden and house are beautiful! Truly an asset to the community.

Great little piece of our nations history.

Gorgeous grounds, great place for photography.

Excellent historical site. Beautiful architecture and interesting stories from the past.

Great history and knowledgeable docents.

Visited while on the haunted tour. Beatiful house with an interesting history

Great historic place to visit

Very interesting little museum

Beautiful garden

Check it out

The tour to Carlyle House was very informative.

Friendly staff. Not much to see compared to other local places.

A house which dates to 150 years old, built by John Carlyle . One of the original founders of Alexandria, Virginia .

Like stepping back in time

Has live reenactments of historical times. It is a must see.