Rockefeller Estate’s Beauty Beckons Travelersby Colette ConnollyI’ve been on mansion tours before, but none of them compare to the beauty of Kykuit, the country estate and home to four generations of the Rockefeller family.  The Neo-Classical Revival-style villa, which is located in Pocantico Hills, one hour’s drive north of New York City, was built in 1905 by oil man and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller, with the help of his son, John D. Rockefeller, Jr.
 My journey to Kykuit (Dutch for “lookout”) began at the Kykuit Visitor Center at Philipsburg Manor, where three other travelers and I, plus a tour guide, boarded a bus that took us along Route 9, through Pocantico Hills and up the long driveway to the property, which JDR once described as his “respite from hectic city life.”
 I chose the two-hour House and Inner Garden Tour, which is perfect for first-time visitors because it focuses on specific areas of the house, primarily the main floor, with its fine furnishings and art, and the subterranean art galleries located in the basement of the house.
Despite its exquisite allure, the house seems quite livable, and you can easily imagine the Rockefellers conversing with each other and with the power brokers of the day in any one of the downstairs rooms. In the basement, I was enthralled with the collection of art that’s housed there, including works by Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall and Andy Warhol, and our guide also made special note of the huge tapestries that hang from the wall.   The exterior of the six-story, 40-room house is rich in abstract, avant garde and modern-day sculptures, but it’s the property’s extensive stone terraces, formal gardens and lavish fountains that really impressed me. The fabulous view of the surrounding Hudson Valley was also something to savor, and I’m sure the Rockefellers themselves enjoyed the view from this elevated site.
The house was used only during the spring and fall months, and so to fully enjoy the gardens, the Rockefellers had noted landscape architect WilliamWelles Bosworth   plant a variety of short-growing plants, such as magnolias, native dogwoods, wisterias, rhododendrons, and roses. Our tour guide provided a lot of interesting and perhaps little known information about the early members of the Rockefeller family. For instance, at the age of 16, JDR Sr. tithed 65 cents of his $3.50 per week salary as a clerk to the Baptist church. No smoking, drinking or card-playing activities were allowed during the early days at Kykuit. And for entertainment, the family retired to the music room, where they listened to the sound of the harpsichord.  To round out our tour, we visited the Coach Barn, where the Rockefellers kept a collection of antique carriages and classic automobiles, such as the Cadillac Model 75, the Ford Model Touring Car, 1931, and a Chrysler Ghia, 1959, the official vehicle used by former New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller (grandson of JDR).
Not everyone knows what wonderful, giving and well-planning philanthropists the Rockefellers really were. I felt this tour did a good job of explaining their legacy, and how their conservation and preservation efforts and their contribution to such great American landmarks as the Rockefeller Foundation, Rockefeller University, the University of Chicago, The Cloisters, Riverside Church, and Colonial Williamsburg came about. If You GoHistoric Hudson Valley
www.historichudsonvalley.org
Call 914-631-9491 for tickets or go online. Additional InformationKykuit is open to visitors from May 10 to Nov. 2. Several tours are available, including the House and Inner Garden Tour, the Grand Tour, the Family Tour, the Selected Highlights Tour, the Timesaver Tour, the Gardens & Sculpture Tour, and the Modern Art Tour. Historic Hudson Valley also arranges tours of Washington Irving’s Sunnyside, Philipsburg Manor, the Union Church of Pocantico Hills, Van Cortlandt Manor, and Montgomery Place, all within driving distance of Kykuit. Where to StayCastle on the Hudson
400 Benedict Avenue
Tarrytown, NY 10591
914-631-1980
www.castleonthehudson.com Courtyard by Marriott
475 White Plains Road
Tarrytown, NY 10591
Phone: 914-631-1122
www.marriott.com/hpngr Doubletree Hotel - Tarrytown
455 South Broadway
Tarrytown, NY 10591
914-631-5700
www.doubletree.com This 246-room newly renovated hotel offers amenities such as full-service dining, shuttle service from the airport, a business center, indoor/outdoor pools, and a fitness center. Hampton Inn White Plains-Tarrytown Hotel
200 Tarrytown Road
Elmsford, NY 10523
914-592-5680
www.hamptonwhiteplains.com Sheraton Tarrytown Hotel
600 White Plains Road
Tarrytown, NY 10591
Phone: 914-332-7900
www.sheraton.com/tarrytownwestchestertourism Tarrytown House Estates
49 East Sunnyside Lane
Tarrytown, NY 10591
Phone: 914-591-8200/1-800-983-6523
www.tarrytownhouseestate.com Offers a package, from May to December, called The Mansions of Sleepy Hollow Country Package. This includes overnight stay in the King Mansion at the historic Tarrytown House Estate and full American breakfast. Admission for two adults to any of the nearby historic sites, including Kykuit, the Union Church of Pocantico Hills, Philipsburg Manor, Washington Irving's Sunnyside, Lyndhurst, and Van Cortlandt Manor is also included. A new restaurant called “Cellar 49 A Tavern At The Mansion” will soon be open to guests. Colette Connolly is a freelance travel writer living in the New York area, where she also runs Connolly Communications (www.conwrite.com), a copywriting business. Some photos were taken by Colette Connolly. Others are the property of Historic Hudson Valley. |
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