William Randolph Hearst...quite the eccentric man. He wanted to build a "small" cottage on the hill of his family property. Some three decades later he still hadn't completed his dream of a cottage on the hill and it is by no means small. The main house has something like 20,000 square feet or more, and there are 3 guest houses that are 4000+ square feet each. Hearst Castle is quite a marvel:
There are five different tours you can choose from when visiting the Hearst Castle. The basic experience tour shows you the highlights of the estate, which is what we did on this first visit. The other tours show more of the rooms inside the main house, including Hearst's own bedroom, as well as the bedroom of his mistress. There is also an evening tour you can take in which the employees dress up in decade garb from Hearst himself would have lived and had parties here. The Garden Tour, which only occurs during summer months, is a more in depth look at the botanical gardens and the poolside dressing rooms.
Just one of the spectacular views from atop the hillside. It was quite incredible to look out over the railing and see so far in the distance.
Now for the guest house...The guest house we went into consisted of four rooms, each with their own separate bathroom. This would have been the way the guest would have reached this particular guest house the first time the arrived. There is a small courtyard around back, which is how they would have left to head to the main home for dinner.
Mr. Hearst spared no expense when it came to building his little oasis on the hillside, not even for his guests. The one thing he did insist on however, was that all guests eat dinner with him at the main house. The guest rooms were equipped with electricity and running water but there was nowhere to make food, or even tea or coffee.
Just one way Hearst was known to spare no expense: gold inlayed ceilings in the guest house
The magnificence didn't just happen inside the homes. The Neptune pool started out as a small sized pool, and was redone three or four times (and it was rumored that Hearst had plans to tear into it and add more to it). White marble with green marble inlaid in the pattern that can be seen. Pretty impressive, even the ladders to get out of the pool were made of white marble. Our guide informed us that the great-great-grandson of the gentleman who built this pool had his 16th birthday party here just a few weeks before we had been there; and the employees have open swim days as well.
A gigantic outdoor pool wasn't enough for Hearst though, he had to build an extravagant indoor pool underneath the tennis courts. Blue italian glass, as well as clear italian glass with 24k gold leafs embedded within the tiles.
Here is a view that shows the white marble ladders to get out of the pools, both in here and the one outside:
Amazing to have all that money and just build with no mind of expense!! While the Hearst family no longer lives in the property open for public tour, there is a Victorian style house hidden in a grove of tree on the property that they still use for family vacations. Quite a legacy to have left behind! (But what about the Patty Hearst, I guess every tree has a bad apple once in awhile)
