Eleanor Roosevelt Center At Val Kill

Amazing!
1) There are two sections. One is the stone cottage which is self guided. Another is the home, which is with the guide.
2) The tour was excellent. It was very informative and fun.
3) This is a must visit landmark.
4) Fun fact: this is the only US National Landmark dedicated to a First Lady.

So the obvious thing right upfront is that while there are three houses to tour in Hyde Park via the NPS, Val-​Kill is certainly the smallest but I think it’s the most interesting. Maybe it’s because ER was such a deep and complicated person or maybe it’s because the house feels the most «homey» and approachable but whatever the reason is, it’s hard not to like it.
Why was Val-​Kill built? Two points on that one.
1. After ER caught FDR screwing around and nearly divorced him, she wanted a place of her own away from him and away from his overbearing mother Sara.
2. ER and FDR never really had a home of their own. Sure people call Springwood two miles away FDR’s house but in reality it only was for four years. FDR as you likely know died in 1945 but his mother Sara lived until 1941 and she ruled the house with an iron fist as it literally was… her house.
So with that in mind FDR designed and had a little stone cottage built in the woods on part of the Roosevelt land to be just Eleanor’s private space. He would later do the same for himself when he built Top Cottage but that’s a whole separate review.
Initially what is now Stone Cottage served as the house and what is now the house was built as a factory where during The Depression Eleanor and two «friends» tried to open a small shop to teach people among other things carpentry skills as a way to hopefully find employment. The idea was a failure and after it closes ER decided to convert the place to her living space where she stayed until she died and where the tour takes place today.
There’s a lot I’m leaving out like her love of picnics, her thousands of «My Day» newspaper columns, her intense meeting with JFK in her living room when he came looking for her endorsement (she wasn’t a fan), the fact that she couldn’t really cook anything past eggs or hot dogs, it was her idea to do a picnic with hot dogs for the King and Queen of England’s visit to Hyde Park in 1939 even though neither had any idea what a hot dog was, the amazing idea that a First Lady let alone a woman born into wealth during the 1880’s would go on to be so independent of her husband who was the President or the possible lesbian angle that no one at FDR’s house will get into and here it’s sort of discussed but only as an after the regular tour «off the record» type of thing.
No matter why you come you should as there are amazing stories to be told about a one of a kind person who did things her way and did things in a way that will never be replicated ever again.
If you go: The beautiful grounds are open daily from sunrise to sunset and are free. There is also a trail that connects Val-​Kill to FDR’s house and technically that trail also connects to the Vanderbilt Mansion so if you’re a real health nut you could in premise get to all three sites via trials versus driving.
If you want to tour the main house that is by guided tour only. Disregard everything on the Unilocal listing for times and hours. November-​April tickets are available first come/​first served Thursday-​Monday (closed Tuesday & Wednesday) starting at the small visitor center/​gift shop at 12:30 and the tours are at 1 & 3.
As an FYI, we were there in mid-​March and even though there were only two tours scheduled, there was enough interest along with enough ranger/​volunteer staffing that they added a 3:30 tour. While it is possible, don’t count on it as it is highly unusual for that to occur and it was very spur of the moment decision by the ranger who was in charge that day (Shannon — who also gave a great tour).
You can also tour the Stone Cottage which was the original house on the grounds. There will normally be a volunteer inside who will explain things as best as they can and the house is a self-​guided tour of the first floor featuring a fair amount of reproduction documents and personal belongings of Eleanor and Franklin.
May-​October everything is open 9 – 5 with tours starting on the hour with the last one leaving at 4.
Also during this time you can pre-​reserve tour tickets at
for not only Val-​Kill for also for FDR’s home and the Vanderbilt Mansion plus a combo ticket for all three.
The ticket price for Val-​Kill is $ 10 per person 16 and over (15 and under are free) although all NPS passes are accepted here and for the sake of full disclosure since I have a 4^th grader in my household I paid $ 0.

Val Kill is operated by the National Park Service, but unlike their FDR Presidential Library and Museum and Roosevelt Homestead just down the road which are equipped to handle the great crowds of tourists who visit, Val Kill is a much lower key attraction. Val Kill Cottage itself, originally designed by FDR for Eleanor in the 1920’s, is only open via infrequent guided tours (do plan ahead if you wish to get in!). The Stone Cottage on the same grounds now features a small self-​guided exhibition of craft items created on the property in earlier times under the Roosevelt’s patronage. The property includes a tranquil pond, and the single bench in front of it suggests the numbers they’re setup to accommodate. There is a small gift shop and public facilities.

The tour guides and docents from the National Park Service do wonderful tours. They’re incredibly insightful about the life and times of Mrs Roosevelt, and this unique property that continued on following FDR’s death. It’s kind of neat to think that this modest house once hosted heads of state etc. Mrs. Roosevelt’s personality and life’s work can be had throughout the property, and it’s fascinating to learn more about her simply from walking the grounds and being in this house. This is not a place to miss. The bucolic woods and streams around the property make this an even better place to visit.

This was a nice place to visit. You have to buy a tour to see the inside of the home. Before the tour starts, you are required to watch a 15 minute «orientation video.» The video was a brief history of Eleanor Roosevelt. It was a huge waste of time because when the tour guide picked us up and brought us to the front of the house; he repeated everything! I was getting frustrated because why bother showing us the video if we have to hear it all over again 30 seconds later! The nice thing about this tour guide is he did have more to say on top of the video. He talked a lot inside the house explaining each room in detail and what events took place where. The only time he stopped talking about the rooms was the last room, the sitting porch, he did not have anything to say so he covered more history about the home after Roosevelt died. He made one mistake. He mentioned the furniture was all auctioned off then ended the tour. Someone had to ask him how they got the furniture back and he did explain that. He should have known to say that. The trees were very beautiful this time of year when they start turning orange. You can walk around the rest of the grounds for free.

The first time I tried to get into the cottage there was a long wait for the next available guided tour. So I left and promised myself I’d go back. I ended up returning two weeks later and I’m very glad I did.
$ 8 admission per person and worth every penny of the guided tour. Our guide, Dmitri, was excellent. He was clearly knowledgeable and passionate about the life of Eleanor Roosevelt. Very educational and moving experience.
I recommend getting here early, scheduling a tour, then go back after lunch at the Culinary Institute of America. In any event, this is a must-​do in the Hudson Valley. As one of my fellow Unilocalers put it, «if you don’t have respect for Eleanor before your visit, you will after you leave.»

This review is for the guided tour of Val-​Kill, the home of Eleanor Roosevelt.
Kudos to the National Park Service for this site. The tour guide was very knowledgeable about the history of the property (it was a former furniture factory) and Eleanor Roosevelt. He had many anecdotes about visits from Sir Winston Churchill, Nehru Gandhi and John F. Kennedy. The tour in the house really brought history alive.
The Val-​Kill guided tour is highly recommended, and was one of our highlights of our trip to the Hudson Valley.

Out of the three homes we toured (in addition to the FDR house and Vanderbilt mansion), Val Kill was hands down the best. It was easily the most interesting and, thanks to its diminutive size, the most intimate and relatable. When you walk in, you will absolutely feel like you’re at your grandma’s house. The stories too are fascinating. If you didn’t have a respect or appreciation for Eleanor Roosevelt before you visited, you certainly will once you’re done. This site is highly recommended.

More interesting than I expected. A rural cottage where ER hung out and entertained and escaped her mother in law and I suspect her husband. Good collection of artifacts are on display .The tour was excellent. Also the setting is quite nice and there appear to be some good trails that you can walk.

It’s surprising and sad to note that Eleanor Roosevelt’s Val-​Kill Cottage has received only one other Unilocal commentary. It is an astonishing place, a home where you can sense the character and closeness of ER in the only home she ever owned during her long and rich life. FDR built this «cottage» for her as an escape from his family home Springwood (open for touring as part of the FDR Library and Museum) where she had to contend with his overbearing mother Sara. At Val-​Kill, Eleanor came into her own, and the home reflects her interests and desire for unpretentious comfort. The photos on the wall of family show us that Eleanor was indeed a «people person» throughout her lifetime. She entertained celebrities and world leaders here, but the cottage has no hints of luxury about it. Eleanor herself slept on the porch most of the time, even during chilly weather (on our tour we got a rare look at her upstairs bedroom and the porch — delightful!).
the grounds include a small shaded lake, a tennis court, a wonderfully appealing stone outbuilding where Eleanor’s female friends stayed, and the playhouse FDR’s grandchildren used. The Park Service guides here take uncommon time to explain everything, and their tours are so informative. They say that they get about 60 visitors for every 600 to the FDR Museum, and while we suppose that is understandable, we urge you not to miss seeing Val-​Kill. It is a memorable celebration — albeit low-​key — one one of America’s greatest and most accomplished women, Eleanor Roosevelt.

Unlike some restored homes where one just sees a bunch of furniture, this was lovingly restored to its photographed appearance in 1962 after Eleanor’s death, including replicating her library with the same books in the same order. As a result, you FEEL her charismatic personality here. Everything is ordinary and down to earth with an emphasis on comfort. Our docent mentioned how she’d entertain royalty (for example Haile Salassi) by listening with them to the radio. Collection of photographs displays important people in here life. Pleasant gounds with a pond too. Anyone interested in a woman who probably qualifies as the greatest woman in the history of American public life MUST visit this place.
PS: This is not the same as the Roosevelt home. Eleanor probably wanted this place to get away from that old bitch of a mother-​in-​law, Sarah Delano. It a lot more fascinating than Sarah’s house (at the Roosevelt Home and Library) as it is much more personal.