A La Ronde

This unique 16-sided house was described by Lucinda Lambton as having 'a magical strangeness that one might dream of only as a child'.

It was built for two spinster cousins, Jane and Mary Parminter, on their return from a grand tour of Europe in the late 18th century. It contains many objects and mementoes of their travels.

Fiercely independent, Mary and Jane Parminter, built A la Ronde as a rural retreat near fashionable Exmouth. Filled with 25,000 shells, the Shell Gallery crowns this unusual house and you can now experience the Shell Gallery through the new 360-degree interactive touchscreen or from the Octagon below.

What treasures will you find behind the doors that lead off the main Octagon room? Crowned by the famous Shell Gallery, the green decorations of the Octagon make it feel like you are walking through an undersea cave and shell grotto.

Outside, there’s a sense of harmony around the orchard, hay meadow and colourful borders, and views over the Exe Estuary.

The orchard is home to old Devon varieties of apple trees, along with plums and medlar trees. A part of the grounds known as the Bee Garden, not usually open, is now a space for quiet reflection. The meadow is full of butterflies and crickets. Why not bring a picnic and enjoy it in the orchard or on the haha lawn?