Tour The Tournament House and Wrigley Gardens


If you are looking for a fun unique thing to do in the City Of Angeles, we suggest you head on out to Pasadena and take a tour of Wrigley Mansion and their beautiful gardens.


You might recognize The Tournament House aka Wrigley Mansion aka The Stimson House from the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl game that happens each New Years day in Pasadena, California, but you may not have been aware that The Tournament of Roses Association offers the public free tours of the house and grounds...but now you know!!!


The Rose Parade was conceived by the Valley Hunt Club in 1890 and served as a mid-winter festival where they would invite their neighbors who moved from the East Coast or lived in Pasadena seasonally.



Five years later, after the Rose Parade grew too large for the Valley Hunt Club, so Tournament of Roses Association was formed. Today 935 volunteers make up the Tournament of Roses, they are affectionately referred to as “White Suiters” because of the distinctive white uniform every volunteer wears.


Wrigley Mansion, an Italian Renaissance-style mansion was built in 1906 for the Stimson family in Pasadena’s “Millionaire’s Row” now acts as their headquarters.


The house was designed and built by architect G. Lawrence Stimson and his father, George W. Stimson. After most of the Stimson children left the nest, the house became too big for the Stimsons and they sold the house to William Wrigley Jr. in 1914.


The mansion was presented to the City of Pasadena in 1958 by the Wrigley family with the understanding that it would become the permanent headquarters for the Tournament of Roses, and so today it is known as the Tournament House.


Wrigley Gardens surrounds the Tournament House and features floral displays that span four and a half acres and more than 1,500 varieties of roses, camellias, and annuals. When you take the tour, pay special attention to the rose varieties, one pink variety, in particular, is resistant to black spots, white powder, and rust. They are known as the Tournament of Roses Rose, they were developed by William Warriner for the Tournament of Roses centennial — William Warriner was the number one rose breeder in the United States.


Tours of the Tournament House are FREE and are offered from February through August, on Thursdays at 2:00 PM and 3:00 PM. There is no reservations process, guests are asked to arrive ten minutes prior to the tour. For more information, click HERE.


You might also remember the house from 90210 when Donna tries out for the Rose Court. Of course, you do. So check ot the Tournament House, it's a great way to spend the day exploring a "Hollywood" mansion and enjoying a beautiful day in Pasadena....and yea, we so ❤️that.

Tour The Tournament House and Wrigley Gardens Tour The Tournament House and Wrigley Gardens Reviewed by #IheartHollywood on June 11, 2019 Rating: 5

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