The front door is under the overhanging portion of the house on the left.
NPS
How to Enter Glenmont
Getting inside the Edison family home at Glenmont is no easy feat: we have low capacity and high demand for these tours. Please read on to learn more about the mansion tour and how to get inside.
NOTE: Glenmont is not considered accessible to all, as the tour includes several flights of stairs and uninterrupted periods of standing unassisted. Please visit our Accessibility page for more information.
Glenmont Mansion Tour In Five Steps
Arrive at the Laboratory Complex, 211 Main Street, West Orange, New Jersey. Arriving early increases your chances of receiving a house tour, as the tickets are distributed to the first guests that want them. We cannot reserve or hold tickets for guests that are not present in the park.
Pay your entry fee or present your IA Pass and get your Glenmont Grounds Pass at the Visitor Center. Digital entry fees from Recreation.gov are accepted here and must still be presented in person.
Receive your house tour ticket from park staff. The tour tickets are limited in number for each tour, and once a time slot is full, we cannot accept additional guests for that particular tour.
Leave the Laboratory and travel to Glenmont, using the directions from the Ranger and Glenmont Grounds Pass to do so. You will not be able to get to Glenmont without the Grounds Pass.
Be at the front door of the mansion in time for your tour with house tour ticket available.
House tour tickets go on a first come, first served basis to park visitors. If you are planning your trip around the house tour, please be sure to arrive earlyto ensure you get into the manision. At least one member of your group must be in the park to receive the ticket, and all applicable entry fees must be accounted for before park staff will issue house tour tickets.
On the day of your tour, you should go first to the Laboratory Complex Visitor Center, located at 211 Main Street in West Orange, NJ. National Park Service staff will be there to greet you, account for your entry fees, verify park passes, and offer information & other services. Most importantly for Glenmont tours, they will distribute your house tour ticket and distribute a Glenmont Grounds pass. This paper pass is given out for free to visitors seeking to access Glenmont, including visitors without house tour tickets. Glenmont's neighborhood, Llewellyn Park, is a private residential area, and the guards at the gatehouse will not admit visitors without a pass - and so you will be unable to make it to Glenmont for your tour.
Every vehicle needs a Glenmont Grounds Pass, and every individual on foot needs a pass. Please be sure to mention how you will be going to Glenmont to park staff so they can give you as many passes as you require.
If you arrive with time to spare before your tour, you may explore the Laboratory Complex. Be sure to watch the clock; we recommend leaving to travel to Glenmont approximately 30 minutes before your tour begins.
Before Your Tour Begins
Photography and videography are not allowed at any point for any reason while inside Glenmont.
Backpacks and other large bags may not be allowed inside on the tour. Please stow all such things inside your vehicle if you have one.
Strollers, bags, umbrellas, and other personal belongings may not be left outside or inside Glenmont while you are on your tour.
If you have time before your tour begins, you may wish to explore the grounds around the mansion. Be sure to be at the front door of the mansion (under the second-floor portion of the home extending over the driveway) before your posted tour time, or your tour may begin without you, and you will not be able to join.
Your tour guide will ask for your tour ticket. Please be sure you have your tour ticket with you.
Tours last approximately thirty minutes and include staircase ascents and descents. There are no ramps or elevators into or within the house, and very limited opportunities to sit or rest during the tour.
The Glenmont Grounds, yes. The house, no. You must be part of a guided tour in order to enter the house.
How do I get a tour ticket?
On certain days, house tour tickets may be available at the park Visitor Center. If you arrive on a day when tours are not offered or no tickets remain, unfortunately you will not be able to tour the home. House tours depend on several factors, including staff availability, special events, and seasonal changes. As such, it may not be possible to offer house tours consistently on a regular schedule, though every effort is made to ensure availabilty to park guests.
When are tours available?
Tours are available on certain days (usually Saturday, and Sunday) when the park is open to the public, as staffing permits and according to the house's in-season and off-season. In rare circumstances beyond our control, guided house tours may be canceled, including those previously booked. You may always check our Alerts and Conditions page for sudden or ongoing disruptions, or call the Visitor Center desk (973-736-0550 x11) for the latest information.
Is the house tour accessible?
The Glenmont tour is not fully accessible. Guests must ascend and descend several flights of stairs with limited handrail use and stand unassisted for the duration of the thirty-minute guided tour. Guests may not wait unaccompanied in the home while the tour proceeds without them. A full video tour of the house is available to view at the Laboratory Visitor Center.
Can I leave the tour early?
Please inform your tour guide if you must leave the tour for any reason. You may not be able to rejoin the tour once you exit the mansion.
I missed a turn, arrived late to Glenmont, and missed my tour. Can I take the next tour?
No.
Due to safety and scheduling concerns, we cannot guarantee anything to make up for a missed tour. We encourage people to come to the Laboratory Complex as early as possible, leave for Glenmont about thirty minutes before the tour, and arrive at the estate with fifteen minutes to spare.
What do I need to take a tour of Glenmont?
Entry fees, Grounds Pass, tour tickets, and be at the front door, in that order.
Go to Thomas Edison NHP Laboratory Complex Visitor Center on the day of the tour to pay entry fees (or present a valid pass) for everyone in your group, except children. Entry fees do not guarantee you will receive a house tour, but they are required to grant you access to the grounds where the tour takes place.
Tell park staff you wish to go on a tour of the Glenmont mansion. You will first receive a Grounds Pass to get into Llewellyn Park. Glenmont is inside Llewellyn Park, and you cannot get to Glenmont without a Grounds Pass, whether by foot, bike, or car. A Grounds Pass is not the same as a tour ticket, and park staff will not accept a Grounds Pass alone as a house tour ticket.
You will also receive information about what tours are available that day, and if sufficient tickets remain, an opportunity to claim them for your group. Every single person on the tour needs a house tour ticket, including children. You may claim tour tickets for your group without everyone present in the Visitor Center, but all fees must be accounted for. Park passes, entry fees, and Grounds Passes are not a guarantee of receiving a house tour.
You must get to the front door of the Glenmont by the appointed time of your tour. Tours can and will begin without every anticipated guest being present, so you will miss your tour, even if you have your tour ticket, entry fee, and Grounds Pass.
Entry fee, Grounds Pass, tour ticket, front door.
May I take pictures in Glenmont?
You may not take pictures or film while inside Glenmont.
Even if I have the flash off?
You may not take pictures or film while inside Glenmont, even with the flash off.
Entry fee - payment required for entry into the Thomas Edison National Historical Park, and therefore Glenmont. Can be waived by use of a park pass.
Glenmont - refers to both the estate and the mansion home used by Thomas and Mina Edison as their primary residence from 1886 through 1947.
"Glenmont Tour" - usually refers to the guided interior tour of Glenmont discussed on this page. Tour tickets are required for a Glenmont Tour.
Grounds Pass - issued by National Park Service at the Laboratory Complex Visitor Center to fee-paying visitors. Enables holder to go into the private community Llewellyn Park, and therefore go to Glenmont.
"Grounds Tour" - refers to tours of the area around the mansion's exterior. Tour tickets are not required for a Grounds Tour.
Llewellyn Park: One of America's first planned private communities, it maintains that status today, and is therefore gated and access restricted. The gatehouse is staffed by community security, not NPS employees. Grounds Pass from the Edison laboratory Visitor Center necessary for entry. Tour tickets, park passes, and all other paperwork will not be accepted for neighborhood entry. The Edison family estate is only one of many homes inside the neighborhood, and guests are reminded to exercise courtesy and respect consistent with the private nature of the community.
Park pass - usually refers to Interagency Passes, as well as the park-specific digital pass only good at Thomas Edison NHP. Used to waive entry fees. Cannot be used as tour tickets or as a Grounds Pass.
Park staff - refers to both uniformed National Park Service employees and volunteers working directly with the NPS. Does NOT include the Llewellyn Park gatehouse employees.
Tour ticket - enables bearer to join a guided tour of the Glenmont mansion. Issued at the Visitor Center for free, albeit limited in number. Must be acquired at the Visitor Center on the date of the tour, and may not be reserved or held in advance prior to arrival.
973-736-0550
x11
Phones are monitored as staff are available with messages being checked Thursday - Sunday when the park is open. If a ranger is unavailable to take your call, we kindly ask that you leave us a detailed message with return contact information and we will be happy to get back to you as soon as possible. Thank you.
