Houses without a defined approach can confuse a visitor. Where should they go? It is easy to end up at the garage or back door because there was no guidance in the landscape.

Walking up the driveway does not invoke a positive feeling of place and with many modern houses the double garage door is the most prominent feature of the front of the house. If this situation cannot be avoided, the entrance to the house needs to stand out. A variation in planting, some additional paving or a screen can easily give direction to the front door.

A house built into a hill with the driveway approaching from below poses a problem. If there is no formal or obvious staircase, a welcoming, well-tended garden bed with a path through it will instantly say ‘this is the way.’
This doesn’t have to be a direct line. A path with a slight curve can show the visitor other features of the garden as they journey to your front door.
In a formal landscape or one where the house is an imposing feature, the straight path approach may be ideal. Here one has to be careful. An ostentatious path leading to grand house can be intimidating to a visitor.

The approach to a house is just as important to the owner as it is to first time or regular visitors. If you come home everyday to a garden you are not pleased with, your mood will be affected. This is not to say that every blade of grass must be in place and no dead leaves should be on the plants. Passing through a rainforest avenue with fallen moss covered logs can be so calming – the buzz of wild life activity providing the focus rather than a manicured lawn.

You should also consider the reverse experience of the approach, as you will depart your house or property as many times as you enter it. A seat set just off the path, maybe in a vine covered arbour or under a shade tree, won’t be used when a visitor arrives but is a great place to finish a conversation before you say farewell.

Your verandah or portico should be a size and style that relates to the house while providing adequate protection to anybody at the front door. This is also an important place to consider the view from. Considerable time can be spent standing at a front door, ‘waiting, waiting, waiting…’ Give your visitor something to look at.

Whichever way you approach your approach, you can make it a memorable experience for yourself and your visitors.