Castles — best for a visit, best for a stay
A few months ago we asked you to share the following.
What castle (or castles) overseas did you find the most rewarding to visit? What about it impressed you or what about it did you enjoy? Along with its name and/or location (if you have contact info, please include it) and any descriptions or comments or anecdotes you wish to add, please mention approximately when you visited.
Separately, what castle (or castles) did you find it most rewarding to stay in overnight? Along with answering the above questions (don’t forget to state when you stayed there), include the approximate price you paid.
Responses received appear below. If you have a castle or two to add, write to Best Castles, c/o ITN, 2116 28th St., Sacramento, CA 95818, or e-mail editor@intltravelnews.com (include the address at which you receive ITN). Photos with captions are welcome. ITN does not cover destinations in North America or the Caribbean.
I would like to recommend a tour of the Altes Schloss, aka Meersburg or the Old Castle (Burg Meersburg GmbH, Schloßplatz 10, 88709 Meersburg, GERMANY; phone 07532 80 00 0, fax 80 00 88, www.meersburg.com [in German]), in Meersburg, which we visited in April ’09.
Located on the Bodensee (Lake Constance), it is Germany’s “oldest inhabited” castle, first constructed in the 600s. Of course, it has been added to and much renovated since.
It is privately owned, so the entire castle is not available to tour, but you can see 30 of the rooms. The tour included the drawbridge room, the main residential rooms, bedrooms, kitchen, hall of arms and dungeon (at least, you look down into the dungeon). Room furnishings represent various time periods: seventh, 14th, 15th and 17th centuries.
We’ve been to numerous castles in the three years we’ve lived in Germany, and this one is right at the top in terms of demonstrating what life was like over a period of several centuries. It’s well maintained, and the guards and docents wear appropriate costumes.
Admission costs €5.50 (near $7) for adults. Brochures are available in English, and the staff speaks English. A café inside the Baroque Hall serves coffee and snacks as well as Pfannkuchen, or cast-iron-pan dishes, of all kinds. These dishes mostly have different kinds of meat along with sliced potatoes and vegetables (€7-€10).
There’s a newer, Baroque castle (Neues Schloss) right next door, but I thought the Altes Schloss was better.
The town of Meersburg is full of half-timbered, painted buildings. Yes, there are a few touristy souvenir shops but also plenty of bakeries and shops for residents plus good restaurants and cafés at which to sit outside in the sun. You can easily get there by ferry from Constance across the lake or by driving along the shore.
Martha Wiley,
Landstuhl, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany
While I was in the military and stationed in GERMANY a few years back, my father desired to retrace the route he took while a tank commander within Patton’s 5th Army in WWII.
We stayed in several castles of the association Gast im Schloss (book through www.gast-im-schloss.de… or through Ringhotels Servicecenter, Balanstraße 57, 81541 Munich, GERMANY; phone +49 [0] 89 458703 20, fax 458703 31, www.gast-im-schloss.de/gast-im-schloss/home/index.php?locale=com) and had the time of our lives!
(2009 prices range from €83 to €178 [$109-$234] for a double room.)
• When planning a Portuguese adventure, you cannot beat the assistance offered by Abreu Tours (New York, NY; 800/223-1580, www.abreu-tours.com), which specializes in PORTUGAL. My girlfriend and I traveled there in October ’07 and Abreu Tours made all of our land arrangements, including rental car.
For 10 days we stayed at successive pousadas and manor houses and also at Pousada Castelo de Palmela in Palmela, near Lisbon. (In 2009, rates range from €130 for a standard double to €195 for a suite.)
Abreu’s site has an excellent pousada planner with several suggested itineraries that can be customized by location and pousada accommodation.
Besides the Abreu website, the website of Pousadas de Portugal (www.pousadas.pt/historicalhotels/EN) was helpful during travel planning. They have an extensive collection of castles, manor houses, convents, farmhouses and other historical and interesting accommodations. Most are situated within or near quaint towns possessing hundreds of years of history and interconnected by excellent high-speed roads.
This combination of a customized itinerary, relaxing self-pacing on easy-to-navigate highways, quaint towns, great food and elegant and romantic 4- and 5-star accommodations made this one of the best vacations I’ve experienced in more than 80 countries. For our arrangements, inclusive of rental car, we paid $7,878 for two.
Tom Johanneck
McLean, VA
Wondrous Schloss Sommersdorf (Dr. Manfred Baron von Crailsheim, D-91595, Sommersdorf, GERMANY; phone 09805 91920, fax 09805 919293, www.schloss-sommersdorf.de) in Bavaria is our dream castle. We shared an apartment with another couple for two weeks in this, Baron Manfred von Crailsheim’s castle, nine years ago. (Currently, €140 and under.)
The castle has been in the Crailsheim family since the 16th century and is still surrounded by a moat inhabited by fish, ducks and swans. There is an in-ground pool on the property.
You would be hard put to find a more genial and generous host than the baron. He wined and dined and entertained all his guests and led a memorable tour of the castle.
It is located along the famous Romantic Road, a 5-minute drive from shops, restaurants and a major food market; 20 minutes from Ansbach; 40 minutes from Rothenberg; 45 minutes from Nürnberg, and 1½ hours from busy, bustling Munich.
We booked this magical trip through Untours (Media, PA; 888/868-6871). Our airfare and rental car, along with guidebooks, day-trip suggestions, etc., were included in the cost. We’ve taken several trips offered by Untours and recommend them highly.
(In 2009, a 2-week Untours stay at Schloss Somersdorf, still hosted by the baron, costs $2,084-$2,447 per person, including airfare from New York.)
Lillian Horn
Greenwich, CT
My partner, Kate, and I stayed in Burg Hotel Colmberg (Family Unbehauen, An der Burgenstraße, D-91598 Colmberg, GERMANY; phone +49 9803 9 19 20, fax: +49 9803 2 62, www.burg-colmberg.de) in the town of Colmberg in May ’07.
The hotel has an “old” part and a “new” part. I had made a reservation to stay in the old part. When we got there, the room was several floors up a narrow circular stairway and had only one narrow window which did not let in much light or air. Germany was having an unusual heat wave, and Kate and I decided we needed something more comfortable. We asked about a room in the “new” part of the hotel.
Down two flights of stairs, we were shown a very nice and airy room overlooking the courtyard; we took the room. We had snacks and drinks in the courtyard and, later, a very nice dinner. It was the season for white asparagus — excellent! We also had a nice breakfast the next morning.
(Current room rates run €72 for a standard double to €185 for the Baroque Suite.)
John Stallwitz
Dublin, CA
Our family’s choice for best castle is Borthwick Castle Hotel & Restaurant (North Middleton, Midlothian, SCOTLAND, EH23 4QY; phone +44 [0] 1875 820514, fax 821702, www.borthwickcastle.com), a magic and unforgettable place about 12 miles south of Edinburgh.
Built by the first Lord Borthwick in 1430, it was the place where Mary Queen of Scots spent her last days of freedom in 1567. In 1650 it was bombarded by Cromwell; the 14-foot-thick walls held up successfully, but the scars of his attack can still be seen. Borthwick Church is next door and is a lovely place to visit.
In July ’07 our 3-generational family group of 12 spent a night there. The main rooms and bedrooms (each with bathroom) are absolutely beautiful. There are eight bedrooms in the main castle and two bedrooms in the adjacent gatehouse tower. The castle has electricity and central heating, but the stairs are winding and narrow. Don’t expect elevators.
Our stay included cocktails and a wonderful dinner in the candlelit Great Hall; a historic tour of the castle, and a delicious breakfast. Current room rates, including breakfast and tour, range from £130 to £240 (near $189-$349) for two people sharing.
The tour and dinner, alone, cost £37.50 ($55).
The reaction of everyone — it’s a very special, spectacular place that we’ll always remember. And it’s haunted!
It’s open from Mid-March to Jan. 2. To reach it, you can take a bus from central Edinburgh, then from the bus stop walk three-fourths of a mile on the private roadway.
Nancy Logan
Jamestown, RI
Overwhelmingly, number one on our list is Portlick Castle in IRELAND (Glasson, Athlone, Co. Westmeath, Ireland; phone +353 [0] 9064 85955, fax 9064 39229, www.portlickcastle.com). This castle dates from the 13th or 14th century and has been occupied continuously, by owners or guests, ever since.
It’s located on a lake about halfway between Dublin airport and Galway and was perfect for our family of 18 for two nights in July ’06. The castle sleeps 20, so we rented the entire castle, including the use of the marvelous kitchen.
The children ranged in age from eight to 19, and they loved the secret staircase and the several public rooms, huge and inviting. The four nicest bedrooms are on the first floor up, and the much more modest six others are on the upper two floors.
This was a really special place for us, and the general manager was marvelously accommodating. The castle staff cooked our dinner the first night according to our wishes, including a birthday cake.
That summer we paid $3,000 a night for the entire castle, including a full English breakfast. (Current example — wedding and one night’s self-catering accommodation for 26 people, from E3,000 or $3,950).
Jackie Thomas
Newport Beach, CA
What castle do I find most rewarding? Château de Chambord (www.chambord.org), which was built in the 1500s as a hunting lodge. Set within a very large park, the château is located in the Loire Valley not far from the city of Blois and about 100 miles south of Paris.
I have visited it several times and will again because I love walking along the roof. I don’t think there is a larger one in all of FRANCE, nor is there a more ornate one anywhere. Of course, the inside is beautiful as well with its unusual and famous ”double staircase” designed by Leonardo de Vinci. And there are the stables to see.
Château de Chambord is a very popular tourist site, especially in the summer months, but this does not lessen my enjoyment when I visit, as I like to see the reactions of other visitors.
The best place to stay nearby is Hôtel-Restaurant du Grand-St Michel (Place Saint-Louis, 41250 Chambord, France; phone +33 2 54 20 31 31, fax 54 20 36 40, www.saintmichel-chambord.com), across from the château. Some of the front rooms have a view of the château. The hotel was originally built as a dog kennel!
The first time I stayed there, in October 1995, I set my alarm very early so I could get a picture with the morning light. I didn’t realize that everything would be enshrouded in a thick fog until late morning. It was the same on other visits, in fall and spring. (It’s cold in winter and there are too many tourists in summer.)
The last time I stayed, in fall of 2007, the price was approximately $100 per night. (In 2009, €77-€112, or $101-$147.) The hotel also had a very good restaurant.
Jeanette W. Dewey
Abington PA
My “best castle” is the huge castle of Devagiri at Daulatabad, INDIA, which I visited in 2006. It is 16 kilometers northwest of the city of Aurangabad and not far from the famous Ellora Caves. Begun in 1187, the castle is not just old, it’s unique and totally strange and was NEVER conquered in battle.
Devagiri/Daulatabad castle/fortress is surrounded by seven huge walls, and none of the seven gates are visible from any of the others. Each gate is massive, studded with huge metal spikes to stop elephants.
If invaders got through the first gate, they would have found themselves between two massive walls from which defenders could shoot them. The second gate was around a corner, and if they reached it they faced another spike-studded door but with less room for elephants to get momentum. If they broke through that gate, the invaders would be in another narrow passage and so on.
By gate five they would have found themselves between two massive gates, but one of them was false and led to a dead end. If they chose the real gate, they would have plunged toward a great, crocodile-filled moat, carved — like the sheer walls of the massive cliffs atop which the castle itself stands — from the rock of the mountain. The only way to cross the moat was by a leather drawbridge the defenders could pull in.
Even if invaders got across the moat and through the next gate, they would have faced the most unique feature of this castle: the Dark Passage. This is a series of tunnels, stairs and ramps inside the mountain which twist and turn as they climb, sometimes going in circles, with dead ends and surprises carved from mountain rock, and all in total darkness.
If the invaders survived this far, they would reach a totally dark chamber with holes high in the walls, behind which waited the defenders ready to shoot down on them. If the invaders’ eyes adjusted to the faint bit of light from a doorway and moved toward it, they would be greeted with boiling oil.
By now, the invaders would want only to escape. By turning yet another corner, they would feel a slight breeze from an air shaft, but if they stepped toward it they would fall down a deep zigzagging shaft, bouncing against bone-shattering rock and into the crocodile moat.
No invader ever succeeded in getting that far.
There may have been bigger and more luxurious castles but never one as amazing and clever in design. That’s why this is my favorite castle of the many I’ve visited.
Bruce D. Reeves
Berkeley, CA
I probably fell in love with castles on my first trip to Europe in 1971. I drove along the Rhine, gawking from one side to the other at hill after hill topped by a picturesque castle. Since then, I have traveled that stretch seven more times, never tiring of its magic.
• I first visited Neuschwanstein (Neuschwansteinstraße 20, D-87645 Schwangau, GERMANY; phone +49 [0] 83 62 9 39 88 0, fax 39 88 19, www.neuschwanstein.de), near Hohenschwangau and Füssen in southwestern Bavaria, in 1972; I last visited in 2005. To me, it is the ultimate castle. Every time I have returned to introduce its charm to someone new, it has a whole new thrill for me.
• In 1976 I stayed in Ruthin Castle Hotel (Ruthin, Denbighshire, North WALES, LL15 2NU, U.K.; phone +44 [0] 1824 702664, fax 1824 705978, www.ruthincastle.co.uk).
Our double room had the deepest bathtub I had ever seen. The cost of about $36 included a big English breakfast but was sheer extravagance on a trip where most of our rooms cost about $5 per person including breakfast. Currently, the Internet shows a double at £145 (near $211).
On a trip there in 2000 we stayed in a quaint guest house about a block away so we could splurge on the medieval feast at the castle.
• In 1980 my husband lost a bet to me while playing miniature golf and he had to go to Europe to “pay up.” He certainly wasn’t happy about it, especially since we visited my relatives who spoke little English and didn’t have cold beer. To ease his pain, I arranged for us to spend our last night at Schlosshotel-Hirschhorn (D-69434 Hirschhorn, GERMANY; phone +49 6272 92090, fax 6272 3267, www.schlosshotel-hirschhorn.de), on the Neckar River, near Heidelberg.
It looked like a castle should, perched high above the river, with great views from the rooms. We enjoyed venison in the dining room for our last dinner of the trip. Today, a double costs €122 ($160).
• When our son was 10, in 1992, we went to Europe with him and my 85-year-old parents. To fulfill a dream of my mother’s, we stayed in the hotel attached to the lower part of Wartburg Castle, Hotel auf der Wartburg (Auf der Wartburg, 99817 Eisenach, GERMANY; phone +49 3691 797 22 3, www.wartburghotel.de), above the town of Eisenach.
Of the castle-hotels I’ve slept in, it was probably the least satisfying except for the view. The hotel was built long after the main castle and had been completely remodeled so that our room might have been in a Holiday Inn. Currently, doubles are from €219.
• On a trip to Britain in 2000, I surprised our group of seven and booked a night in Tulloch Castle Hotel (Tulloch Castle Drive, Dingwall, SCOTLAND, IV15 9ND; phone 01349 861325, fax 863993, www.tullochcastle.co.uk). The rooms were beautiful, with antique-looking furniture and tartan bedspreads. Unfortunately (or fortunately), not one of us had his feet tickled by the resident ghost during the night. Now double rooms cost from £155 ($203).
• On a 2004 trip to IRELAND we stayed a night in Cahir at Carrigeen Castle (Cahir, Co. Tipperary, Ireland; phone [+353] 052 41370, www.tipp.ie/butlerca.htm). It is a small castle and very cozy but still very castle-looking on the inside and outside. Rates are €33 ($43) per person with shared bath or €40 with private bath.
The larger Cahir Castle nearby can be explored; the rock of Cashel is just a few miles away, and there is a nice golf course in town.
• The last castle that I stayed in, Burg Stahleck (55422 Bacharach; phone +49 6743 1266, fax 6743 2684, e-mail bacharach@
diejugendherbergen.de) in Bacharach, GERMANY, in 2005, is probably the most inexpensive of the group that I’ve described and has the most Spartan interior and furnishings. One reason for this is that it has been a hostel for a long time. However, it is one of those Rhine castles that I have admired for so long, so it fulfilled a dream for me.
There are some double rooms with private baths and even rooms in the tower. A simple evening meal is served, and they were kind enough to prepare our breakfast a little early before we left for the Frankfurt airport. I try to find someplace special for the last night of a trip and this certainly filled the bill. It costs from €18 ($24) per person.
Breakfast was included at all of these places. And all of these places have provided wonderful memories, though I hope there are yet more castles in my future.
Judy Pfaffenberger
Toledo, OH