Castles in the UK

[tiggerblue10]

Which castles/palaces would you recommend to visit? I have been to Hever, Hampton Cout, Tower of London, and Arundel all of which are beautiful, however I would like recommendations on others please.

Thank you

[mattie]

Blenheim Palace, birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill.
8 miles from Oxford.

http://www.blenheimpalace.com/

[dundurn]

Leeds Castle in Kent , Warwick Castle and Windsor are all interesting.

[Diane1954]

Alnwick castle ,Northumberland (used for Harry Potter scenes,wonderful water garden) Castle howard,North Yorkshire. (Brideshead Revisited tv series and new film)Newby Hall,technically a house rather than castle,beautiful garden and adventure park for children (proper old fashioned games)
Try the north of the country

[echokilo]

Sissinghurst in Kent, Warwick, Castle Hedingham in Essex

[Parsfan]

Depends how far north you want to go. Edinburgh is always worth a visit. The views over the Forth are spectacular, on the three days of the year that the weather permits. It also has a good military museum, if you like that sort of thing.

[tiggerblue10]

Thank you everybody x

Has anyone visited Versaille? I've heard its the biggest palace in Europe.

[New Judge]

Dover, without doubt, is one of the most interesting.

Its history goes back to Norman times, but it was used operationally (unlike most of the others mentioned) right up to the 1960s.

The tunnels under the castle stem from Napoleonic times, but were used extensively during WW2 as a control centre (the evacualtion from Dunkirk and the D-Day landings were overseen from them). The complex even contains an underground hospital.

Newer tunnels at a deeper level were dug more recently for use in case of nuclear war. These are not, unfortunately open to the public because access to and from them does not meet safety standards.

Allow yourself a whole day if you go - you still won't fit everything in!

[tiggerblue10]

I did see a programme which featured Dover Castle and the makers were allowed in to the newer tunnels for filming. Sounds interesting. May have to do an overnight stay for that one.

[Panic Button]

Harlech is good, but it will be raining.

[tiggerblue10]

Harlech looks great Panic. I'll try to not do my rain dance when visiting.

[jno]

Versailles is huge but very elegant. If you're going beyond Britain, Neuschwantstein in Bavaria is worth a look

http://greyfalcon.us/restored/myPictures/neusc hwanstein_1.jpg

[tiggerblue10]

That looks like something out of a fairytale. I wonder if that is the same castle that is depicted at the beginning of all disney films.

[New Judge]

If you do an overnighter, tigger you may care to take in Canterbury as well. It is a nicer place to stay than Dover and has its own places of interest.

I throughly recommend staying here:

http://www.acacialodge.co.uk/

It's a quaint B&B less than ten minutes walk from the very centre of Canterbury. You can set off for Dover (less than 30 mins easy drive from Canterbury) first thing.

[tiggerblue10]

I went to Canterbury about 5 years ago. I read a bit about Thomas Beckett and wanted to see the cathederal.

[Barmaid]

Tigger

I've been to Versailles, although it was about 20 years ago. It was incredible!! The sheer size of the place was mind blowing. As we approached, the bit that I thought was the Palais was actually the stables!! Loads to see - as well as the Palais, grounds and various outbuildings that are open, there is also Le Grand Trianon, Le Petit Trianon and Le Petit Hameau (the little Hamlet where Marie Antoinette used to "play" at being a country shepherdess).

As for castles, much as I love most of the ones recommended, I LOVE Scottish castles. Fyvie, Stirling, Mey, Duart (on Mull - used in the Sean Connery/Catherine Zeta Jones film about an art thief), Eilean Donan (that was used in loads of films), Brodie, Cawdor and many others all seem to combine what a castle should look like from my child's memory point of view (turrets and towers), together with comfort and splendour inside.

[tiggerblue10]

I read a book about Marie-Antoinette and it just made me want to go and visit it. Did they really remove everything from the palace during the revolution?

[jno]

yes, the Disney castles were based on Neuschwanstein.

Leeds castle (nowhere near Leeds) is very pretty and Hever Catle not too far away. Ightham Mote and Knole are within reach too.
http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-vi sits/w-findaplace/w-knole/
http://www.hevercastle.co.uk/
http://www.leeds-castle.com/goto.php?ref=y&ses s=u0|p0|n0|c0|s0|g1|d0&

[saxy_jag]

Rockingham Castle, in Leicestershire, is lovely, although not your typical motte and bailey or concentric castle. It's more a fortified house that's been added to over the years and it has very much the feel of a home about it (which indeed it still is). It has a very long history and was used in the TV series 'By The Sword Divided". Charles Dickens was a frequent visitor to the castle, and if you like art, then you'll be pleased to hear that the family are collectors and have been for several generations. There's modern art on display as well as the older, more traditional styles of painting

They've also got fantastic grounds and a great tea room.

http://www.rockinghamcastle.com/

[tiggerblue10]

I've been to Hever several times Jno. The gardens are beautiful there. I'm sure I probably been to Leeds castle as a child so I don't remember it.

Rockinghams looks idylic.

Anyone been to Caernarfon (sp) Castle?