A night with shining armour. (Pun intended.) Castello di Monterone Hotel in Perugia, Umbria, Italy. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
How do you restore a ruined castle? When you see a well-run hotel, with state of the art bathrooms, like Castello di Monetrone Hotel in Italy, it looks easy. But what do you do with a place which looks like you need a few million pounds to restore it (when you can't get even a plumber to fix your own leaking tap for a week or more).
Imagine a ruined castle in Wales. The sort which is overgrown with waist high brambles, overcome by ivy, with a fallen in roof, too dangerous to enter legally, full of hazards to trip the elderly, and nowhere to wash your hands? On top of that, costs millions to repair and insure. You need to find the owner, persuade them to sell or repair, present them with a plan which will bring them an income, and status, or pride or pleasure.
Answer
The answer comes from a recently restored castle in Wales: Inform the local newspaper. Gather volunteers. Set up a trust. Get a grant. Research how governments and individuals have done it. If you want to visit the latest restored castle, the one in Wales is Gwych Castle, in North Wales. The BBC featured an article on this, Aug 6 2017. I have stayed in castle hotels in Wales, England, Scotland, Italy, France, Spain and Portugal, plus grand chateau hotels in Canada. But by the time a castle opens its doors to paying guests, months or years of restoration work have been completed.
How about forgetting the dream of restoring a castle. Just stay in one which is already in full working order as a tourist attraction or hotel? You can not just visit castles in Wales but stay overnight in castle hotels, and enjoy more castle hotel restaurant meals, or overnight stays in England, Scotland, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal.
Wedding Venues
Castle hotels are most likely to fill every bedroom, an entire restaurant, get advanced booking, by arranging weddings. But to open a castle as a restaurant, hotel, and wedding venue, you have to start adapting it to meet fire regulations, making fireproof doors, exit doors to the outside and fireproof staircases, whilst still not altering the fabric or appearance of a listed building.
That, explained the owner of an Italian castle hotel, is why it takes so long to prepare. You need get permission from local government. You spend time hunting for years for antiques from the same period or place. Imagine the time it takes to find builders who can comply with regulations but make the place old, yet soundproof and fireproof and draught proof. You can't nip down to Woolworths and IKEA to buy genuine antiques such as a suit of armour, a working grandfather clock or a piano which actually plays. You need to renovate the paintwork. Get fabrics and wallpaper copied from a photo or a scrap found behind plaster.
Castles To Visit Worldwide
You can find a recently restored castle in Wales run by a Trust, and government-run Spanish Paradors, similar Portuguese pousadas, and French chateaux buildings restored as family projects as hoped for hotels or family homes. I stayed in a chateaux hotel owned by a descendant of a Prince, in the Loire valley.
Stories (Alphabetically by country)
ITALY
PORTUGAL
Same concept as the Spanish paradors. Not only in Portugal. Portuguese islands around the world.
ROMANIA
Visit Bran Castle, occupied in the past by Romanian royalty and associated with Vlad the impaler who inspired the story of Dracula (near Brasov city). Drive there from Romania's capital, Bucharest. Stay in a hotel in Bucharest full of antiques and atmosphere. (See my earlier post.)
In Spain you can visit the paradors, hotels and restaurants from ruined or converted castles. The government has made these into tourist stopovers, designed to make you travel around the regions. The restaurants feature local dishes. You'll find paradors in major cities such as Seville, as well as secluded places. Not only in Spain, also Spanish islands around the world.
A little boy passed a ruined castle on his way to and from school every day. He wanted to restore a ruined castle so that he and everybody could enjoy it. Now he is an adult and Gwrych castle has been opened to the public. The castle is in North Wales. The castle was used as a haven for Kindertransport children, as is mentioned briefly in an article on the Kindertransport in Wikipedia, which gives references to other sources for facts about the Kindertransport.
I tried to check into a Castle Hotel, but found I had accidentally booked the cheaper similarly named Castle View Hotel down the road. That's why the 'Castle' hotel had been such a bargain. It wasn't an historic castle hotel with a grand view, as I had imagined, but a smaller hotel with a view of the castle.
ENGLAND
I like genuine castle hotels. If your family are too young to be trusted not to break priceless antique vases, go for a fake castle hotel such as the castle theme hotel in Legoland.
Nearby is the genuine royal castle at Windsor. You might see a flag indicating that the royal family are in residence. Once you have seen it you will recognize it later, even from a distance. You can catch a glimpse of the castle from a nearby road or train.
Windsor Castle. photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Tips
Canada
I recommend the chateau hotels in major Canadian cities, cliff tops and spectacular lakes. We got some last minute bargains, turning up late in the evening and asking for their cheapest room or best bed and breakfast deal, or reductions for two or three night stays. Failing all else, stay elsewhere and visit the chateau hotels for a meal or a drink.
http://www.travelblissnow.com/fairy-tale-castles-canada/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_castles_in_Canada
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada%27s_grand_railway_hotels
http://www.fairmont.com/lake-louise/ Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise.
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g155033-d155587-Reviews-Fairmont_Le_Chateau_Frontenac-Quebec_City_Quebec
http://www.fairmont.com/laurier-ottawa/
France
Loire valley chateau hotel, prices in Euros, breakfast extra.
https://www.labourdaisiere.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Brochure-hotel.pdf
Hong Kong
A Sleeping Beauty Castle is in Hong Kong. (See USA below for link.)
Italy
See the castle hotel website:
www.castellomonterone.com
https://www.umbriatourism.it/en/web/umbria/discovering-the-villages-of-umbria
Portugal
Pousadas (hotels). Monuments and historic hotels. Tel:
https://www.pousadas.pt/en (Pt stands for Portugal.)
Lisbon castle.
Scotland
View:
Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh.
Spain
http://www.parador.es/en (Es stands for Espana.)
The parador at Granada cost a whopping £275 on Aug 6 2017 on Tripadvisor's website. But shop around and remember that off season in regional cities you will get better bargains.
Wales
Gwrych Castle, Llanddulas Road, Abergele, Conwy, North Wales, LL22 8ET.
About £5 for a tour.
More information on the restored Welsh castle, Gwrych Castle, North Wales:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-north-west-wales-40831258#_=_
Great pictures on this website:
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/gwrych-castle-opening-doors-reveal-11283167
The castle's home website:
http://gwrychtrust.co.uk
Welsh castle hotels:
http://www.ruthincastle.co.uk
www.visitwales.com
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_castles_in_Wales
Major Castles:
Castle Coch, Cardiff, Wales. Caerphilly Castle. Harlech Castle.
I stayed at Llantony Priory Hotel when I was just married, in a room at the top of a stone spiral staircase; no wardrobe. Not for the claustrophobic. One night was enough. Memorable.
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-s1-g552035-d590002-Reviews-Ruthin_Castle_Hotel-Ruthin_Denbighshire_North_Wales_Wales.html
You can also see a listing for The Castle Hotel.
Llantony Priory Hotel, Llanthony, Brecon Beacons National Park NP7 7NN, Wales.
UK
Castle hotels
https://www.secretescapes.com/
General travel:
https://www.visitbritain.org
Major castles to view: Windsor Castle. Bodiam castle. Dover Castle (not the biggest and best but conveniently near a busy port).
USA
Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland, California, was based on Neuschwanstein in Germany. Another Disney castle is in Hong Kong.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleeping_Beauty_Castle
HONG KONG
A Sleeping Beauty Castle is in Hong Kong.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. See my other posts and share links to your favourites.
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