A table with maps and books in a castle library

Guides

Castle stay guides

Answers to the questions people ask before they book a castle.

Our guides answer specific questions: which castle The Traitors is filmed in, how to tell a Victorian Baronial house from a real tower house, and which castle hotels tell ghost stories. Every fact in them comes from a source we list at the end of the guide.

All guides

Guide

Can you stay in the Traitors castle?

No, you cannot book an ordinary room at Ardross Castle, the Ross-shire mansion used as the setting for The Traitors. The privately owned estate takes bookings.

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The best castle hotels in the UK, by one clear rule

The best castle hotels in the UK, by our rule, are true castles where at least some bedrooms are inside the historic walls and guests rate the stay at least.

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Haunted castle hotels in the UK, and the stories attached to them

Twelve UK castle hotels carry a ghost story that the hotel itself or a named source tells, from a Grey Lady at Dalhousie Castle to a jilted servant at Amberley.

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Castle hotels on a budget

You do not need a five-star budget to sleep in a castle. The routes that usually cost less are a youth hostel or a small guest house inside a castle, rooms on.

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What is Scottish Baronial architecture?

Scottish Baronial is a building style that copies the outline of Scotland's fortified tower houses: corbelled turrets, crow-stepped gables, bartizans and.

How we work

How we choose

Our Castle Authenticity Scale and how we check each castle.