Whilst during a road trip of central and the highlands of Scotland, Olga and I decided to spend the morning at Inveraray Castle before we drove on to the town of Oban from our start point that day, Fort William. We have heard of the castle before but didn’t know what to expect. The castle was used for one episode of the hit BBC drama television series, Downton Abbey, when the Christmas episode was filmed here in 2012.
Inveraray Castle stands on the shores of Loch Fyne and has stood here since the 1400s. However the castle we saw today was built on the original castle and was inspired by Vanbrugh who was also the architect of Blenheim Palace in Oxford. The castle we see today has stood here since the 1700s. There is a mixture of modern, Palladian, Baroque and Gothic styles all mixed in with the facade and the interior. After the first stone was laid, it took forty-three years to complete the castle. However, since then, an extra floor was built and conical roofs on the corner towers were put in place due to a fire in the 1870s.
After paying for our tickets, we entered the castle via the Eastern Hall entrance. I remember the Armoury Hall on the ground floor being impressive with weapons on the wall but the impressive crests of the family who ran the castle over the years are dotted around the place. Clan Campbell has this castle and is still lived in today. The Armoury Hall is twenty-one meters in height which means this is the highest ceiling in Scotland.
Other rooms to check out on the ground floor is the State Dining Room, the Tapestry Drawing Room with it’s magnificent tapestries, the saloon (the duke’s chilling out room), and the North-West Hall where costumes worn by the family through the last few centuries can be found here.
On the first floor is the main gallery where there are family portraits on display whilst there is the Clan Room which displays the family tree and other items belonging to the Clan Campbell. There is a Victorian Room displaying items from Queen Victoria’s reign in the 1800s, however it is mostly dedicated to her daughter, HRH Princess Louise who married the Marquess of Lorne who was the 9th duke of Inveraray Castle. There is also the MacArthur Room to check out where there is a ghostly bed here. The legend behind it is that a young Irish harpist was murdered by the Duke of Montrose’s men way back in the 17th century. The bed was moved to the castle today from the old castle and the boy’s ghose was so attached to the bed it travelled with it. What is spooky about this? When a member of the family is about to die in the castle, it is said that harp music can be heard coming from the room.
At the end of the tour of the castle, we walked down the staircase to check out the old kitchen in the basement with a lot of old fashioned pots and pans.
One of the highlights of the visit for us was walking around the beautiful garden. Due to its climate and a lot of wet weather, flowers here really bloom and give a lot of colour during the summer months. There are a lot of daffodils around April time before the rhododendrons and azaleas pop out with their colours of pinks, reds and whites. There is also a lot of heather, roses dotted in with the beautiful greenery of the trees.
This was a stop we are really glad we did. There are a lot of splendid castles to check out in Scotland and this is one of them. Not because Downton Abbey was filmed here, that didn’t interest us as we never saw the drama before, we came here because of the castle and gardens. A couple of hours is needed here and this is one castle which shouldn’t be missed.
Essential information on Inveraray Castle
Tips to make a trip to Inveraray Castle easy: Whilst here, there is a tea room selling a range of hot and cold drinks as well as cakes, scones and other snacks like ice cream (if it is really warm). Tickets can be bought on the day however it is visible to book them in advance on the website here.
How to get to Inveraray Castle:
First off, to get to Scotland. Scotland has five main airports and has good rail/road connections to them. Glasgow International lies west of the city and has a speedy bus service to Glasgow Central train station and takes about twenty minutes (non-stop). Prestwick is the no-frills airport for Glasgow and lies just north of Ayr but has a great rail connection between Ayr and Glasgow. Edinburgh is the main airport which lies west of the city and has good connections to the centre. Aberdeen in the North-East of the country and Inverness which lies south of the Highlands.
The first place I would go to find airline tickets to the city is using (I would recommend) Skyscanner to find flights as that is my first point of call. Then if necessary use the airlines directly to find a good deal. I sometimes use Momondo as well to compare prices before booking.
Train: forget it. No train line is nearby. The nearest train station is Dalmally Railway Station which is about 15 miles away and the nearest big town station is Oban, which is about 40 miles away.
It's best to arrive by car. From Glasgow direction, exit the M74 at junction 4 and follow signs for Glasgow City centre (M8). Travel up the M8 taking junction 30 for the Erskine Bridge, and join the A82 to Dumbarton and Loch Lomond. At Tarbet, near the head of picturesque Loch Lomond, bear left onto the A83 signposted for Inveraray. There are a number of charge points for electric vehicles en route to Inveraray (and in Inveraray itself).
Inveraray Castle has spaces for cars, campervans, mini-buses, coaches, and tarmac spaces for motorbikes. The carpark is available from 09:45 until 18:00. Please note that there are no shaded parking for those travelling with a pet.
Car Rentals - as I do a lot of road trips around the world, I use Rentalcars.com which is very reliable for booking car hire in advance. I also use Turo (the airbnb of car rentals) and never had a problem with them. The cars are insured, owners vetted and never had an issue.
Accommodation: There are a lot of accommodation options and a lot of websites which can do some great deals. My first point of call is always Booking.com and can offer a range of hostels, hotels, campsites, apartments, guesthouses and bed and breakfasts.. After that I always have a look through AirBnb and Vrbo for great deals on apartments and other lodgings especially when traveling as a family.
Currency: Scotland uses the British Pound Sterling currency and also has their own bank notes from the Bank of Scotland which is also legal tender anywhere else in the United Kingdom. Currency can be exchanged at the airports and train stations (for a huge fee) so I would recommend either going to a currency exchange place downtown, to a bank (if they have good rates) or if you got a good bank account with fantastic exchange rates, then use an ATM machine (may incur a small fee but I always do this option as I got good bank accounts). A great website I use to compare currency exchange rates is XE, which gives people up to date information.
Language: Scotland uses English but they also have their own language in the highlands and western isles (mainly) called Gaelic. Although speakers of the Scottish language were persecuted over the centuries, Gaelic is still spoken today by around 60,000 Scots. Endowed with a rich heritage of music, folklore and cultural ecology, Gaelic in Scotland is thriving and enjoying a revival!
Watch out for: As far as I am aware, there are no major scams to look out for. As always in Europe, watch out for the usual pickpockets or any pretty crimes but I felt very safe in Scotland.
Travel insurance: This is essential to anywhere you go in the world. I always carry travel insurance. Having travel insurance will cover you from theft, illness and those annoying cancellations which can happen on the road. Safety Wing offers coverage for a lot of adventure activities as well as emergency medical, lost luggage, trip cancellation and so forth.
Need a visa for the United Kingdom/Scotland? Always check if you need a visa when coming to the United Kingdom, especially for those who come from outside Europe.
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