Introduction On the way to the Isle of Skye, we passed through the small town of Dornie, which houses the beautiful Eilean Donan Castle, famous for apparently being the most photographed monument in Scotland. Intrigued by this tiny castle on a small island just off the west coast of Scotland, we spent one of our precious days of holiday by visiting the castle. Size-wise, it doesn't take up much space, but what is there has been beautifully restored and is well worth a look.
The history The castle was originally built in 1230 as protection from the Vikings. It was later used during a Jacobite uprising in 1719, when it was occupied by Spanish troops who had been sent to Scotland by the King of Spain to fight on behalf of James Stuart. Unfortunately, the King of England
found out about their location and had the castle blown up. Thereafter, it lay in ruins until John McRae-Gilstrap, the new owner of the castle, decided to restore the castle to its original splendour in the early 20th century.
Since being lovingly restored, it has been the location of a number of films, including Entrapment - I always wondered where that had been filmed!
Location The castle can be reached on the A87, about ten miles north of Shiel Bridge. It is built on a small island, joined to the mainland by a small bridge, at the convergence of three major lochs: Loch Alsh, Long and Duich. Behind the castle are superb views of the mountains.
The castle Three floors of rooms are available for viewing. The first room that tourists reach is the billeting room, which is full of relics from the various wars that Scots have been involved in, including cannon balls found on the beach below the castle and Black Watch artefacts. There is a guide present in each of the rooms, but there are also print-outs pointing out the most interesting aspects of each room - these are available in various languages.
The Banqueting Hall is probably the most eye-catching room, with spectacular views over the bay. Again, there are a number of artefacts, including a lock of hair from Bonnie Prince Charlie, war medals and some beautiful portraits. There are a number of small rooms off the Hall, the purpose of which seems to be as spy holes for the castle owners to keep an eye on dodgy guests. Everything is beautifully presented and explained.
I found the bedrooms intriguing. They are all tiny and open out into each other. It is clear that when Macrae-Gilstrap renovated the castle, he stuck to the original design - some of the corridors and rooms are tiny and very low-ceilinged - but this just adds to the charm.
There is also an imitation kitchen, complete with dodgy fake people, to show what the castle kitchens would have looked like during the time that the Macrae-Gilstraps resided there. I found it interesting, but it is probably more suited to children than adults.
Everywhere in the castle is well-signposted and the history of the castle is put into perspective by a series of well-presented posters.
Amenities There is plenty of space for cars in the castle car park. There is also a rather expensive and well-stocked shop and a restaurant. I can't comment on the latter because we didn't go in, but it certainly seemed popular enough.
If you don't want to eat in the restaurant, there is a hotel in the village of Dornie that boasts a restaurant and I also noticed at least one pub sign.
Cost and opening times It cost us just ₤4.95 each to get into the castle. Compared with London prices, I thought this was very reasonable.
The castle is open from April to October from 10am to 5.30pm. However, there are sometimes evening openings - a fellow tourist mentioned that there had been a light festival a few evenings before our visit.
Conclusion The castle was the perfect size for me. I get bored with places of interest after about an hour and a half - in this case, that was the perfect amount of time to have a good look around and soak up the surroundings. We also picked a good time to visit - in the middle of the week - so there weren't too many tourists. I can imagine that at the weekend, it could get difficult to move in there.
I was extremely impressed by the layout of the castle and the way everything was clearly labelled. There were also very friendly guides who proactively volunteered information and were happy to answer any questions that we had. I particularly liked the young one in a kilt!
Thank goodness there are still places like this in the United Kingdom that can be visited for less than a fiver! If you're in the area, I thoroughly recommend that you pay this castle a visit.
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I think I need to start learning to drive so I can appreciate more of my own country! This is not really all that far from me but unless you have a car some places are difficult to access! x
Sgathach 08.06.2006 22:06
Isn't it just beautiful there, but I wanted to go to all the rooms you're not allowed to visit
:-( and where was the real old kitchen I didn't understand that, I'm sure it's there somewhere.
arnoldhenryrufus 07.06.2006 12:15
I am going to have to get up to Scotland for a holiday, it does have some beautiful places - lyn x
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Advantages: Ideal base for exploring the Five Sisters (among others) Disadvantages: If anyone dares suggest any disadvantages in this part of the world . . . .
Aspen 13.04.2001 (13.04.2001)
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