Walton Castle – The castle of my dreams

Have you ever wondered what it might be like to sleep a night in a castle? Not a hotel that looks like a castle, not a castle that has been converted into a hotel, not some sort of plastic castle dreamed up by Walt Disney. I’m talking about a real castle. With turrets and look out points and a prominent place on the top of a hill in the middle of the countryside.

It seemed all my childhood fantasies came true last week when I had the opportunity to stay at the magical Walton Castle in North Somerset. You can imagine my excitement on arrival, as we pulled up to the this stunning hill-top castle on a bright and sunny spring afternoon.Walton Castle

I was given a mini tour of the castle grounds and was then showed to my bedroom by the friendly managing director, Franco. My bedroom, by the way, just so happened to be in a turret! A whole turret just for me. A huge, round, stone-walled turret. Not even my wildest dreams could I have imagined such luxury.

When you travel a lot for work, jumping from hotel to hotel, you rarely come across the kind of luxury and hospitality that I encountered at Walton Castle. Being greeted with freshly brewed tea and homemade cakes, settling into a bedroom that has been perfectly heated to your preference, knowing you can take an late evening dip or an early morning swim in your very own private swimming pool are things that money can’t buy.Walton Castle Bedroom

One of my favourite things about staying at the castle, apart from the fact that I was staying in my own turret that is, was the spectacular 360 degree views of the surrounding countryside. From the top of the centre tower, you can see into six English counties and across the Bristol Channel to nearby Wales.

While I write about unique and quirky venues all the time, this is the first time I have stayed in a castle and thus, the first time I’m writing about one. I used to always push castles out of my mind, reserving them for that fairy tale wedding in the distant future or for that time I win the lottery and buy my own replica of Hogwarts or some overly-extravagant Chateau in the French countryside.

I never really thought of all the ways a castle can be used apart from as a wedding venue. Turns out we have all been missing out. At Walton Castle, for example, the entire grounds can be used for corporate training sessions such as Archery or motivational speaking. The turrets can be converted into well-lit meeting rooms and the expansive lawns can play host to a marquee or lines of giant tepee’s.Walton Castle Archery Targets

The whole castle can even be rented out by families who wish to have the holiday of lifetime in the rolling countryside of North Somerset. Complete with a swimming pool, foosball table, a dart board, pool table and an array of board games to occupy the kids, a stay here would be a holiday to remember.

About the author

Janet Newenham is one of our Travel Bloggers. She is Community Manager with Meetingsbooker.com. and is passionate about travel and technology. She has worked on 5 continents, as a Journalist, Blogger and PR specialist. Follow her on Twitter: @janetnewenham or check out her blog.
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