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Castle/palace/notable building recommendations

I'm not quite sure what countries I'm going to be traveling through just yet, so general recommendations work for now. What are the castles and palaces that you really have to see? Preferably, they'll be somewhat reasonable to access from cities that are also great to visit. If it's something incredible enough to go completely out of your way for, I definitely am interested but I'm also trying to be realistic about time and money. Of course, if it's in a city, even better.

France is the one exception to this- I'm actually relocating to Paris for a bit, so anything that's not completely unreasonable to reach from the city is fair game, regardless of what it's by.

Posted by
33754 posts

Windsor Castle
the Belfort in Brugge
Chenonceau
Coburg
Conwy
Venice - the whole place

Posted by
2768 posts

From Paris, Versailles is extremely easy and a must do. Also the Loire Valley Chateaus.

Prague Castle

The Alhambra in Granada Spain - this is my must see palace because its so different from the rest of Europe. Could fly into Madrid and see the Royal Palace and El Escorial before going down to Granada. Or go to Sevilla and see theAlcazar and cathedral

Shoenbrun in Vienna

Tower of London

Roman ruins in Rome

Pompeii

Doges palace in Venice

Posted by
14920 posts

Hi,

My suggestions: Neues Palais in Potsdam, Schloß Schönbrunn in Vienna, Schloß Charlottenburg in Berlin, Chateau Fontainebleau in Fontainebleau.

Posted by
5678 posts

In Scotland I would recommend Edinburgh and Stirling Castle at the very least. There are many, many others. For example, I loved Hermitage Castle in the Borders just because it is so menacing. And as long as you are in Edinburgh, you should visit Holyrood, if just to see the Mary Queen of Scotts' apartment and the room where David Rizzio was murdered.

In England and Wales there are many more, but the Tower of London is so steeped in history that it needs to be at the top of any list. I would also include Hampton Court.

One thing to remember is that sometimes the smaller castles are equally as interesting. For example, Bolton Castle in Yorkshire was wonderful in its valley and a room where Mary Queen of Scots had been imprisoned. Also, the ruin that is Killdrummy Castle in Aberdeenshire was overwhelming in the sheer size of what had once been a powerful fortress.

And one more, would be Wartburg Castle in Germany. I visited it years and years ago and I've always remembered it as pointed out a spot where Luther had hurled an ink pot at the devil. This points out another interesting thing about Castles--strange weird little bits of history happen in them.

Pam

Posted by
15777 posts

I spent some time in Burgundy and Alsace - large areas absolutely littered with castles, some falling apart, many repaired or restored. Palaces - Schonbrunn in Vienna, Versailles, Madrid are the top 3 in Europe.

Posted by
7175 posts

In the UK for a start you have ...
Buckingham Palace (July/Aug only)
Hampton Court
Tower of London
Windsor Castle
Edinburgh Castle
Stirling Castle
Blenheim Palace (country house really)
Castle Howard (country house really)
Carnarvon Castle
Chatsworth (country house really)

Posted by
67 posts

Many have been mentioned that I totally agree with. But you have to see:

Neuschwanstein Castle near Munich
Linderhoff Castle near Munich
Versailles near Paris