Question about castles and clothes

What did you have in mind for a "castle" in Belgium? In the Dutch language, they use the same word, "kasteel" to refer to what English speakers might further differentiate into "castles" (as in, a medieval fortified residence), a "palace" (as in, a later, elaborate but non-fortified grand residence) or even a manor house. Most of the castle lodgings I've seen in Europe (I haven't seen any in Belgium) are not particularly fancy and are little more than hostels. Some palace-hotels might be a bit ritzier, but it depends on the specific institution.

Jim,

I don't recall seeing any castle hotels in Belgium, however there certainly could be a few.

I wouldn't worry too much about the clothing. I doubt that you'll be attending any formal events while staying at castle hotels, so you should be fine with your normal travel clothes. If the place is really posh such as THIS castle in Ireland, I probably wouldn't wear blue jeans and a T-shirt to dinner, but normal attire should be fine.

If the Castle is more informal such as THIS property in Germany (which is an HI Hostel), I'm sure even blue jeans would be acceptable. All the guests seemed to be dressed rather informally last time I was there.

I'm sure the hotel will advise at the time of booking if there are dress code requirements.

My castle stay, to date, is limited to Burg Stahleck overlooking the Rhine. It's a hostel (one of the best run hostels I've stayed at) so no real dress standards.

Some castles may be more fancy, like $400 a night or better fancy, but I doubt any enforce a dress code outside of their dining room. If they do, you can either bring one set of Business Casual clothes (that's normally plenty) or go outside the hotel for meals.

Did you find out about castle hotels from this site, Visit Belgium Castles and Gardens: http://www.visitbelgium.com/index.php/castles-and-gardens, or something like it? Note that you can click on Castle-Hotel to explore what's listed on that website and perhaps determine any clothing specifics.

We were in Belgium last spring, but we are not castle/chateau people, so I can't give you any advice about staying in one. You can certainly find a few more websites that list them by Googling -- belgium castle hotel.

Jim, If you are still interested in thoughts - maybe your wife can bring a dressy pair of lightweight black slacks. One can never go wrong with black - dress it up or down. And if she likes scarves, there are tons of "Infinity" style scarves everywhere - many ways to wear one.

Maybe chain mail? : )

There's the hotel in the huge and historic castle in Sedan, France, just across the border from Belgium. No dress code. We wore jeans and casual clothes, the same as everywhere else.

Thank you all-we are going with the chain mail option and local olive oil.Jim