Indulge in the allure of royalty, from the ancient castles of Ireland to the fortresses of France. These european castles you can stay in offer a seductive glimpse into centuries of history and heritage. Relax in lavishly adorned rooms, stroll through manicured gardens, and dine like nobility in elegant banquet halls.  To sleep in a castle and wake up on a site that’s witnessed the greatest European empires come and go is an incredible feeling.

Whether you seek a romantic getaway, a family retreat, or a fairytale celebration venue, spoil yourself with fine dining, spa treatments and lavish amenities that even the former royal residents would even blush at.  So why not upgrade your vacation from ordinary to extraordinary with a castle stay on your next visit to Europe? To help you out, we’ve selected some of our favorite European castles you can stay in, sone of which are included on our Luxury Gold journeys.

Discover more about the exceptional hotels that bookend each day with Luxury Gold: Magnificent Stays

Ashford Castle, Ireland

Over 800 years of magnificence rests along the shores of Lough Corrib at Ashford Castle. The estate was once owned by the Guinness family and carries over the intimate yet unashamed luxury for its hotel guests to enjoy. The historic boathouse is an especially peaceful stay, located on the waterside as a stand-alone residence for guests who desire 24-hour butler service and total privacy.

Travel to Ireland with Luxury Gold and enjoy more centuries-old estates of Ireland and the United Kingdom, with the opportunity to call Ashford Castle home for two nights. Here, you’ll dine in the George V Dining Room, take a guided tour of the estate, and meet the birds of prey at Ireland’s oldest established falconry school.

Enjoy a decadent stay at Ashford Castle on: Ultimate Ireland and Castles & Kingdoms

You may also enjoy reading: These Are the 10 Best Luxury Hotels in the World

Locanda Don Ferrante, Italy

Photo credit: @donferrante on Instagram

In Monopoli’s old town, a small fortress sits on the south side of the town’s defensive walls. History knows it as Charles V Castle, but locals and visitors alike only know the name Don Ferrante. One of the most fascinating European castles you can stay in, when you start your morning with breakfast in a 16th-century gunpowder store, you won’t help but wonder what stores these walls heard when the Viceroy of Bari called this luxurious seaside abode home. Wonder not when you hop in the hotel’s tuk tuk for a sightseeing tour of the old town, followed by a wine tasting, cooking class, and full immersion into the history of Bari written long before the castle walls were built.

Experience the best of Italy on: Ultimate Italy

Bookmark for later: The Luxury Gold Guide to Private Wine Tasting in Italy

Hotel de la Cité Carcassonne, France

Photo credit: @hoteldelacite on Instagram

The discerning traveler who wants to sleep in a castle yet desires doing so surrounded by refined French aesthetics will simply love Hotel de la Cité in medieval Carcassonne. There are fewer than 60 rooms in this 19th-century neo-Gothic luxury castle hotel in Europe, which means the garden terraces, outdoor pool and Michelin-starred gourmet restaurant are anything but crowded. Gaze at the ramparts from a superior suite and take in the medieval scenery. During the Luxury Gold Ultimate Southern France tour, you’ll stay in this castle when you’ve finished drinking in the Languedoc wine region’s vineyards and partaking in a traditional French cooking class with a Michelin-starred chef.

Stay here on : Ultimate France and Ultimate Southern France 

Meet the Travel Concierge who makes your journey exceptional: Sophisticated and Stylish: why Southern France is Unmissable

Glenapp Castle, Scotland

Photo credit: @glenappcastle on Instagram

When it comes to European castles you can stay in, Scotland is a treasure trove of once royal residences. Glenapp Castle is an exceptional example of the standard the castle hotels of Europe should aspire to achieve. Located in Ayrshire, the expansive castle penthouse suite spoils you with a personal butler, a private chef and a private rooftop terrace with 360° views of the coastline. Should you choose to live like a humble lord, you’ll be pleased to discover grand sea view suites that are just as comfortable, an award-winning restaurant with plates sourced only from the Ayrshire, and a host of lavish activities like falconry, croquet, trout fishing and a Hebridean sea safari.

Discover the highlights of Scotland on: British Royale

You may also be interested to read: The Ultimate Luxury Shopping Guide to Edinburgh

Althoff Grandhotel Schloss Bensberg, Germany

Photo credit: @schlossbensberg on Instagram

A Baroque castle in Cologne’s countryside, Althoff Grandhotel Schloss Bensberg was once known as the “Rhenish Versailles”. It was built as a hunting lodge for Prince-Elector Johann Wilhelm II of Dusseldorf as a hunting lodge and designed to resemble France’s Versailles. Today, this castle hotel in Europe is open to you, granting you exceptional views of Cologne Cathedral and the Rhine Valley. The 2-starred Michelin Vendôme serves a delectable dinner that is complimented by a nightcap of tea in the 4 Elements Spa’s sauna.

Take in more delights of Europe on: Harmony of Central Europe

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Palácio Estoi, Portugal

Photo credit: @pousadapalaciodeestoi on Instagram

Queens and kings have stayed at the only 18th-century palace hotel in the Algarve, and now you can sleep in this castle all the same. Pousada Palácio Estoi welcomes you to rest your feet in Faro at one of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World. Make a note to visit the reception areas, both the old and new. The old Chapel hosts the new reception area, reminiscent of Spain’s Sagrada Familia design. The former reception area rivals its beauty with its own classic decor: Roman and Islamic exhibits curated in part by the Faro Municipal Museum. European castles you can stay in.

Enjoy the delights of Iberia on: Spain & Portugal in Style

Tantalize your tastebuds with this read: The Luxury Gold Guide to Portugal’s Fine Dining Seafood Restaurants

With a 1,114-mile coastline lashed by the wild Atlantic, it’s no surprise that Portugal has some of the best seafood in the world on its menus. From huge grilled fish to bacalao fritters and smoky grilled sardines ‒ the latter have entire festivals dedicated to them ‒ this is a country obsessed with the fruits of the ocean. 

The dining scene here is so strong here that, from 2024, Portugal will have its own Michelin Guide separate from Spain’s. Those on a seafood fine dining trail through this rich, cultured country should take note of foodie capitals Lisbon and Porto, of course, but might also look to the southern coastline around the Algarve for standout dishes. From cutting-edge Michelin-starred numbers to newer rising stars, these are the places to go for the very best fish and seafood.

For travel inspiration: Portugal Destination Guide

Lota d’Avila, Lisbon

Modelled on the traditional Portuguese marisqueira (seafood restaurant), with glossy lobsters, crab and oysters displayed on ice at the counter, this is the place for an impressive seafood platter. Styled like a seafood market and beach bar, it serves elegant paellas, crab croquettes, deep-fried cuttlefish and seafood soup dreamt up by chef Vasco Lello. Sit up at the metal counter where you can see the shiny fruits de mer waiting to be seasoned and sizzled, or in elegant low-lit booths, or the beach-bar portion of the restaurant with its wicker light fixtures and blue-striped cushions. Fish lovers shouldn’t miss the chance to pick out a whole fish with their chef and have it grilled to their liking over a wood fire.

Discover the tastes of Iberia on: Spain & Portugal in Style

Gruta, Porto

Photo credit: @grutaporto on Instagram

Chef Rafaela Louzada is obsessed with seafood, and after you leave her restaurant, in the foodie northern city of Porto, you will be too. Gruta just earned the Bib Gourmand in the Spain and Portugal Michelin Guide, with its carefully curated menu of seafood fine dining and techniques from the north of Portugal. A simple cream dining room has exposed stone walls, raffia chairs and filament bulbs hanging from the ceiling; seafood rice comes sprinkled with edible flowers, while octopus carpaccio and grilled prawns keep things light. A female led team with a zest for this region’s flavours.

You may also enjoy reading: Sunshine on a plate: Travel Concierge Dom on his love of Iberia

JNcQUOI Beach Club, Comporta

Photo credit: @jncquoi.comporta

The jet set is catching on to the beachy enclave of Comporta, just south of Lisbon, where beachside restaurants sit alongside wild, unspoiled white sand dunes and turquoise sea. The seafood fine dining at this exclusive beach club ‒ the name is a play on ‘je ne sais quois’ ‒ is enjoyed with a view of Praia de Pego, one of the area’s best beaches; expect cod carpaccio with capers and arugula, zingy catch of the day ceviche and spaghetti with clams and bottarga, alongside showy oyster and seafood platters. Having one of the most elegant meals of your holiday, then stepping right onto soft sand? Heaven.

A read for all foodies: Why South Africa is the ultimate setting for a gourmet road trip

Prado, Lisbon

Photo credit: @prado_restaurante on Instagram

Market produce and seasonal fare are king at this buzzed-about Lisbon opening, which is contained in a former fish factory. Decorative hanging plants and ferns are draped from high, industrial-chic ceilings, as are disused fish-canning tools, with sage-green tongue and groove surrounding leather banquettes. Chef António Galapito crafts delicate dishes of Azores squid with potato and ham butter, or seared tuna belly in tomato consomme ‒ the name, Prado, might mean field, but there’s plenty of riches from the sea to enjoy.

Bookmark for later: The Best Private Cooking Classes to Enjoy With Luxury Gold

Bomfim 1896, Douro Valley

Photo credit: @bomfim1896 on Instagram

To the east of the northern city of Porto lies the Douro Valley, an undulating, emerald patch of terraced vineyards and glinting riverside. It’s becoming as much of a food hub for Portugal as Lisbon or Porto, a distinction encompassed beautifully by this 2023 opening, from the Symington family (the owners of Cockburn’s Port). Set alongside the river, with dazzling verdant views, its chef, Pedro Lemos, delivers a rustic-luxe menu of oysters, Algarve shrimp, and seafood stew. Many dishes are focused on wood-fired oven cooking: try the grilled violet prawns or roasted turbot with cassava mash.

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Casa de Chá da Boa Nova, Porto

Photo credit: @casachaboanova on Instagram

A grand design by the sea, this listed national monument of a building sits above Praia da Boa Nova, just outside Porto. As a two-Michelin-star restaurant with the waves crashing on the rocks below, it feels fitting that seafood fine dining is the star of the show here: think tuna bao with wasabi, sardine escabeche macarons and scarlet shrimp in a wild mushroom broth. Chef Rui Paula took inspiration from a verse from a famous Portuguese poem, The Lusiads – “hitherto unchartered waters” – to create this innovative and cutting-edge experience.

Read more about responsible dining: 11 of the Best Sustainable Fine-Dining Restaurants in the World

Ocean, Alporchinhos, Algarve

Photo credit: @oceanrestaurant on Instagram

This high-end dining spot takes inspiration from Portugal’s history of global exploration and voyaging, with influences from Goa to Cape Verde, as well as making the most of the local fish and shellfish. Part of the five-star Vila Vita Parc resort, in Alporchinhos, this small, intimate dining room seating 35 has sea-view windows echoed by azure walls and corals displayed on high shelves. Chef Hanz Neuner has created an exquisite menu featuring Portuguese carabinero (scarlet prawn), Rio de Formosa oysters with samphire, champagne and caviar, and turbot with mushrooms and fermented banana. With two Michelin stars, this is one to make a detour for.

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If you love cuisine then you’ll love a small group journey with Luxury Gold, with Exceptional Dining at the heart of every journey.