Eastnor Castle: Review

Eastnor Castle is a stunningly beautiful, imposing building that can be seen from the Malvern Hills. Events at Eastnor take place throughout the summer months and we’ve been to a few over the years. Whenever you visit, there are always plenty of outdoor activities to do, as well as looking around inside the majestic castle. I’ve always been particularly impressed that dogs are allowed both in the castle grounds and inside the castle itself. This makes it a really accessible day out for the whole family.

Eastnor Castle Grounds

In the castle grounds, children can be knights and princesses, challenge themselves on the knight’s obstacle course, ride on mini Land Rovers, play in the adventure playground and enjoy the woodland play area. There are beautiful walks down by the lake and there’s even an area for dogs to go off the lead.

We arrived at Eastnor at around 11.30 am and didn’t leave until it had closed at about 4.30 pm. Even then, we didn’t feel that we’d done everything and could easily have had another whole day there without getting bored. As soon as we arrived, we headed for the obstacle course, then went up to the lawn where the Knight’s school was going on. 

Knight’s School

When we arrived, it was storytelling time at knight’s school. We sat down and had a picnic lunch while we listened to historically accurate stories told in an animated and interactive way by a very convincing knight. It was a great way for the girls to start learning a bit about history and when the storytelling finished, things only got more exciting.

The Knight taught all the children to joust on a hobby horse. Both girls were delighted to get involved and it was a great way to learn about knights and jousting. After that, the Knight kitted up in his armour and told them all about it and what each part was for. Then it was time for sword fighting with foam swords. The whole thing was brilliant and we really struggled to drag the girls away. 

Inside Eastnor Castle

We eventually managed to coax the children away from Knight’s school to have a look around the Castle itself. The castle has been a family home for many years. As well as opening to the public, it is available to hire for weddings and corporate events. Libby was particularly excited to look around the castle, and chatted to the guides about who had lived there and visited in the past.

The castle interior is incredibly grand and fascinating for children and adults alike. When we’d had a look around inside, we walked around the exterior of the castle and took in the beautiful views of the Malvern Hills. As well as the castle grounds there is a lake and deer park, where events take place throughout the year. This includes Landrover discovery days, a chilli festival and the Lakefest music festival. There’s a particularly fun Santa and Drive event at Eastnor Land Rover.

The verdict

We unfortunately ran out of time to explore the lake and deer park but I have done so on numerous occasions in the past and it is truly breathtaking.  The thing I loved the most about our day at Eastnor was that virtually all the activities were based outside. It was great to spend the whole day out in the fresh air and the girls loved it. There is a tearoom and ice cream parlour there, but there are also picnic benches. We treated ourselves to some coffee and rather excellent cakes from the tearoom and the girls had ice creams. But other than that we didn’t spend any money as we brought a picnic.

With a family ticket for the castle and grounds costing just £28.00 it’s a very reasonably priced day out with no added extras. If you’re sad to have missed Knight’s school at the castle, check out their website for other events. Next week it’s circus skills!