Have you ever dreamt of castles and staying in them or at least visiting them? Dreamt of the romantic weddings which take place at the castles? Ever felt goosebumps around old historical places? Are you a fan of mythical stories? You are at the right place, Eilean Donan the eerie and romantic castle of Scottish Highlands.As a child and as a result of all the fairy tale stories, I always wanted to visit castles and experience the beautiful history they hold, not necessarily fairy tale, but they do pull at my heart and ignites my desire to travel more.

The Scotland Castle Trip:

I was very lucky to be able to do a road trip around Scotland and visit beautiful castles and places which I thought only existed as part of movies and dreams. Scotland, UK’s northern most country has a wilderness and charm which attracts a lot of tourists. The Scottish people are very friendly and helpful people and enhance the beauty and feel of the country. We had a 10 day road trip around various places, however in this blog post I am going to write about only one unique castle Eilean Donan Castle.

History of the Eilean Donan Castle:

It was built around 13th century as a defensive measure for protecting the island against the Viking attack. The castle has contracted and expanded over the years due to many reasons, not very clear but the castle was spoilt during the end of 18th century. The start remains of the castles remained neglected for almost 200 years, when in 1911 over next 20 years the castle was re-built to its original glory.

Location of the Eilean Donan Castle:

The castle is situated on an island at the point where three great sea lochs meet. The lochs (lakes) and surrounded by some majestic scenery. It is en route the most romantic and beautiful isle, Isle of Skye of the Scottish highlands. The village which hosts this castle is Dornie village which is walking distance for the castle and has beautiful mountain views. We had travelled to Isle of Skye from here which can be reached through the bridge at Kyle of Lochalsh (8 miles from the Castle).

Opening hours of the Eilean Donan Castle:

Imagine you go to see this beautiful castles and it is closed because you did not know the opening time? So here is eilean donan castle opening times. The opening hours of the castle varies in the summers and winters. You can check the timing on their official website. However  the common hours are from 10 in the morning to 4 in the evening. The price of admission is around 7.50 pounds for Adults. There are different packages and rates available for children and senior citizens. It takes an hour around to visit the entire castle. We had gone to the castle around summer, but someday we would return and view the snow covered white majestic beauty during winter. That would definitely seem fairy tale like. You can fins eilean donan castel opening times in their website:  http://www.eileandonancastle.com/visit/opening-hours/

The beautiful way to the castle

Way in of the castle

Stay at Eilean Donan Castle:

The castle does not have any rooms for the tourists to stay.  However there are cottage and apartment available for a stay in this beautiful location. The magical part is you can host your wedding in the castle. Yes! you can plan you wedding in this castle. Your guests, the special bride or groom,can stay in one of these cottages. They have the perfect view of the castles and just perfect for a romantic getaway and Scottish Highland feel. Wood burning stoves with burning embers add to the beauty of the rooms.

The apartments are beautiful as well, but further away from the Dornie village.  These serviced apartments offer guests the ideal base from which to explore the Isle of Skye, Lochalsh, Wester Ross and Loch Ness areas. The beautiful village of Plockton is only 15 minutes drive, as is Skye Bridge for access to the island. If you want to “go over the sea to Skye” the old fashioned way, then the Glenelg Ferry is only 20 minute drive over the hill; a drive which offers a multitude of stunning views and panoramas.
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Eilean Donan and films:

There are many films which has used this beautiful castle for films. One of the Bollywood movies starring the famous Sharukh khan – kuch kuch hota hai has parts of some songs shot here. Other famous Hollywood movies include James Bond 1999, Highlanders and Loch Ness.

Our Story at Eilean Donan the eerie and romantic castle:

Vish and I went to his castle by chance, deciding on our way back from Isle of Skye to visit this beautiful place. I am so glad we did. This castle is one of the most picturesque castles we have seen so far. It is in the middle of the loch, with a beautiful bridge reaching the main gate of castle. It was an amazing experience. We had reached when the ticket sale had closed and so could not enter.

We waited for an hour, and explored around. When no one was around, the castle felt very spooky with not a single person to be seen around. We could hear the barking voices of dogs, and even though we tried a lot we could not find the dogs. Standing at the entrance, looking at the castle with gates closed we feel that the place is haunted.There were some weird noises. Splashing of water as if people are jumping in it, even though we could see no one.  It was a fun experience and I can say that it makes me very happy to take the detour and visit this majestic piece of beauty.

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