Swan in, don't duck out at Leeds Castle (Leeds Castle)

Member Name: Mildew82

Product:	Leeds Castle
Date:	20/05/09 (97 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Richly furnished castle with a great range of activities

Disadvantages: Some atrractions seasonal and weather dependent

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The History of the Castle
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Leeds Castle started out as a Saxon Manor but began transformation into a castle in 1119 by Robert de Crevecoeur - a descendant of one of William the Conqueror's lords. It grew to even dizzier heights when it switched ownership and became part of the royal estate in 1278 from which time it was held by no less than 6 medieval queens.

Oh, and also that more interesting monarch Henry VIII visited the castle with Catherine of Aragon and their whole court in 1520 whilst on their way to the Field of the Gold Cloth Tournament in France. It was then passed to Henry's son, Edward VI in 1552 and since then has been in private ownership.

The last private owner of the castle was Lady Baillie who upon her death in 1974 left the castle to the Leeds Castle Foundation who, according to her wishes, have kept the castle as a living house.

And there's your brief history of the castle.

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Picturesque Scenery
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To gain access to the castle you will pass through a stretch of very picturesque grounds which include a duckery, a wood garden, a cedar lawn and a pavilion lawn. Even if you are not a nature lover this walk will be very relaxing, and if you are you will probably find the duckery very informative as there is quite a lot if information on the individual ducks that inhabit the duckery dotted around - including the very rare Hawaiian Ne Ne duck (or so I've been reliably informed).

You may even get a treat and spot a black swan - now the symbol of the castle!

This walk will take a good 10-15 minutes and there are some land trains available to take the less able bodied or just plain lazy (there's no discrimination here) directly up to the castle entrance. One lovely feature of taking this walk is the occasional peacock strutting around completely unaffected by the tourists, something that would be a shame to miss.

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Activities
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When you hit the castle entrance you will be assaulted by choice. I feel that there is no logical order to enjoy all the features of the castle and the surrounding area, although many of the activities are outside so are dependent on the weather which should probably be taken into consideration - especially given the unreliable English weather!

The great range of activities include a tour round the castle and the adjoining barbican and gatehouse, a walk round several gardens and a vineyard, a dog collar museum, an aviary, a maze, a 9 hole golf course and for the children the toddlers' play area, knights' realm adventure playground, a turf maze and a Go Ape! Forest adventure. There are also some seasonal activities which include Falconry and a nature trail.

Plenty to pack into one day!

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The Castle
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The castle has an extensive range of rooms over two main floors rich with a wide variety of styles and different periods of history. You begin in the cellar where a bit of imagination is required as to how it would have used to look (the store of modern day wine used for functions may destroy the illusion a little) and quickly move onto the rest of the castle where you can stroll through each room at your own speed taking in all the delights the castle has to offer.

I never used it myself but there is an audio guide available for hire to talk you around the castle if that is preferable to reading it from the written or actual guides available in each room.

There is evidence of the great history this castle has to offer at every turn, whether it be 16th Century authentic fireplaces, or magnificent ceremonial bed chambers, the chance to learn about the private owners of the castle (typically the Fairfax family with a room of stunning portraits or several rooms depicting Lady Baillie's way of life) through rooms devoted to them or even just the styles and architecture used through the different periods with the different types of wall panelling and furnishing.

This castle is just so full of history and intrigue that it stands up just as well as some of the other greats like Warwick Castle or Windsor Castle and is well worth a visit if journeying through history is of interest to you.

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The Dog Collar Museum
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This museum boasts the largest collection of dog collars on display in the whole of England. Whilst some of the collars were, to be fair, quite ornate, there's not much of a back story that can be given about a dog collar so I did personally find this museum a little dull. From my perspective, if you've seen one you've seen them all. However, I am a self-proclaimed cat person, so maybe unfairly dogs don't interest me all that much, so if you are a dog person this may appeal to you a bit more.

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The Gardens
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There are two gardens available to walk round - the Culpeper Garden and the Lady Ballie Mediterranean Garden. These are both very pleasant for a stroll around with perhaps the Mediterranean Garden having a more interesting and wider range of plants to appreciate.

But with the potential threat of small children running around either of these two gardens would be perfect to grab a quick bit of tranquillity if you so require it.

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The Aviary
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This is a perfect attraction for any bird-lovers out there - in a well spaced out area there were plenty of exotic and endangered birds to see, you didn't find yourself too crowded out to be able to spot the birds as the cages where built so high the birds were practically always in sight.

There was ample information about each bird and as one of those people easily distracted by shiny things I found myself particularly liking the brightly coloured exotic parrots. This is a nice little addition to Leeds Castle, something that both children and adults can enjoy together.

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The Maze and Grotto
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To me, very unexpectedly, the maze was the highlight of my visit. This maze was a very attractive looking one with walls made from yew trees and as usual I was expecting to stroll right through and find the middle before you can even say SatNav. Sadly, this was not to be, and it took a good 20 minutes and bumping into the same 5 couples later before that elusive centre was found. But boy was it worth it. The exit from the maze can only be sought by entering a slightly underground grotto, with some amazing wall artistry. The story behind some of the sculptures is from Greek mythology, combined with an almost macabre atmosphere created by some swirling music and eerie poetry recitals which really gave this grotto and fascinating feel to it.

It is definitely worth sticking it out through the maze to be treated to the unexpected delight of the grotto.

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Facilities
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There are 4 toilets dotted around the grounds at all the main attraction sites which were very clean and with baby change and disable access toilets available.

As I mentioned before, there is a land train to take those unable to cope with the longish walk to the castle to the main attractions. It is also possible to organise for a carer to enter free with a disabled person to allow them to experience as much of Leeds Castle as possible.

There are picnic areas set aside if you have brought your own lunch with you located at the main entrance (quite a distance away from the castle) and in the children play areas, there is a snack bar and some seasonal catering outlets available for a light lunch, or there is a restaurant available near the dog collar museum if you wanted to have a more substantial lunch.

This restaurant has a waitress service (hope I'm not being politically incorrect), a nice range of hot and cold lunches all at a very reasonable price. The waitress service was very friendly and quick and the food was served to a high standard, so overall I was very impressed by the restaurant.

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Prices
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Adult £16.50
Senior Citizens/Students/Visitors with Disabilities £13.50
Children (4-15 yrs) £9.50

These prices may seem a little high, but considering the vast range of activities and the fact that your ticket is valid for as many entries as you want for a whole year after the initial date of purchase it wouldn't take many visits to get more than your money's worth!

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Conclusion
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Leeds Castle is a thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining attraction, with literally something for everyone. I believe it to be a great place for parents to take their children with lots of activities for them to do and green space to run around in, or as a great place for those interested in history to absorb some of the splendours Leeds Castle has to offer.

I think you get great value for money especially with the chance to return again for free for another year and would recommend it to everyone.

Summary: An intriguing and historically rich castle with something for everyone