Castles have experienced numerous wars and other totally real historical events, but they have also served as the setting for great feature films and have been filled with mystery, magic, legends and stories of all kinds. These castles of movies attract hundreds of visitors every year who want to know the places where their favorite characters have fought, lived, fell in love … Do you dare to visit them?
Real world movie castles
1. Neuschwanstein Castle
Very close to Munich is the beautiful town of Füssen, famous for the Neuschwanstein Castle or the Mad King’s Castle . But the whole world knows it as the Disney castle because it is the one that inspired Walt Disney to design the Sleeping Beauty castle.
Today this place receives around 8000 visits a day and is considered one of the most beautiful castles in the world. Although you cannot take photographs of its interior, it is very common to photograph it from the María bridge. It is also very relaxing to walk around its surroundings, as its lake, mountains and nature make them beautiful.
It is recommended to buy the entrance to the castle in advance because long lines tend to form.
2. Alnwick Castle
Alnwick Castle is located in the north of England, in the English county of Northumberland, very close to Scotland. This castle is the Harry Potter Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Although all filming actually took place in a studio and used a scale model and computer techniques, this castle was used as a reference.
This same castle has served as the setting for other films, such as Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves and Transformers: The Last Knight . Every day they organize film tours around the castle to see the corners where a scene has been filmed and numerous anecdotes from the filming are explained.
3. Belvoir Castle
Also in England, but this time in the county of Leicestershire , in the central part of the country bordering Derbyshire and Nottingham, is Belvoir Castle . Of all the locations in the movie The Da Vinci Code , based on Dan Brown’s best seller , this castle stands out. Its exteriors became the Castel Gandolfo, the summer residence of the Pope.
He has also appeared in other productions, such as The Little Lord , The Young Victoria or the remake of The Den from 1999.
Many activities are usually carried out in this castle, so it is recommended to check the dates of opening to the public before organizing the visit.
4. Eilean Donan Castle
Eilean Donan Castle is a fortress located on the small island of the same name, in Loch Duich, in northwestern Scotland. It was the classic movie The Immortals that made this castle and the place that surrounds it known. But it has also served as the setting for such iconic films as Braveheart or The world is never enough , one of the many films of the famous agent 007.
5. Castle of Loarre
In Spain there are also castles from movies and an example of this is that of Loarre, which is located in the Aragonese province of Huesca. Neither more nor less than Ridley Scott decided to travel to this province to shoot The Kingdom of Heaven in this beautiful 11th century Romanesque castle.
It has been a candidate to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
6. Orava Castle
Orava Castle, Oravsky hrad in Slovak, is located on a rocky promontory on the banks of the Orava River in Slovakia. Its silhouette stands out from the treetops of the surrounding forest, which gives it a mysterious and magical touch. It is considered one of the most important medieval jewels in Slovakia.
The mythical vampire film Nosferatu was filmed in this castle in 1922. The location of the castle, the history of the place, its decoration and its mysterious appearance, especially at the end of the day, make it a visit difficult to forget.
7. Bürresheim Castle
Bürresheim Castle is located very close to Mayen, in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. In this castle is where the Germans retain the father of Indiana Jones in the third installment of the saga, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade . In the movie they call it Brunwald Castle.
After photographing the exteriors and analyzing the spaces in depth, they considered that they were too small. But with the help of the special effects they were expanded without problems.
8. Dover Castle
Dover Castle is located in Kent, England , and is considered one of the largest in the nation. It has numerous tunnels that were built during the Second World War and that served as a bomb shelter. Later they became a hospital. But in 1990 it served to roll the Hamlet movie, based on the famous play by William Shakespeare.
It has also served as the setting for other films, such as Lady Jane , To Kill a King, and The Boleyn Sisters .
9. Castle of Belmonte
And, finally, the Belmonte castle, located on the hill of San Cristóbal, in the province of Cuenca, in Castilla-La Mancha . A tournament of the mythical film El Cid , from 1961, took place in this fortress. Although Los Señor del Acero and Juana la Loca were also filmed almost entirely in this castle.
There are months in which dramatized routes and days of historical recreation are carried out through the castle of Belmonte. In case you want to attend any of these events, it is recommended to buy tickets well in advance because they tend to sell out.
Visiting these movie castles can become a very good experience. Our recommendation, taking into account that they are famous places for appearing on the big screen, is to inform yourself in advance of the hours, opening and closing dates and whether or not tickets can be purchased through their website. In this way endless queues can be avoided.
And although all these castles are impressive and beautiful, in some films they were taken as a reference or underwent changes, so they may be somewhat different from how they are remembered.
