Appleby Castle

Castle

What a fantastic place to stay! If you ever get the opportunity do it. Our host, Craig is a man with many feathers in his cap, from GM to chief bottle washer, he has looked after us like royalty. Kenneth gave a very detailed tour of the castle, and boy does he know his stuff. If I could give 6 stars out of 5 I would.

We have just spent an incredible 4 days staying in the beautifully decorated Evidence Room at the truly impressive Appleby Castle… There really aren't enough supplerlatives to describe the feeling you have once you enter the grounds and let your imagination run wild as you wander and wonder at all that lays before you… All the staff have been absolutely fantastic and made us feel truly special and completely spoilt… Craig and his team went above and beyond themselves to make our stay feel so magical and our last night's meal in the elegantly decorated and thoroughly romantic dining room will live in our memory forever… And we should not forget the efforts of the castle manager who played the piano beautifully just for us… The castle tour is an absolute must do to fully appreciate the castle, its history and its importance — Lady Clifford was an exceptional lady and I imagine that she had the same passion for the castle as the new owner Sally Nightingale, who is likened to a favorite eccentric auntie who wants only the best for you and will do her utmost to make you feel at home and welcome, as did everyone there… A truly wonderful stay which we have no doubt we will do again and again through the years as we continue to celebrate our love and life together… It was without doubt the most perfect place for us and we hope to see you all again very soon. Dennis&Anja.

What a beautiful place! Our 9 year old enjoyed the adventure playground, the walks across the grounds and the ponies. We even managed a picnic as there are many available outdoor tables. The room and bathroom were stunning and clean. Everyone welcoming, and we truly felt looked after as nothing was too much trouble. The tour was very entertaining and views from the tower truly stunning. I would recommend a 5 course tasting menu dinner served in their stunning dining room, with a wine list not to disappoint, the meal was luscious and I can not complain about a thing, the taste, the presentation and service were of a high standard. The piano playing was a nice touch too, that everyone enjoyed. This is a very special place. I like to say thank you to all Appleby staff for making our stay unforgettable. We will be visiting again. 😊

Close to the town centre & expanding attractions in the grounds. The keep is a must (guided tours only). Have stayed here but average. Check in could have done so much more to ‘sell’ the facilities. Dining options vary from a medieval banqueting hall (not tried) to an antiquated, unclean breakfast refectory (how it passed hygiene inspections, I will never know particularly in the middle of Covid)

What a wonderful and gorgeous place to stay! Having a wander around the castle itself was so pretty amongst the moat and daffodils. There was even a Norman reenactment taking place on the grounds. The castle is fantastically decorated and looked after and our room was stunning. We slept so well in a huge bed and the shower was delightful too. A bluetit landed on the windowsill in the morning, which added to the tranquility even more. The staff, in particular Peter, went above and beyond for us. We stopped here as a treat before heading to the Isle of Skye and our electric cooler had stopped working so Peter very kindly gave us lots of ice to keep our food cool. Once we had checked in, we went for a drive of about 5 minutes to do a circular walk to Rutter Force. We saw so much wildlife along the river including oystercatchers, a heron, redpolls, pine siskin, pheasants, buzzards, deer and a red squirrel! To not only see this rare animal for the first time and get it on camera was an absolute dream come true Our breakfast had everything you could want; tea, coffee, juice; cereals, yogurt, granola; pastries and a cooked breakfast. We had it all and it was fantastic! It was a perfect trip.

We stayed in the Castle for 2 night's, it was Amazing, the inside and out side, log fire in the Great Hall, Drinks in the Bar, (thanks Ed was a fantastic night) Breakfast was excellent, anything you wanted, and it was great sitting at the big dining table, everybody sat on it and mingled, (thanks to the Chef and Pete) you could wonder around the inside of the Castle, the Room was amazing with a great view, and very comfortable, we then done the tour, along of history in the castle, and the best part was the Normandy keep amazing (thanks Kenny) Mrs Nightingale mingled and spoke to everybody a very down to earth person, thank you for everything, all in all a fantastic break, well recommended even if you did 1 night with Breakfast,

Last night we stayed at Appleby castle, what can I say……wow what an absolutely stunning place this is! We were bought this as a gift from our friends as an engagement gift, after reading some of the reviews we didn’t really know what to expect (we like to visit somewhere and decide what we thing as quite often we read reviews and they often don’t fit with a certain property once we visit). When we arrived we met Peter and he checked us all in and gave us lots of information and history on the castle, what a lovely gentleman he is! We then met Sally, what an absolute delightful, beautiful down to earth lady she is. She could not of made us feel more welcome in her property! She showed us around and we had such s good chat and giggle with her. They showed us to our rooms ……wow our room was the Clifford bedroom it was impressive and had a very grand feel about it with it’s beautiful solid wood four poster bed and beautiful period tapestry drapes. The bathroom was light and airy with a beautiful bath and double shower. We went for our evening meal the food was delicious and presented in such a beautiful way. The chef was very friendly as were the two lovely young ladies who waited on us, Eva and Abby a credit to the castle. During our meal there was some beautiful period music playing which was very fitting for the stunning setting. Then to top it off Peter then played the piano! Such an amazing talent, we absolutely loved this touch.

We stayed here for a 2nt stay and we loved every minute of it, nothing was too much trouble for the staff, special mention to James I don't know how you do so much and still have time for a chat and a smile, the food was excellent and room was lovely, (yes your private bathroom is across the hall but just a few steps away so not a problem and lovely bath and shower, ) kenneth our tour guide was both informative and friendly your castle and keep tour was great and well worth the money. Lovely surroundings and magnificent castle.

The castle was amazing and grounds were beautiful. Also the staff were incredibly professional friendly and welcoming. Our trip however was completely ruined by the unpleasantness of the owners. I have travelled to many countries and met so many different people. Sadly I have never been spoken to with so much disrespect in my life. I appreciate the work that has gone on restoring and maintaining the castle, but this is absolutely no excuse to be so downright horrible.

Fantastic hidden gem, thoroughly impressed with the whole place, Tour guide was enthusiastic, incredibly knowledgeable and patient with our young children. Castle and Keep and are must see and brand new play ground is super. Did not get time to explore the grounds but looked great from what we could see. Only disappointment was the lack of visitors, surely it should have been busier on a saturday even in October?

Beautiful setting and grounds. Guided tour very informative and good fun. Unfortunately we did not have time to visit the keep nor restaurant. We will be back. Thank you!

Appleby castle 🏰 is beautiful place too stay rooms are high standard Very clean 💯 lots things to see and do and a lot of out door walking with beautiful views thanks again sally nightingale 💙

Stayed there.
booked 2 nights and only stayed the one.
my wife and myself were glad to leave.
a catalog of problems.
they took my money no problems.
but the service was so bad.
there wasn't even an evening meal because the was no chef.
no staff no bar to speak of really.
games room was a joke!
seriously, don't waste your money!

Stayed in the Russel Suite with my husband for his birthday on Friday night and we both loved it!
Exactly what we hoped it would be and more!
The candlelit 3 course dinner could not be faulted, absolutely gorgeous.
The staff were all very friendly and helpful.
Would definitely recommend, and we will be returning ❤

If you book this hotel and you’re a gypsy, then forget about it.
They’ll ring you and cancel your booking, tell you it’s an historic building and that they won’t open.
Basically gypsies are not welcome to stay here.
Lady gave me some poor excuses about gypsies and Appleby fair.
Basically tarring is all with the same brush.
Very disappointed with them.

Great day out, fantastic grounds.

Very friendly welcome, I stayed just recently and was made very welcome, I met sally nightingale, what a wonderful lady she is.
the castle is stunning, we got a guided tour which was brilliant and we got to dress up in armour.
have already booked to go back.

Hi it’s my best friends castle it’s a beautiful castle to stay very clean lovely food and also very pleasant staff would recommend it also they have holiday cottages which are nice too all high standard 10/10

We had the most amazing stay in this beautiful castle. Food and service were fantastic, worth every penny.

Nice place very quiet and historical castle.

Excellent in every aspect. A wonderful taste of history, exceptional service, great food, highly recommended.

Unique, gorgeous and special place to stay. Definitely recommended!

Can’t recommend the venue and activity of this weekend. Sally and her team are all wonderful and truly can’t do enough for you. We truly had great time on paranormal weekend. We met absolutely adorable lovely people and connected many ‘spirits’ at Appleby castle.

Nice dinners
Nice atmosphere
Great tour of castle
Staff was very gracious.

We had a brilliant evening watching the show. Crowd loved it and the interaction with the kids made it special.

Awesome accomodation, lovely staff, great venue. Highly recommended.

Fabulous stay staff very friendly where so happy to help and made us feel welcome food was beautiful castle is it’s self amazing
If I had to say anything bad it was we had a very small room which the door wouldn’t shut but was comfortable
We had the whole castle to are self as no body else staying there was a amazing stay.

Fantastic place to stay, not a hotel but an experience. Full of history and details that make you stop and look. Great staff and fantastic food, ate in the castle both nights and the food was great, as was the breakfast. Thanks for looking after us. We will hopefully be back in the future.

Luxurious stay, food is delightful, friendly hosts and warm welcome. Drinks a bit on the expensive side £9 for a G&tonic. Enjoyed the tour in the morning, historic and atmospheric.

Felt like we were in a fairytale! Beautiful castle. The tour of the castle was so fun!

Lovely place to stop. Very quirky and friendly would recommend.

It is a unique experience to stay in a castle. However, the food we had in the morning was very disappointing — so take this into consideration. The bathroom is across your room and you need to cross the hall to get there (not great at night) but I do understand that this is just how it was built. Staff was super helpful and I recommend the garden walk.

Magnificent. Cant wait to come back. Superb rooms. Beautiful food. Stunning surroundings and friendly staff who cant do enough for you. What more could you want.

We went for a supberb afternoon tea and had a wonderful afternoon at Appleby castle. Mrs Nightingale and her staff are excellent hosts and full of interesting historical stories. The castle is amazing and grounds lovely. We will go back soon.

The castle has spectaculer views from all round looking down on to the town centre with lovely walks along the river. Well worth the drive.

Had a great time. Staff make you very welcome. They make you feel at home. James the butler was great. The four poster bed was very comfortable. The food was to die for. We will be going back there soon in the summer.

This was an amazing experience — the first night was in a room in the servants quarters and this was not so good as there was no view so we moved to a better room with a lively view of the river Eden and the penines. Breakfast was very good and the only criticism I have is that the staff did not offer any information about the surrounding area and recommend places to visit which would have been gladly received as we had not stayed in this area before so had no local knowledge. I would recommend this experience but I would be careful as to which room you stay in as this makes a massive difference to the quality of your stay.

Fantastic castle. Excellent service and unique accomodation. First class experience.

There was nothing I would have changed about our stay. This is a long review, so the key points are: * Fantastic service * Beautiful setting * Great location We stayed for two nights in Appleby Castle, and had a wonderful time. It's still a functioning castle, and it looks every inch the type of place you read about or see in historical fiction. In a lot of cases the decorations were hundreds of years old and all the more charming for being so. It was like walking into a dream, set 200 hundred years ago. Our own room was behind a secret door, which just added to my own excitement. The staff were incredibly helpful and friendly. We were allowed to use the Great Hall or the morning room throughout the day if we wished, and both rooms had big open fires. We spent a lot of time in the morning room, and they made sure that we were comfortable with the fire (which was lovely given the weather outside), and that we had any drinks we might have wanted.   We had dinner in the large dining room on the second night, and as usual the service was fantastic. The food was amazing, and we were made to feel like we were the only people there, even in a room full of people.   We were also treated to a tour of the castle. Much of it focused on the various inhabitants of the castle, with an energetic and engaging delivery by the tour guide. The tour guide also happened to have an assortment of medieval and later helmets that he kindly allowed us to try on.

A very positive experience. Do not expect standard hotel facilities this is a very old castle. Absorb the atmosphere!

What an amazing magical place! We stayed at the castle for new years eve and from the moment we entered, you couldn't of felt more welcome. The staff were so attentive and friendly. We loved our room, it was massive and do recommend a soak in the rolltop bath. The food, entertainment and fantastic firework display topped a truly brilliant evening! Thank you Sally Nightingale and your amazing team… Happy 2018. Simon and Sue xx.

Amazing experience at this beautiful castle! Excellent food and service in this calm and tranquil ancient place. Highly recommend for that special occasion!

It looks excellent. Night time activities were well run and a high quality.

The rooms are showing their age, the doors don't quite close, the electrical cables are hanging there waiting for bulbs and somehow, it doesn't matter. The place is wonderful.

A stunning castle in the heart of Cumbria, which works hard to retain all its original charm and history. The staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming, with butler service, suits of armour and fantastic paintings as far as the eye can see. The rooms are grand, classy and comfortable, with all the amenities you would require. On the evening we visited, the people of Appleby held a lantern parade from the town up to the castle and there was entertainment in the grounds, the atmosphere was magical. I can't recommend the Appleby Castle highly enough and can't wait to return.

Great welcome! Generous rooms. Super atmosphere.

Lovely amazing place food is great castle is Amazing grounds are beautiful romantic atmosphere.

Amazing Wedding Venue We had our wedding at Appleby Castle in August and it was incredible, a truly special place. I must start by saying I've 20 years experience in the wedding Industry and we viewed so many places before deciding on Appleby. The Castle is spectacular, a perfect mix of elegance, quirk and majesty, you can see and feel the history around every corner. We got married in the Grand Hall upstairs which is stunning, the tables were long oak trestle tables and the chairs huge glamorous almost royal style, it felt like a medieval banquet. The dinning room would be lovely for a smaller wedding and we had our night Doo in the Hall downstairs which was perfect for a party. They also have an amazing Tavern just off the Hall downstairs, with coats of armour on the wall and props that ended up being used in our photo booth! They have great Accommodation onsite to for around 40 people, 3 lovely cottages that are 5 star luxury and the rooms in the castle are steeped in History, some with 400 year old tapestries, they really are so grand. Also they have lovely grounds, a great courtyard and gardens which made a stunning backdrop for our photos They've Invested heavily recently and it will only get better and mor popular, especially as Appleby is a lovely little village with 2 great hotels within walking distance and an awesome pub we had dinner in the night before.

Very interesting place to see, I was allowed in with the family dog (husky) and the kids enjoyed it. We easy spent a couple of hours walking around.

Glad this place is open again, worth visiting, you can stay here and also book a guided tour.

Lovely grounds and lovely cottages, castle part is quite creepy but is also very good. Good breakfast as well.

Appleby castle is a great historical monument to take your family they always hold events withave fun, food and animals for the young ones.

Had the best time at Easter when we visited, the staff were friendly and dedicated and the atmosphere in the hall was amazing! Loved it!

Amazing place to stay. Wonderful history. Wonderful area. Incredible service. Must be seen to be believed. You won't stay in a castle so relaxed and authentic as this.

Beautiful setting. Very welcoming staff and owner.

Incredible is all I can say and an opportunity to stay in this castle shouldn't be missed! This place is amazing and the team that help to run this beautiful place are fantastic. So much love and commitment has gone into to making this hotel a relaxing stay tailored to each and everybody's needs. Nothing is too much trouble we can't wait for our next stay. Thanks also to lovely Enid the cleaner for taking time out to tell us all about her time at the Castle. This place is truly a one off!

Had our 25th wedding anniversary there staff great food amazing. The spa is fantastic. The surrounding area is also beautiful.

Had a wonderful stay here. The staff were lovely, the food was good and the castle itself was beautiful.