Why use Celtic Castles?
Celtic Castles has been online since 1998 and is now the biggest and best value castle booking company in the world! We currently feature over 85 castle properties on our website, catering for every taste and location throughout every corner of the UK, Ireland and France. We also have an extensive knowledge of other many castle properties throughout the British Isles and so are confident that we will be able to find a castle to meet your requirements. We visit all of the castles featured online on a regular basis and have developed an extensive knowledge about each. So, rather than you contacting the castles directly, we can give you an unbiased and honest assessment on each castle property and identify the one that would be most suited to your needs.

Does Celtic Castles add credit card charges, fees or commissions to the price of the stay?
No. Celtic Castles is not a travel agent and does not add any fees or commissions on top of the normal castle tariffs. Our service is completely free of charge to our customers. We take our commission from the castles themselves and so you pay no more booking through us than you would if you contacted the castle directly. In many instances we are able to offer discounted tariffs to our customers based on the exceptional relationships that we have with each castle property. There are no extra credit card charges.

How does Celtic Castles choose the castles featured on the web site?
For a castle to be featured within our portfolio it has to demonstrate that it meets the high standards we set for our properties. We personally visit all of the castles featured within our site and our team makes regular checks to ensure that our high standards are being maintained! All of our customers who stay at a castle are asked to fill in a feedback form where they can raise any issues or concerns they may have had and we always follow these up directly with the castles themselves. In the past, properties have been removed from our site on the basis that they fall short of our expectations. We’re happy to say that we consistently receive good feedback on all of the properties currently featured, some of which can be viewed on our customer comments page.

How does the booking process work?
For every castle featured within the Celtic Castles' portfolio, we build an individual website showing the castle, its tariffs and the facilities it offers.

Each castle website has an individual 'booking' page, enabling you to make a specific enquiry about the properties that most take your interest. Fill in the fields of the booking form, supplying us with a valid email address so we can get back to you, and click the submit button to send the form. Within a short time of submitting the form, you will receive an auto-response email confirming that we have received your enquiry.

Details of your enquiry are automatically entered into our castle booking system. The Celtic Castles' office is open 7 days a week, including bank holidays (with the exception of Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day), so there is always someone on hand to deal with your request. The response time can vary depending on time of day, taking account of differing time zones, the level of enquiries we receive, the availability of castle staff to respond to specific queries and so on, but we aim to always respond to every enquiry within 24 hours of receipt.

Obviously each enquiry will require a custom response based on the requirements of the individual customer, but for general availability enquiries we would check whether your requirements can be fulfilled by the castle on your preferred date and, if so, we will assign you a unique booking reference code and get back to you confirming availability and prices. If possible, we will put a 'no obligation' provisional hold on the room for 48 hours in your name, giving you time to consider our offer and make any necessary arrangements. We will also give you instructions on how to confirm your booking using our secure payment server (or via telephone if you prefer).

If you then wish to confirm the booking, you can follow the instructions on how to submit your payment details, along with your booking reference number, to our secure server. Credit card details are taken either to provide a deposit for the room, or just to secure the booking, depending on the deposit arrangements for the individual castle property. We will let you know exactly how much deposit will be taken from your credit card beforehand.

Once we have received your payment details, we will then pass this information on to the castle and confirm your booking with them. As part of our process, we will confirm the booking directly with you via email and we request that the castle also confirms directly with you. This may either be by post, email, or fax, depending on the property and the contact details you have supplied us with.

All that is left to do then is to enjoy your castle stay!

Why do you not offer an online booking service?
Whilst we would like to offer such a service, technology-wise it is simply not possible at the present time to offer full online availability for every castle. We feature a large number of castles on the website and each of these is individual in its own right. The booking systems vary greatly from castle to castle, with an array of custom computerised systems and with many castles choosing to still use old paper based systems. Creating a system where all of this information can be compiled into a dynamic online database is not possible as things currently stand. Despite these limitations, we are always looking into ways in which our service to the customer can be improved and we are now pleased to have launched an online booking system for self catering castles. The first castle to incorporate online booking was Barholm Castle, with a number of other castles now included. We hope to continue to expand this system throughout the year.

If I want to cancel a booking who do I contact?
Cancellation policies vary greatly from castle to castle and we will always inform you of the particular castle's policy when you confirm. If you need to cancel a booking for any reason, you should contact either ourselves or the castle directly as soon as possible.

Can I bring my children?
This depends on the individual castle, but many castles do welcome children. For the full lowdown, take a look at our Child Friendly page.

Can I buy a gift voucher for a castle stay?
Yes. On 1st September 2004 we launched the Celtic Castles Gift Voucher service, enabling you to purchase gift vouchers which can be redeemed at any of the properties featured within our website. We have since expanded this service to incorporate gift experiences. For further information on what is on offer, please visit our Gift Voucher section.

Do castle properties cater for disabled guests?
Due to the age of castles, many feature narrow, winding stairways and smaller doorways that may not always be suitable for disabled visitors. Some castles do, however, have special accommodation that would be more suited to guests who have greater access requirements. We have created a Disabled Access page highlighting what is available.

Can I hold my wedding at a castle?
Yes. More and more of our properties are acquiring both civil and religious licences meaning you can stage your choice of ceremony, plus reception, at the castle. For more information on what each castle has to offer, please visit our Weddings page.

What does 'exclusive use' mean?
Exclusive use means that you and your party will be the only guests in the castle on a particular day. If you book a large group into a castle without taking exclusive use, there may be guests staying in other rooms or other guests dining at the castle with whom you would be sharing the castle's facilities.

What does 'self-catering' mean?
Self-catering (otherwise known as vacation rental) means that you will be hiring the property on an accommodation only basis. Meals and other services are not included in the price and will generally not be available to self-catering guests. Typically self-catering properties come with their own kitchen facilities, allowing you to prepare meals yourself.

What's the price in US Dollars (and other currencies)?
Prices on our website are listed in the currency of the country where the castles are located. Castles within the UK are priced in pounds sterling; castles/châteaux within Ireland or France are priced in euros. Conversions from pounds or euros to any currencies around the world can be calculated simply using the Universal Currency Converter at www.xe.com. The exchange rates are regularly updated meaning prices will always be current.

What is VAT?
Value Added Tax (or VAT) is levied on most purchases in the UK. The current rate is 17.5% on top of the goods or services being sold, however, nearly all goods already include VAT in the retail price and so you won't be hit with any surprise costs when you reach the check-out! The majority of castle tariffs on our website are inclusive of VAT and we clearly state any cases where this is not so.

Regarding VAT refunds for foreign visitors, these are not available for any services such as transportation, hotel rooms, restaurant meals, and so on. Refunds are also not available for goods used in the country itself, such as food or petrol (gasoline). You can sometimes get VAT refunds on other goods, depending on your circumstances. For further information we would suggest you visit the government’s VAT regulations website at http://www.britain.org.nz/general/vatov.html

What is the dress code for dinner?
This varies again from castle to castle but smart/casual attire would typically be suitable for most castle properties. If you want to know the dinner dress code for a specific castle in advance of your stay, please get in touch and we’ll be happy to advise you!

What's the difference between a double room, twin room and a single room?
A double room features a large bed suitable for two people to share. A twin room has two separate beds that are suitable for one person in each. A single room has one bed, suitable for one person.

What is the difference between a standard, superior and a deluxe room type?
This again will vary from castle to castle, but generally speaking, the higher grades of rooms are often larger, have superior furnishings and will offer better views over the surrounding area.

Do all the castles have four-poster bedrooms?
Whilst the majority of castles do have four poster rooms, not every room in the castle will feature a four poster bed and there are castles which don’t have any at all. If you specifically want a four poster room and it is not immediately obvious that the room you are requesting has such a bed, drop a note in the additional information section of your booking/enquiry form and we will do our utmost to secure one for you.

What is the oldest castle on your web site?
The oldest property currently on our website is Traquair Castle in Innerleithen, Scotland. The exact dates of its construction are unconfirmed, but it is believed that a building stood on the site as early 950AD! The first confirmed record of the castle in history was in 1107 when King Alexander I stayed there. A royal visit suggests that by this stage it must have already been quite a substantial building! Traquair Castle is not only the oldest castle on our site; it is actually the oldest inhabited house in the whole of Scotland! A full history of Traquair Castle can be found on our website.

Do you have any advice on travelling within the UK?
If you're coming from overseas and want to drive, we are happy to recommend a car hire company called Argus Rentals who will be able to supply you with a car, whatever your requirements. For directions, AA Route Planner is always useful to map out your journey beforehand. For information on the laws of the road, take a look at the Highway Code site, first time visitors from across the pond may find the section on roundabouts particularly useful!

For rail travel, take a look at the National Rail Network webpage.

If you plan to fly between cities British Airways, British Midland, EasyJet, Ryanair, Aer Lingus will be useful.

We hope the above has been useful in answering your questions, but please feel free to direct any further queries you may have to our Contact Us page.