Belvoir Castle near Melton Mowbray Leicestershire

At a Glance:

Distance: 13 miles
Time: 25 minutes

Dogs allowed: No except guide and hearing dogs

Postcode: NG32 1PD

Lunch:

Castle Cafe/Restaurant

opening times are complex - best refer to the Castle's own website at www.belvoircastle.com

Belvoir Castle


Belvoir Castle is the home of the Duke and Duchess of Rutland and their family. Although there has been a castle on this site since the 11th century, the present castle is much more modern, having been rebuilt after an extensive fire in 1816. The castle and grounds are open to the public at times during the summer months, and the estate is also used for major events such as the CLA Game fair, as well as being available for shooting and fishing.


Interactive aerial photograph of Belvoir Castle
	On August Bank Holiday 2009, Belvoir had a "Family Fun Day" and we took James and Zoë along. The entrance price was £26.00 for all of us (Zoë is less than 5 so was free). The path from the car park to the castle is steep but there is a disabled car park at the top beside the castle, and disabled access is free although limited to the ground floor. The castle itself and the gardens are the perfect romantic image of what a castle should look like, and the views from the hill on which it stands are stunning.
Stautue in front of the castle
On the day we went, there were garden games such as croquet, quoits, boules and garden chess available throughout the grounds. The theme was "dragons" and there were costumed storytellers and a dragon parade. We took a picnic, but when we have been before we have eaten in the the castle cafe.
		James and Zoë get to grips with croquet
	The kids were particularly impressed with the larger than life wizard and knight who were wandering around looking for dragons (somehow managing not to be scary!). It was a particularly windy day and these characters were having a little difficulty staying upright! The seven cannons were actually fired at 2pm (see below for video), making a thunderous noise.
Extra tall wizard
Volunteer falconer at the castle James Wiggins was showing off one of his charges. Scooby is a Harris Hawk whose job at the castle is to scare the pigeons as well as entertain the public, and was proving to be a very popular attraction.
		James Wiggins with "Scooby"
	Many of the guides at the castle had dressed up in period costume and put on a superb play based on the story of Henry VIII and his wives, who came back to haunt him. This was performed in the old kitchen within the castle.
Henry VIII and some of his wives
There was also a free to enter treasure hunt for the children, with pictures of historical people and artifacts to find in the castle and gardens, and an ice-cream each for completed entries (we got one as well for helping!)
		Hard at work
		This has to be the ideal spot to have one's face painted!
We had a great day at Belvoir Castle, the kids were kept amused and the quality of the entertainers was superb. Watch our short video below for the cannons being fired, stries of dragons and the dragon parade!