The Four Percent
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It’s no secret people are itching to travel the world again. Going abroad may not be advisable just yet, but that doesn’t mean we can’t daydream about spectacular destinations around the globe.
And given the media frenzy around the British royals over the past year, we’ve got castles on the brain. From the English countryside to the cherry blossom-filled landscapes of Japan, there are countless gorgeous castles to spark wanderlust, inspire royals fanatics and fuel our inner history buffs.
Below, we’ve rounded up 60 stunning photos of castles around the world. There are debates around what technically counts as a castle, but for our purposes, we stuck with sites that include the designation in their names or are often considered to be castles.
Neuschwanstein Castle
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Disneyland’s Sleeping Beauty Castle was reportedly inspired by this 19th-century German castle in Bavaria.
Himeji Castle
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Himeji Castle in Japan’s Hyōgo prefecture dates back to the 14th century.
Frederiksborg Castle
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Frederiksborg Castle in Hillerød, Denmark, was constructed in the early 17th century as a residence for King Christian IV of Denmark-Norway.
De Haar Castle
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De Haar Castle is located in Utrecht and is the largest castle in the Netherlands.
Glamis Castle
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Glamis Castle in Angus, Scotland, was the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.
Corvin Castle
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Also known as Hunyadi Castle or Hunedoara Castle, the Gothic-Renaissance Corvin Castle in Hunedoara, Romania, is linked to several dark legends.
Chapultepec Castle
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Chapultepec Castle in Mexico City boasts incredible views of the city and was the model for other buildings like the 13th Regiment Armory in Brooklyn.
Château de Chambord
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Krak des Chevaliers
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This crusader castle in Syria was built in the 12th century.
Castello Scaligero
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This fortress in Sirmione is one of the best-preserved castles in Italy.
Pena Palace
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Pena Palace is a castle in Sintra on the Portuguese Riviera known for its mix of architectural styles.
Kalmar Castle
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Kalmar Castle in the Swedish province of Småland dates back to the 12th century.
Vianden Castle
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Vianden Castle in the north of Luxembourg was built in the Romanesque style from the 11th to 14th centuries and fell into ruin in the 19th century before undergoing a full restoration.
Castillo San Felipe del Morro
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This 16th-century citadel was built in a strategic location on the water in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Highclere Castle
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Highclere Castle in Hampshire, England, is famously the filming location for the “Downton Abbey” TV show and film.
Prague Castle
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Built in the 9th century, Prague Castle is one of the most iconic sites in the Czech Republic.
Castello Aragonese
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The medieval Castello Aragonese sits on an islet that connects to the island of Ischia off the coast of Naples, Italy.
Matsumoto Castle
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Matsumoto Castle in Japan’s Nagano Prefecture still has its original wooden interiors and is also known as the “Crow Castle” because of its black exterior.
Schwerin Castle
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Schwerin Castle is located on an island in the capital of Germany’s Mecklenburg-Vorpommern state. The earliest record of a castle on this site is from the year 973.
Mont-Saint-Michel Abbey
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Depending on whom you ask, the medieval abbey at the top of Mont-Saint-Michel may not technically be a castle. But it has inspired fictional castles, like the setting of Disney’s “Tangled.”
Leeds Castle
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Leeds Castle in Kent, England, celebrated its 900th anniversary in 2019.
Nesvizh Castle
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Built in the 16th century and owned by the Radziwill family until 1939, Nesvizh Castle or Niasviž Castle is located in Belarus.
Mehrangarh
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Built around 1459, Mehrangarh in the “Blue City” of Jodhpur in Rajasthan is one of the largest forts in India.
Trakai Island Castle
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This 14th-century castle is located on an island in Lake Galvė in Lithuania.
Eltz Castle
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The noble Eltz family still owns this medieval castle between Koblenz and Trier in Germany, where their ancestors lived 33 generations ago in the 12th century. Parts of it are open to the public.
Conwy Castle
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Edward I build Conwy Castle during his conquest of Wales in the late 13th century.
The Swallow’s Nest
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The Swallow’s Nest is an early 20th-century castle in Gaspra in the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula.
Alcázar of Segovia
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The medieval castle, Alcázar of Segovia, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Castile and León, Spain.
Mamure Castle
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Dating back to the 13th century, Mamure Castle is a medieval castle in Turkey’s Mersin province.
Bran Castle
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Bran Castle in Romania is commonly known as “Dracula’s Castle” due to a tourism-driven connection to Bram Stoker’s fictional character, who was based on Vlad the Impaler (who likely never set foot in this castle).
Olavinlinna Castle
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Olavinlinna Castle in Finland is also known as St. Olaf’s Castle and serves as the site of the Savonlinna Opera Festival.
Culzean Castle
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Now owned by the National Trust for Scotland, Culzean Castle on the Ayrshire coast was built in the late 18th century.
Shuri Castle
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In 2019, a fire destroyed much of 14th-century Shuri Castle in Okinawa, Japan, but rebuilding efforts are underway.
Hohenwerfen Castle
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Located south of Salzburg in Austria, Hohenwerfen Castle overlooks stunning valley landscapes and appears in the movie “The Sound of Music.”
Bodiam Castle
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The 14th-century Bodiam Castle in East Sussex, England, boasts an impressive moat.
Miramare Castle
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Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian gave the order to build Miramare Castle on the Gulf of Trieste in Italy in the mid-19th century.
Bojnice Castle
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This Romanesque castle in Bojnice, Slovakia, is one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations.
Predjama Castle
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Built in the mouth of a cave, this Renaissance castle in Slovenia is linked to historic robberies.
Chillon Castle
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Chillon Castle is an island castle on Lake Geneva in Veytaux, Switzerland. Historians are not in full agreement, but many believe the first written record of the castle is from the 11th century.
Kylemore Abbey
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Kylemore Abbey (formerly Kylemore Castle) is in County Galway in Ireland and was originally a private home for wealthy Brits until it was sold to Benedictine nuns.
Hohenzollern Castle
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South of Stuttgart, Germany, Hohenzollern Castle is the most recent of several castles on this hill, which housed members of the German royal dynasty of the House of Hohenzollern.
Peleș Castle
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Though technically a palace, Peleș Castle in the Carpathian Mountains in Romania is considered a Neo-Renaissance castle.
Gripsholm Castle
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The Swedish royal family used Gripsholm Castle in Mariefred, Södermanland, as a residence until the 18th century, around which time it was also used as a prison.
Castel del Monte
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Castel del Monte was built in the 1240s on a hill in Andria in Italy’s Puglia region.
Örebro Castle
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The medieval Örebro Castle is located in a Swedish county by the same name and dates back to the 13th century.
Malbork Castle
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The Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork, Poland, aka Malbork Castle, has the distinction of being the biggest castle in the world by land area.
Windsor Castle
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British Royal Family fans will know Windsor Castle as Queen Elizabeth’s preferred weekend residence in the county of Berkshire.
Osaka Castle
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This castle in Osaka is famous for its stunning architecture and role in the unification of Japan in the 16th century.
Hearst Castle
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Publishing tycoon William Randolph Hearst is responsible for this National Historic Landmark in California famous for its lively parties and opulence.
Spiš Castle
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Built in the 12th century, Spiš Castle in Slovakia is a popular tourist attraction and filming location.
Edinburgh Castle
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Scotland’s most-visited tourist attraction, Edinburgh Castle overlooks the city and was the site of many significant events in the country’s history.
Hue Citadel
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Much of the Hue Citadel was destroyed during the Vietnam War, but what remains of the compound is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Hochosterwitz Castle
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Hochosterwitz Castle in Austria is considered to be one of the country’s most impressive castles.
Buda Castle
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Buda Castle is the historic seat of the Hungarian kings in Budapest. Most of the site still present today was built in the 18th century, though the first residence was completed in 1265.
Caernarfon Castle
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King Edward I of England replaced an 11th century castle with the current Caernarfon Castle in the late 13th century.
Cochem Castle
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Although the original castle was destroyed in 1689, a wealthy German businessman had it rebuilt almost two centuries later. The project was completed in 1890, 11 years after his death.
Château de Chenonceau
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Château de Chenonceau in France’s Loire Valley was a favorite residence of Catherine de’ Medici in the 16th century.
Kilkenny Castle
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Kilkenny Castle in Ireland was built in 1195 but has been well-restored to the benefit of tourists.
Orava Castle
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Orava Castle in Oravský Podzámok, Slovakia, was the filming location for many scenes in the 1922 film “Nosferatu.”
Castillo de Coca
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Constructed in the 15th century, Castillo de Coca in central Spain is an example of Spanish Mudejar brickwork.
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