Although the weather was poor, our family had a fabulous time at Hever Castle. Here is what we did…
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The Castle |
You can see most of what we did from the video, but some of it has to be described in a bit more detail.
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Me in the water maze |
There are three mazes in the gardens; the Yew maze, the water maze and the children’s maze. The yew maze is a normal (yet surprisingly difficult) maze that Rob and I really enjoyed. We split up from mum and dad and managed to beat them to the centre. The water maze is very different. It’s not at all hard, and the objective is to get around the planks without stepping on one which sprays water. The last one is the children’s maze which is a wooden maze, complete with slides, bridges and steps. Although I was too old, Rob really seemed to enjoy it!
The castle is surrounded by a moat and is the kind of place that I would love to own – grand, but still liveable. The oldest part of it was built in the 1200s and it was owned by the Boleyn (originally Bullen) family from 1462 to 1539.
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Me and Rob with “Anne Boleyn” |
The museum inside the castle has three floors and is jam packed with interesting information about Anne Boleyn, the castle and general Tudor facts. I was particularly interested to find the prayer room built into a bedroom and a book owned by Anne as a girl. There were also the prayer books which she took with her to the Tower of London.
There are loads of beautiful rooms, antique furniture, prayer books, interactive displays and paintings to look at, making it fun for the entire family. In fact, Hever Castle is said to have the best collection of Tudor portraits in the UK after the National Portrait Gallery!
Hever Castle costs £15.50 per adult for the castle and gardens, and £8.70 per child. A family ticket for castle and gardens is £39.70, although it’s slightly cheaper if you just go for the gardens. The audio tour is available in English, Dutch, French, German, Chinese and Russian and costs £3.75. There is a special audio tour for children.
For more on great things to do in Kent, go to the Visit Kent website and take a look at Robert’s blog post on Groombridge Place.
Here are some more posts by us:
Disclosure: we were given free entry to Hever Castle in order to write about it. All views, photos, opinions and videos are our own.
Amrita Dasgupta
What a cute video 🙂 I love castles and gardens so, I must plan a trip to Hever Castle!
J
I think you would really like it. It’s a great place.
Bianca Malata
Well I cant say I have ever heard of Hever Castle. Looks like a great place to hang out with the kiddies.
Marriage Proposals in Seattle’s Chinese Room
Sarah Ebner
It’s actually great for kids, but also for adults. Lovely place for any age I’d say!
Gemma Button
So cool that they dress up to really set the scene and I can imagine make it more memorable for the children
Gem
ButtonsBlog
Sarah Ebner
Yes, I think they’ve done it all really well
MummyTravels
This is somewhere I’ve been meaning to visit for ages – I’d love to see Anne Boleyn’s home but haven’t quite managed yet. Some great tips and this has convinced me I need to make it happen this summer…
Sarah Ebner
We would definitely recommend it – lots of do and really good fun. It’s beautifully set out.
Helen Dickinson
This looks like a lovely place to visit. Looks fun for all the family and a place where children can learn lots of different things.
J
It is; there’s a perfect balance of information and fun!
Charly Dove
Oh how wonderful, sounds like you had the best day. Hever Castle is fabulous, we’ve not been for a while now (wrong part of the country). So nice to get such great weather too.
Jen Walshaw
I have never been to Hever Castle. It looks amazing
Kate Thompson
I remember going to Hever when I was a child. I would love to take the children there if we are ever in Kent 🙂
Sarah Ebner
We would definitely recommend it.
Michelle Ashmore
I love places like this. It’s a shame we’re so far away as I’m sure we’d all enjoy it.
J
Well if you’re ever nearby, definitely give it a go!
Cass@TheDiaryofaFrugalFamily
We love places like this – it’s so much fun to explore and I love taking photos x
Sarah Ebner
Me too! Love taking the pics and love exploring. We are as one 🙂
Bek
We’ve not visited a castle in ages. This looks like a great day out and reasonably priced too.
J
It was, and had something for everyone.
Eileen Teo
we love castle! will visit when we pass by!
Hannah Staveley
Love the video . not too badly priced .x
You Baby Me Mummy
It looks like you had such a lovely day x
abigail oliver
Looks like a great place to visit!
Kirsty Phillipson-Lowe
I have never heard of Never castle before. Looks like a great day and the water maze looks a lot of fun 🙂 x
J
We had great time on the water maze – you should definitely visit!
Actually Mummy...
I had a lovely time at Hever Castle many years ago – don’t remember the Water Maze though, that looks like so much fun!
Lori Taylor Arnold
We’ve never been but this looks great, F would love to explore the castle and I would love the Italian gardens. x
J
The Italian Gardens were absolutely beautiful! We would recommend it 100%
Kizzy
Looks amazing!
Clare Nicholas
Looks like a great day out
J
It was. You should definitely give it a visit!
Healthier Mummy
We’ve never been there, but very intrigued to visit a castle that was the home of the Boleyn family. Will try and go this summer
Amy Squires
Looked like a great day out!
Keri-Anne
I love the look of that water maze xxx
Mammasaurus
Ooo this looks lovely – I need to get over to Kent more often, I keep seeing great places to visit there!
Sarah Ebner
Yes, so much to do in Kent. We only managed this and Groombridge Place (which we have also blogged about) but know there is so much more to do there…
fritha strickland
looks like a fantastic place to take the kids! x
JR
Thanks for all the great info. It serves as a fine guide for those who want to visit. Nice to have bragging rights for winning the race to the center of the maze, huh? Lol.
Sarah Ebner
Yes, they’re good at that kind of thing. I on the other hand, had no idea where I was going and was lucky to stumble back out again. Otherwise I’d still be there (mazes are clearly not my thing…)
Louise
This looks brilliant – we love castles!x
Carolynne @ Mummy Endeavours
Ooh this looks like a good place to visit and not too far from us! Liked the video x
Satu VW / Destination Unknown
Looks like a great spot to visit with kids!! We have to look at this next time we are in the UK, although most of the time we end up in Devon… 🙂
Jenny
I’ve always wanted to visit, looks beautiful.
Orli D
What a great place for a day out! My boys are castle crazy. They would love it!
Mums do travel
Hever Castle is wonderful, I’m glad you enjoyed it. We live quite near to Hever and used to get an annual pass when the children were small.
Trish Burgess
What a super review, Jessica! I haven’t been to Hever castle but your review has given me lots to think about.
Margherita @The Crowded Planet
Lovely place! Looks great for the kids, too! I must admit I had never heard of it, thanks for sharing!