Back in August we spent a week with family in a Castle. Yes a real Scottish castle! Our holiday was in Ayrshire on the South West Coast of Scotland.
Where We Stayed. 🏰
The whole family stopped in a delightfully quirky 14th century Castle in the grounds of the owners much larger Victorian Castle. Not that our holiday home skimped on fairytale charm or cosy comfort, Knock Old Castle has both in abundance. Situated just outside the coastal town of Largs, Knock Old Castle has been carefully renovated by its present owners, to provide a charming home away from home with lots of colourful and characterful touches. There are four bedrooms, a dining kitchen, living room and snug, as well as a look out tower, sauna and hot tub. The perfect family retreat. 😊
We made ourselves very much at home at Knock Old Castle, using all the facilities, especially the hot tub and the sauna. We played table tennis, rounders and croquet on the lawn and sat out for meals at a long oak table with views over the Firth of Clyde. When can we go back??
Eating Out. 🐟
To be honest we cooked most of our meals at the Castle, but there were a few occasions that we ate out in nearby Largs.
Wil and I had a very nice Fish & Chips lunch at The Fish Works on the promenade. We sat outside and enjoyed the views of the Calmac Ferries setting off and returning from The Isle Of Cumbrae. You can’t beat fish & chips at the seaside. 😊
Wil loves his seafood, so he was most impressed with this bucket of mussels and other tasty morsels , that he ordered from the menu at Scotts . Situated at Largs Yacht Haven, Scott’s is a relaxed dining experience . Steaks and seafood are their specialties.
The whole family couldn’t get enough of the delicious ice cream from Nardinis, a fabulous art deco ice cream parlour and restaurant on the seafront. Nardinis has 32 different flavours to choose from, I had 3, they were all scrumptious! 🍦
Castles, Castles Everywhere. 🏰
Certainly we were never very far from a Castle on this holiday. 😊 According to Google, Ayrshire has 198 Castles, towers and fortified buildings.
Our hosts at Knock Old Castle lived at nearby Knock Castle, we were holidaying at the bottom of their garden really. On the first two days of our trip, they were holding a ‘Crictoberfest’ ( a cross between their love of cricket and their love of Octoberfest? ) and there were a few people camping on their front lawn, as well as lawnbots efficiently speeding around keeping the grass short. We later saw a golden retriever chasing one of the lawnbots and I swear I saw a gigantic penguin at their front door, maybe the butler perhaps? Yes our hosts were certainly eccentric. 😁
We did visit a couple of other castles whilst in Ayrshire. A castle that my Scottish cousin recommended was Portencross Castle , somewhere my Aunt & Uncle would take him for beach days as a child. Legend has it that this 12th century scheduled ancient monument housed several of the Great Kings of Scotland. Though they wouldn’t remember much as Portencross was where they lay in state,on their way to their final resting place on the island of Iona. The Castle wasn’t open on our visit, but we still enjoyed the surrounding scenery and peering into rock pools.
A very colourful Castle , just outside of Largs, is Kelburn Castle. Just look at the brightly painted turret ! The graffiti tower was painted in 2007 by Brazilian Street artists, it’s quite the focal point. The castle dates back to the 1500s and is still lived in by the Earls of Glasgow. An unpretentious place, Kelburn has an estate of forest and glen to wander in, with plenty of quirky things to see.
Let’s head to South Ayrshire for our final castle visit. Perched high on the cliffs near Maybole , Culzean Castle is an impressive stately building owned by The National Trust for Scotland. Happily we are NT members so entry was free. 😁 Having Hugo with us meant that Wil and I didn’t go inside, there is much to entertain in the grounds though. The estate stretches 120 hectares and includes sandy coves, woodland and gardens.
Largs.
The nearest town to Knock Old Castle is Largs, a pleasant seaside destination that looks out over the Firth Of Clyde. Largs is known for its role in defeating Norse Invaders, hence the yearly Viking Festival held every August. A giant Viking statue stands looking inland on the green.
If you fancy a walk along Largs attractive esplanade head toward the marina for a glimpse of The Pencil Monument , it commemorates the Battle Of Largs in 1263 , when the Scots ( and the bad weather! ) defeated the Viking army. And don’t forget to head back to Nardinis Ice Cream Parlour for a well deserved treat afterwards. 😊
Fairlie.
If our Labrador had only behaved and not taken a liking to licking jellyfish, I think we would have spent more time on the beach. The seaside village of Fairlie just South of Largs is a nice place for a wander, especially along the Ayrshire Coastal Path. Oh and The Village Inn does a very nice take-out Cream Tea too.
Knock Hill.
When the Castle your staying in is named after a hill ( or vise versa) ,then someone is bound to say ‘ let’s walk up that hill ! ‘ Off we all trundled , and I have to say, the views from the top of Knock Hill are pretty impressive. The Cumbraes, Arran and Bute are all included in the stunning vistas.
Isle of Cumbrae.
I have to include The Isle Of Cumbrae in my post even though I have already devoted a Blog to our day out there. This was definitely my favourite outing on our North Ayrshire holiday.
The island is easily accessible from Largs, there are ferries every 30 minutes from the mainland. Pedestrians, Cyclists and Cars can take the short journey over. Dogs are welcome too.
Many people go over to Cumbrae, specifically to ride a bike around the perimeter of the island. There are 2 Cycle Hire Shops in the small seaside town of Millport. Bicycle hire for the day starts at £10.
Watersports are popular on the island as are trips over to it’s little cousin Wee Cumbrae. I recently found these great new eco friendly cabins at Jack’s Alt Stays , which look an interesting alternative to the usual camping, cottages and b&bs.
Thanks very much for reading. Hope this post inspires you to visit a lovely part of Scotland.
sunshine and celandines 