Caerphilly Castle, Wales

For any of you who’ve every wanted to be let loose to explore a medieval castle, this is the place for you. Caerphilly castle is just 10 miles north of Cardiff Castle at half the cost to enter and twice as much fun!

Once upon a time there lived an evil king who was best mates with an evil greedy man. (The greedy man is the villain of our story and he once owned Caerphilly castle). The villain joined forces with the evil king and together they stole off with the kingdom's treasures. The Queen and her lover chased after them where the evil king and evil, greedy man met their rather gruesome demise. But no happy endings for the Queen either, her son- the King’s son- hanged her lover and ruled over the lands. Now off to bed with you, story time is over. 

Wait…What’s that you say? 

You want to hear more? 

Well then you must explore the castle for yourself. Find secret passages the Queen and her lover used. Have a banquet in the Great Hall. Warm yourself by the ginormous fireplace in the hall but beware of the Lady Green who is said to haunt the castle. Scale the walls and climb the staircase to the towers if you dare. Take in a 360 ° view of Caerphilly (at least on a day when it’s not rainy and foggy- good luck, it’s Wales) from the tallest tower. On windy days, feel the castle towers tremble beneath your feet as the wind howls at the windows begging to be let in.  Look for the castle giant who steadily holds up the falling tower. Shoot a trebuchet or other such medieval weapon on the castle grounds. Roam across the drawbridges to explore the moat, surrounding courtyards and lakes (avoid the guard swans and geese).

Caerphilly castle was built in 13^th century with moats and lakes encompassing the castle making it the largest castle in Wales (second largest in all of Britain) and never to have been besieged. Lucky for us peasants, we are now allowed to wander around in all its ruined glory for a small fee. 

 So go, put on some sturdy shoes and explore! Or if it's your bedtime and this is your bedtime story, then dream of castles and valiant knights with daring sword fights and powerful queens with secret treasures. Possibly a few dragons too (as Wales is well known for their firebreathing friends). Sweet dreams!