Culzean Castle and Country Park #MustVisit #Scotland @Culzeancastle

What comes to mind when you think of places to visit in Scotland?

Edinburgh Castle,

The Wallace Monument,

Culloden Battlefield ? … to name but a few.

But here is a piece of advice ~ if you are planning to visit Scotland, why not ask the locals what they think is worth checking out.

If we had not have asked, then we would have missed the little gem that is

Culzean Castle and Country Park.

This is a must-see attraction, especially if you have children. It is managed by the Scottish National Trust, which meant we got in Free. When Exploring Scotland, I really do advise you purchase a membership to The Scottish National Trust and buy an Explorer Pass as well ~ not only will this save you a heap of money, but it will also give you ideas of places to visit.

Now a brief history of Culzean. The powerful Kennedy family owned the Culzean estate, and for those who like their architecture, the castle was designed by Robert Adams.

Quick tip ~ give yourself a day. You are so going to need it, especially if you have children because they are not going to want to leave the adventure playground. I have four children, I have been to a lot of playgrounds in my time but the one at Culzean was fantastic. It is a castle playground and there is so much for them to do. My children had a wonderful time ~ so wonderful that they were very reluctant to leave!

The grounds are extensive, with lots of nature walks, a 13-acre lake, a shingle beach, a walled kitchen garden (I always wanted one of those) and a beautiful Pleasure Garden made for Lady Ailsa.

When in Scotland you expect to see deer ~ you can see them at Culzean ~ in fact you can get pretty close to them.

The castle itself was beautiful, and the children enjoyed the children's quiz ~ this one involved looking for Lego men (what a stroke of genius on the NTS part), this kept my youngest engaged throughout the tour! The staff were super friendly and were more than willing to tell you about the history of the castle and the family who once lived there. We had a fantastic time

This is a great day out. If you find yourself in Ayrshire, I Highly Recommend you check out Culzean Castle and Country Park.