Price of visiting Highclere Castle made me spit my tea out!

[saladcreamandegg]

I know it a business, I know Downton Abby is popular but I nearly fainted when I saw the ticket prices!

I like a nice stately home visit, prices usually tend to be between £20 - £30 for access to house and gardens. I thought that it'd be nice to take my mum to visit Highclere Castle next spring... we've done Blenheim Palace, Chatsworth House, Buckingham Palace to name a few.

Went on website to look at booking tickets for may next year.... £90 EACH!!!!! NINE ZERO!!! NINETY!!! POUNDS!!!! EACH!!!!

So we're not visiting Highclere. Am I tight or is that an insane price?!

Can you still get in with a historic houses membership? That's how I went, a few years back.

Rip off, I would never pay that.

That’s insane!!

I guess someone must be paying it though 🤷🏻‍♀️

Those are the special event prices and I don't think the normal tickets are on sale yet, but they were under £20 this summer

It's a rip off, they are really rather rude when you email as well!

They appear to be special dates, rather than standard entry. Maybe keep an eye & see how much standard entry is when it opens?

The current adult price appears to be £24, the same as Chatsworth

And that's including an exhibition, it's £17 for house and gardens.

Rip off.

When we went kids got in free with a blue peter badge. TBH I've never seen Downton and thought Highclere wasn't that interesting, the Egyptian exhibition was good though.

House and gardens are 17 pounds this summer.

A few years ago before Downton Abbey it used to be free to go around the gardens. We live fairly locally and used to take the dc a lot when they were toddlers (teens now).

The £90 thing is limited number events with talks and tours. Sounds steep for what it is but the OPs description of 'access to house and gardens' for this price is completely misleading,.

highclerecastleshop.co.uk/categories/living-in-a-castle-2022

Can't you get the best part of a family annual membership to National Trust for £90?

OP I was shocked as I went a few years ago and it was nothing like that! Looking on the website though, it seems the 'normal' price is £17 per person, £24 if you want to see the Egyptian exhibition (I didn't bother) which doesn't seem to have changed since I went ages ago. highclerecastleshop.co.uk/categories/summer-2021-admission-tickets

The more expensive tickets in the spring seem to be small guided group tours. Sounds like something they've introduced fairly recently, possibly when they were limited due to covid restrictions? I imagine they will reopen the 'normal' cheaper tours where you walk around yourself closer to next summer. It might be worth emailing to ask.

To be fair, you are each taken around on the back of a unicorn🦄.

I think.

Ah maybe I was looking at the wrong thing then and the "normal" tickets for next year aren't available to book yet. I clicked on the may thing and they're £90 each, so I clicked on the spring thing and the February thing and they were £125!! I'll keep my eye out for the regular tickets and go make another cup of tea! 😁