Highclere Castle
England · Hampshire · Near Newbury
Built 1838 · Victorian Gothic Revival, designed by Sir Charles Barry
This page is part of an independent travel guide and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by Highclere Castle.
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Quick Facts
- Hours
- Wed–Sun 10:00–17:00. Closed Mon & Tue
- Day trip from
- €233
- Duration
- 2–3 hours
- Best time
- Summer openings
- Booking
- Required — book 30+ days ahead
- Nearest city
- Newbury
Featured Tour
London: Downton Abbey, Cotswolds, and Highclere Castle Tour
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Highlights
- ✦The State Rooms — the library, saloon and dining room used as Downton Abbey's Crawley family interiors, furnished exactly as seen on screen with original Victorian pieces and family portraits
- ✦The Egyptian Exhibition — the castle's remarkable collection of artefacts and photographs from the 5th Earl of Carnarvon's excavations in Egypt, including finds from the Valley of the Kings
- ✦Downton Abbey connections — the saloon, library, great hall and grounds are instantly recognisable to fans of the ITV series, with guides who share filming anecdotes
- ✦The Victorian Gothic exterior — Sir Charles Barry's 1838 design combines Tudor towers with Italian terraces and Jacobean chimneys into one of the most photographed country houses in England
- ✦The parkland — Capability Brown's 18th-century landscape park surrounding the castle with sweeping lawns, ancient cedars and woodland walks through 1,000 acres
Skip the queue with a guided tour
Skip-the-line tickets & expert guides
Highclere Castle in Hampshire is famous worldwide as the filming location of the ITV drama Downton Abbey — but the real history of the house is equally compelling and considerably stranger than the fictional one. The castle was redesigned in its current Victorian Gothic form in 1838 by Sir Charles Barry, who was simultaneously designing the Houses of Parliament, for Henry John George Herbert, the 3rd Earl of Carnarvon. Barry imposed a dramatic Gothic silhouette onto an earlier Jacobean mansion, creating a building that is theatrical, romantic and deeply English in a way that perfectly served Julian Fellowes's vision a century and a half later.
The Herbert family's most extraordinary chapter concerns the 5th Earl, Henry Herbert, who was born here in 1866 and became a passionate Egyptologist. Working with the archaeologist Howard Carter, Lord Carnarvon funded and supervised the excavation of the Valley of the Kings for twelve seasons, enduring years of frustration before Carter's brush finally revealed the step leading to the intact tomb of Tutankhamun in November 1922. Carnarvon died at the Cairo hotel six months later, in circumstances that launched the legend of the 'Curse of the Pharaohs.' The Egyptian Exhibition in Highclere's basement contains remarkable artefacts and documents from those extraordinary excavations.
The castle remains the private home of the 8th Earl and Countess of Carnarvon, who open it to the public for limited periods each summer. The experience is therefore unusually intimate — guides who know the family bring a warmth to the tour that more corporate attractions cannot replicate. Tickets must be booked well in advance; they sell out months before the opening dates are reached.
History
The estate at Highclere has a history stretching back to the Bishops of Winchester, who held a palace here in the medieval period. The current mansion was built in 1679 for Sir Robert Sawyer and extensively rebuilt in 1774. The dramatic transformation into its current Gothic Revival appearance was undertaken between 1838 and 1842 by Sir Charles Barry — the same architect responsible for the rebuilt Palace of Westminster — working for the 3rd Earl of Carnarvon. Barry used Bath stone to create his composition of towers, turrets and loggias around a Jacobean core.
The most famous chapter in the castle's history belongs to the 5th Earl, George Herbert, who became one of the leading patrons of Egyptology in the early 20th century. Working alongside Howard Carter from 1907, he funded excavations in the Valley of the Kings until November 1922, when Carter discovered the step to Tutankhamun's tomb. Lord Carnarvon was present for the opening in February 1923 and died in Cairo in April 1923, probably of an infected mosquito bite — though the 'Mummy's Curse' legend has proved more enduring than the medical explanation.
How to Visit
Getting there: Newbury railway station is about 8 km from the castle; taxis are available from the station. By car, the castle is signed from the A34 south of Newbury. Parking is available in the castle grounds.
Tickets: Tickets must be booked months in advance — opening days are extremely limited (primarily July–September) and sell out well ahead; adult admission is £30 and children £18. No walk-in entry is possible. The GYG Downton Abbey day trip from London (t123059, from £233, 4.8★/463 reviews) combines Highclere with a Cotswolds stop in an 11-hour guided day and includes castle admission.
Practical tips: The Egyptian Exhibition in the basement is frequently overlooked in favour of the Downton filming locations upstairs — allow extra time for it, as the 5th Earl's Tutankhamun material and Howard Carter photographs are genuinely remarkable. Guides have detailed knowledge of both the real Carnarvon family history and the filming anecdotes; questions are well rewarded.
Combine with: [Windsor Castle](/castles/england/windsor-castle), around 35 km to the east, and [Blenheim Palace](/castles/england/blenheim-palace), 50 km to the northeast, for a Thames Valley and Oxfordshire aristocratic heritage circuit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes — Highclere Castle is the primary filming location for the exterior and many interior sequences of Downton Abbey. The Great Hall, Library, Saloon and Drawing Room are all recognisable from the series. The production team used the actual castle rooms, filled with real Carnarvon family furniture and portraits. Julian Fellowes, the creator of Downton Abbey, based his fictional Crawley family estate closely on Highclere, and the current Lady Carnarvon has written a book about the parallel histories. The Downton Abbey films (2019 and 2022) were also partially filmed at Highclere.
Location
Highclere Park, Newbury, Hampshire RG20 9RN, England
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€233/ person