Welcome

Generations of the Howard family have welcomed visitors to Castle Howard, one of the great palaces of Europe, for over 300 years and today we extend this warm welcome to you.

"Nobody... had informed me that I should at one view see a palace, a town, a fortified city, temples on high places, woods worthy of being each a metropolis of the Druids, vales connected to hills by other woods, the noblest lawn in the world fenced by half the horizon, and a mausoleum that would tempt one to be buried alive; in short I have seen gigantic places before, but never a sublime one."  Horace Walpole 1772

Your visit...

The Gardens and Skelf Island Adventure Playground are open daily, from 10am (9am for Friends of Castle Howard) with last admission to the Gardens at 3pm. Please note, the Walled Garden is now closed for the winter to allow annual maintenance to take place.

The House is now open daily from 10am, please check our Christmas in Narnia pages for last admission times.

Pre-booking is essential.

Outlet Opening Times

The Coffee Shop - Open daily 9.30am

The Courtyard Cafe  - Closed

The Boathouse Café -Open daily 10am - 4pm

Fitzroy Cafe - Open daily from 10.30am

House Gift Shop - Open daily from 10.30am

Christmas Marquee - Open daily from 10am

 The Castle Howard Farm Shop and Garden Centre are open daily from 10am with social distancing measures in place.

Please check our outlet pages for closing times as these differ depending on the day of your visit.

Our outlets are currently all operating on a 'cashless' basis as part of our Coronavirus Safety Policy. We apologise for any inconvenience this causes.

The Courtyard and Boathouse toilets are open, including the accessible toilet, and the baby changing facility.There are additional sanitisier stations around the House and Garden.

Thank you for your continued support.

Find out more and book now

"One of the top 10 buildings you must visit in your lifetime" The Telegraph, 2018

Castle Howard Hampers
We offer both pre-made and bespoke hampers packed with delicious treats, carefully selected from the artisan, award winning and local suppliers whose produce fills our shelves in the Farm Shop.
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Christmas Orders
Our Farm Shop is now taking Christmas orders. Simply download a copy of the interactive order form and email it back to the dedicated farmshop email address.
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Discover More

News
Important Information - Weather Updates 27th & 28th November
Storm Arwen is forecast to create high winds across the country today. At Castle Howard, having assessed the current weather on site and the updated forecast we have taken the difficult decision to cl...
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News
Christmas Cakes: Have you made yours yet?
As the nights draw in, and the air turns cold, familiar smells in any kitchen begin to linger! It's prime Christmas Cake baking season, have you made yours yet?
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News
Castle Howard's Christmas event 'Christmas In Narnia' approaching fast
This year’s Christmas event; 'Christmas In Narnia', with enchanting artwork by Emily Sutton, is fast approaching. Read more to discover the exciting events taking place between the 13th of November a...
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News
Castle Howard gearing up for Christmas
Christmas at Castle Howard is a truely magical experience. Teams across the Estate come together to create a truly magical day out that has now been admired by visitors from across the world. Find out...
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News
New at Castle Howard - Prudie's Perfect Pumpkin Patch
Castle Howard launch a 'pick your own pumpkin patch' which opens from 9th October and will be open every day until Halloween from 10am.
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Blog
The Atlas Fountain
By Dr Chris Ridgway  //  Sat 27th June
Gardens, Landscape, History
Following some routine maintenance & cleaning, the Atlas Fountain is back up and running. The South Parterre at Castle Howard has been dominated by this massive piece of Victorian sculpture and engine...
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Blog
Castle Howard Celebrates 75 Years of Brideshead Revisited
By Dr Chris Ridgway  //  Fri 29th May
Curatorial, History, Collection, Estate, Brideshead
Seventy-five years ago, in May 1945, just three weeks after VE Day, Evelyn Waugh’s novel Brideshead Revisited was published. Little did anyone, including the author, know how it would turn into an end...
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Blog
Arriving at Castle Howard
By Dr Chris Ridgway  //  Fri 15th May
Curatorial, History, Collection, Estate
In this personal reflection Curator Dr Chris Ridgway ponders the impact and significance of the famous Castle Howard Avenue, and tries to recapture the experience of seeing it for the first time, and ...
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Blog
Remembering VE Day: The 75th Anniversary
By Dr Chris Ridgway  //  Thu 7th May
Curatorial, History, Collection, Estate
On VE Day, 8th May 1945, Castle Howard, like countless homes, places emerged from six long years of conflict. During these years the building had been ravaged by fire, the Howards had suffered family ...
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Blog
National Gardening Week
By Alastair Gunn  //  Wed 29th April
Gardens, Landscape, History
Today marks the start of National Gardening Week. This video was produced last year for our new audio digital guide, and we thought now might be the perfect time to share it. Our Head of Gardens and...
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