Larnach Castle Review

Oh we are a picky lot. Some have been a bit hard in their reviews. The place was built in 1871 not so long after the south was settled and is very impressive for the time. Sure there are bigger castles in Europe but for southern NZ it is grand. The current owners must have spent a fortune doing it up and it is very well maintained. The grounds are nice and well cared for. Even for just a grounds and surrounds ticket NZ$13.50, you can spend 2 odd hours looking at things including stables, out buildings, ballroom, etc.
Go there, look and walk and smell the roses ( actually none there). Imagine how hard it was to build and look after in the late 1800's
Phil

Beautiful castle to visit with outstanding views and a wonderful cafe that is reasonably priced with a great selection. The castle has a lovely atmosphere and interesting history.

Waste of time and money. $31 fee is not appropriate for the castle that has been modified to make it look like the original one.

Really amazing work going on here to restore such a unique property.

We visited in February from the UK so no shortage of castles there! Having said that we thoroughly enjoyed visiting this castle with it s sad history of the original family who had the Castle built and the remarkable restoration carried out by the Barker family over the last 50+ years. The videos and photos of both families in the small museum were fascinating and we have a huge admiration for the Barker family for the work they ve done and are still doing. Unlike so many of our stately homes and Castles this restoration is self funded from entrance fees and events etc and is still continuing. So congratulations to the Barker family we loved our visit to the castle and the gardens and the amazing view both from the tower and the grounds. Keep on the good work!

The castle was beautiful and the garden and the view around the castle also beautiful too!

But it was pricey to enter the castle and the castle garden, I understand they need to take care of everything so that s why need to charge a fee but have to say kinda too high for backpackers.

Very stunning setting. Lovely drive up with gobsmacking vistas on way. Did not have time go inside castle - short of time and on way to airport. We were a bit astonished at paying around $65 to drive into the car park, have a cursory look at the outside of the castle and visit the giftshop. Poked head in cafe and it looked amazing! Chandeliers etc. Very beautiful. Expensive would be my only negative really...

The castle is small, but the garden and the main building are beautiful.

Lovely piece of early NZ colonial history, worth a look if you're at all interested in history.

Make sure you dont peak the stable to stay ...
The rooms in the inn are a trip back in time! With unbeatable views ...

The castle is a big mix of style... it translate the travel mind of the owners ...

Diner in the castle is a must, beautiful setting .lovely experience.

Fantastic place - impressed to see the amount of work put in by the private owners. We visited on a sunny day with lots of sea fog; added to the eerie Scottish highland castle feel. The gardens are beautifully manicured. Entry is expensive but that's haw they raise funds to maintain and upkeep but they also have private accommodation on site if you want the "live next to a castle" experience. Recommended if you're into history but thoroughly deserving of the title - New Zealand's only authentic castle.

Beautiful manor of a rich man in the late-1800s (not a king's castle). Unlike other castles, this manor provides an up close experience to the way of life in the owner's era. Beautiful gardens and reasonably priced restaurant with great ambience.

My partner and I both stayed in the lodge and dined in the castle, and dining in a castle is a must do for any traveller, Andy our waiter for the evening was a fountain of information regarding the larnach family, and has some good sense of humour to boot.
Thank you to the baker family for what you've done in restoring the castle and preserving it historic value.

Totally worth a visit, the building is very interesting and a must to go up to the Turret and enjoy the views. The gardens are wonderful, loved them so much

Interesting story of the family and beautiful ceilings and tiles

Historic place about how first NZ life during that time

A 'must see' in Dunedin. Superb gardens, views and history.

It's such an amazing place bit they can do more to protect its heritage and the staff is just terrible, I would love to visit again, but not with the terrible rise ungrateful staff

Beautiful gardens and great traditional tea house. Will return on less of a rainy day.

So enjoyed this place. Been wanting to go for many years and it did not disappoint! Beautiful.

Definitely worth a visit. The Gardens are beautiful 2 to 3 hours you can be there if you are interested in the history

The "dining in the castle" experience is interesting, if you are a history buff.

Truely stunning. Lovely comfy rooms. Super friendly staff. Fantastic breakfast and the dinner is well worth every penny. Definately a highlight of staying in Dunedin.

Worth the effort. This lovely castle has an interesting history was built and then restored with love and attention.

Larnach Castle is a must visit when you are in Dunedin. The story is moving, sad but magnificent all at the same time. The castle and grounds are wonderful.

A great attraction. The special school holiday deal was much appreciated.

Great place to relax for a few days views for miles

Gorgeous castle and beautifully restored! Cafe had lovely scones too. The gardens are probably nicer in spring and summer but views are great all year round.

It is well worth visiting the castle. We went there a few years ago decided to check it out again. The gardens are great.

Good place to go, lots of meaningful items that reminds of how important is the place.

Highly recommend going, friendly staff and easy to self-guide. Howevee there are a lot of stairs which might prove difficult for anyone with mobility issues

A castle to look for in New Zealand. Dining environment is nice especially a live music instruments been played. Bravo!

Ticket cost 35 to 60 for 2. Beautifull and well maintained castle. But its just ordinary. Not like fairy tale or Kings queens type of royal castle

Well worth a visit, give yourself plenty of time to explore the grounds. Then retire to the onsite cafe for a cool beverage.

Beautiful gardens and great views. The castle is amazing.

Not worth the money. It is an interesting place to visit but there is almost 0 explanation of what things are in the upper levels and it seems very fake. Nice view from the top though

Very nice but for us Europeans as Castle something difficult to accept

Well presented historic residence, set in an excellent garden. Excellent views

17nzd entrance fee per person was too much. Not worth the long drive and effort.

Really beautiful castle and gardens, and the drive up to it is just spectacular.

Well maintained, and very interesting. We had dinner here, and it was awesome. The gardens were very nice too.

Lovely castle and very interesting history. Garden is well maintained!

Over priced for what it really is. I understand the need for funds to restore the castle but if the price was more affordable there would probably be more visitors. Apart from that the views up on the hill are spectacular.

We went for a meal.Our party was inn the music room. The setting was wonderful. Meal was fantastic. We had a great night out.

Nice place when in Dunedin. Some very nice work has been done.

It was nice but it needs some work, the Gardens were okay, nice in some places, but overall needing some work, as for the castle it's sad that the original layout for the most part is unseen with a large portion of it blocked off like the wine cellar and a lot of rooms.

Well looked after castle and garden from the 1800s.

Very interesting place. Lots of information to take in as you walk around - like a museum.
The gardens are lovely and the view from the top is beautiful. Best to take your kids to the toilet before you enter the castle as the toilets are between the castle and the cafe - we had to run down a few flights of stairs, go outside and then into a side door for the toilets, even though there was a locked door that led directly to these toilets from within the castle then we had to go back outside, and back up all those windy stairs to see the rest.
It was worth it, but would've been great to know beforehand.. And now you know

A must visit, fantastic history. Outstanding decor and renovations

Amazing..dining in the castle was a unique experience

The only castle in New Zealand. An amazing place to visit. Guides are well informed and able to give extraordinary detail about the castle and it's tragic past.

As a European, this is not what I would call a castle but the building is still very aesthetically appealing.

The entry fee is VERY steep, I feel like they should lower the prices (especially in winter as the gardens are obviously not yet in full bloom).

The gardens have a cute Alice in Wonderland theme and many little corners with small pretty details. They were smaller than I expected them to be for the price, which was kind of disappointing. There was also a big group of small school children there when we went, which is absolutely fine, but it did take away from the tranquility of the place.



Overall we decided that it wasn t our best stop on the South Island, and I would not go out of my way to drive all the way there again should we find ourselves in Dunedin in the future!

There were things we really enjoyed. Eg. Dinner at night meeting people I'm up for an adventure and like old things but in the stables room you can't see out a window. I Can cope with low ceilings creaky floors. But didnt like the window situation. Staff were top notch .

An interesting story of how and why of the castle. Guided visits. You can also have a lunch (afternoon tea).
There are beautiful views from the garden.

Such a beautiful, well looked after and peaceful place to spend the afternoon. Just went through the gardens and the views were terrific. The ticket operator kind of spoiled it though. I think I'm pretty proficient with my English, to the point where people can understand me. I asked for 4 garden-only passes, 1 paying separately and 3 paying together. Should have been easy enough, but took a good 5 minutes to get it right, all the while telling me I need to be quicker as I need to "keep this place moving." Really now? That sounds more like your job than mine. Terrible customer service (I work in CS) from this gentleman and as the only person to have met on the trip, 4 stars.

Did a tour here and it was great. It has been beautifully restored.

Magnificent historic buildings, very good information about the historic background.

Really nothing to do in here except taking some photos in the garden. Paid for the tour inside the castle, but i will not recommend it to my friends.

Nice garden and nice view from the tower. The rooms are well maintained, but a little more is expected from a castle, especially a larger building. It is pretty nice but I imagined a little something different and then paying $ 20 (at "special time") is quite a lot. The garden is still worth seeing!

We had a lovely stay at Larnach Castle! We stayed in the Scottish room which was beautifully appointed with thoughtful extra touches all around. The newly updated bathroom was plush, with a nod to the historic with the chain toilet. Very comfortable room and bed. We loved the dinner at the castle and had such fun getting to know the international guests and the food was very good. Breakfast was also enjoyable with many options available.

Great place to visit. Staff in cafe need to be more cheery not happy staff at all.

"Must do" in Dunedin, in fog beautiful, in the sun a dream

I went to New Zealand 4 times and I wanted to live here in Dunedin with a view of the sea. All the scenery of this castle is British style. The place where there is nothing is good.

A super-royal castle on the hill, beautiful scenery, tickets, adult NZ34 is more expensive, restaurant food is delicious

Fantastic high tea. Unfortunately gardens aren't quite as accessible as the website implies.

I was told I would be amazed and I was. This castle is a fantastic place to visit. We Spent around 3 hours looking around both the interior and exterior and did not see all of it. The condition of the buildings is to rate and the furniture is too. I thoroughly recommend a long visit. You will not be disappointed.