Crathes Castle, Garden & Estate (National Trust for Scotland)

We didn't go to the castle but WHAT a garden! We went twice and even in the space of 10 days there were different things to see. Absolute must for garden enthusiasts, whether you enjoy the formal topiary or the amazing themed borders. We chatted for a long time with the volunteers, who were very informative. Will happily come back again and again.

Wowzer. What an amazing garden! This is a must see walled garden. It’s exceptional. The castle is interesting too since it features many of the older sections unlike some of the other castles. It would be nice if they’d add a recorded tour at some point, but the signage was good. All in all it was a great stop. I only wished we’d left more time to walk some of the wooded trails.

Crathes is my favourite castle in the Shire. There are so many woodland trails as well as the incredible walled garden and an atmospheric cafe. The gardens-only tickets cost £7.50 per person, plus £5 for all day parking. The gardens aren't dog friendly, but the rest of the estate is.

A 16th century tower turned into a castle. Toured on a Friday in July. There were two volunteers inside and a few National Historic staff available to explain the history. As the castle had been a residence until 1960’s when it became a historic property the building is fully furnished. Some excellent restoration work. Beautiful gardens.

We are having a family holiday in Crathes. My wife and I have spent the last two days driving to here, so were pleased of a quiet day. After breakfast, we walked along the Deeside Way, a relatively flat walk from Aberdeen to Ballater, which was as far as the Deeside Railway went. Queen Victoria didn't want the railway to spoil the countryside around Balmoral. We soon came across Crathes signal box now a private residence and the remains if the platforms. Walking on, we came to a fork, with the Deeside Way going left over a pack horse bridge or right, under the road. Little did we realise what a difference taking the right fork would make. Continuing on our walk we came across the Milton of Crathes, a selection of independent shops. From here, we passed some railway carriages and still no signs directing us to the castle. Eventually, we came out beside the main road at Banchory, nearly four Mike's away. It was a very day and would get hotter as the day went on. We asked a local lad which way to the castle and he directed us up a road. It was not the main entrance but one used countries ago. It was a long uphill climb through the welcoming shade of huge trees of all descriptions. Eventually, we arrived at the castle and it looked very different to other castles we have visited. The castle is steeped in history, the one notable thing being it was lived in by the same family for centuries. We had a walk around inside, partly to cool off and partly to find out more about its history. We had a fascinating journey throughout most of the castle. The most fascinating were the painted ceilings, especially the Room of the Nine Nobles, based on great heroes from the past and the Muses' Room, with paintings of nine Muses and seven Virtues. From here, we walked to the cafe to get refreshments, but could believe the scores of wasps making most families lives a misery. In all my years, I have never so many wasps in one place. We drank up and departed for the welcoming shade of a hirse chestnut tree where we ate our lunch. From here, we walked down to the garden where a token allows families access to the gardens. The tokens can be collected from the main desk. The garden is a place of wonder, as with every turn, you see something different and interesting. You can see the castle from different angles which is a treat. Considering the hot sommer we are experiencing, the gardeners have produced a magnificent show for everyone. It seemed every colour was on view, depending on the flowers and which garden beds we were at. We even passed a couple getting married in a centre piece of the garden. We were intrigued by two large bushes close together at the side nearest the castle. It was while we were sat in the gsrden entrance building that we found the answer. The trees were planted in the 1700, and clipped in what we would describe as small urns. (They obviously had some meaning!!) Today, one is an egg sitting on a eggcup and the other is waiting for an egg. We much prefer the latter version. From here, we walked down the main path, the white trail, to the main entrance , stopping to look at the Highland cattle. We came across a bridge which I guess would have been part of the old road. Underneath, water from the large pond flowed down to the river. We followed a path and lo and behold came out at the road bridge we saw earlier on. We were no walking home knowing we didn't have as long a walk as this morning. By now, the heat was building, so a shorter walk was very welcome. Crathes Castle is an interesting place to visit, with lots of space to run around. There is a children's play area and well behaved dogs are welcomed. Crathes Castle has a cafe catering for all tastes and a great gift shop, selling a range of gifts and food.

Has to be one of the finest attractions in the country. Superb gardens. Very pleasant staff. Self guided tours but some spiral staircases to negotiate. Very large car parks. Quite a steep road to ticket office/shop. Very pleasant café with quite a varied menu. The walled garden is an absolute delight. There was a visiting horse drawn carriage with two Clydesdales in harness but I missed it since they were booked up for the rest of the day and the following, final day. The horses are based at a farm you can visit, a mile of so towards Banchory.

National Trust membership or pay per trip. Walk the woods, enjoy the fabulous gardens and/or tour the castle. Very old spiral staircases not suitable for everyone - in between option is to look at ground floor and take 'normal' staircase to first floor only. Staff were extremely knowledgeable on the castle and Burnett family history. The ceiling art was something I hadn't seen before. Cafe was lovely (we had coronation chicken sandwiches ... freshly made with crisps & salad on the side). Dog friendly, too. Great for a day out, brisk walk and lunch / tea or a whole day.

Arrived too late to visit the castle but the gardens were well worth a visit. Well maintained and interesting. Entrance was free for those of us with a National Trust membership rather than being a NTS member.

We visited Crathes Castle in May, visiting from the United States to trace our Burnett family history. We visited the castle several times over three days, including meeting Laird Jamie Burnett, our family Chief. The castle and gardens are immaculate, and many exhibits throughout. I was so delighted to see the Horn of Leys, dating to the 1300s. A cafe and gift shop are also on site, along with wilderness trails for exploring. This was a bucket list item for our family, and we were happy to see so many other families visiting as well.

Very few NTS places are open in November, so finding Crathes still open was an unexpected treat. Even more unexpected was the guided tour - in the summer months you are free to wander round the house yourself, but out of season they take you round in small groups. Our guide, Drew, turned out to be a hugely entertaining character. I'm sure he must be a star in the local AmDram society. His patter, his delivery, his charm and his jokes had us all feeling right at home from the start. I can honestly say that I haven't enjoyed a guided tour as much as this in years. The house (calling it a 'castle' is a bit of an exaggeration) and part of the Leys estate was donated to the National Trust in 1951. It had been lived in by the Burnett family for 350 years prior to that, and the 13th Baronet left almost all the furniture and fittings as well, which gives the place a very homely feel - it's not a museum piece where the Trust have had to stock it with period furniture; there is a great spread of history from the medieval to post-war. The painted ceilings in several of the rooms are quite spectacular, one depicting nine heroes of medieval life, others virtues to be aspired or grisly warnings about straying form the path of righteousness, all with exquisite pictures and Gothic scripting along the beams. And of course there are ghosts. Nine of them to be precise, although our guide only told us about two. One of these, the Green Lady, is commonly seen by visitors and is thought to have been a servant girl who fell pregnant and disappeared shortly after she gave birth, along with her unfortunate child. Recent renovations discovered the bones of a small child beneath the hearth in the 'Green Lady's Room'. Another ghost that was spotted in two different locations this year is that of a small boy - our guide was keen to suggest links with the unfortunate servant girl, so maybe he will become the Green Lady's son with another couple of seasons' retelling. It wasn't the best time of year for the gardens, but the walled garden has some impressive topiary and was well worth a stroll in the November sunshine. We finished with lunch in the stable block (soup and a sandwich) and, avoiding the temptation to visit the Go Ape! centre, had a quick look round the gift shop (not that impressive) before heading off.

Wonderful castle, rich in history, well worth the visit!!!! Easy to access, great venue, postcards and cafe also available, stunning gardens

Crathes castle is one of the better known of Aberdeenshire's many castles, and with justification. It is about 15 miles from the city centre, and very easy to reach. The gardens are pristine and the woodland walks are either easy or moderately energetic. The scenery is classic North East Scotland, a 'lite' version of the landscape that made Queen Victoria select Balmoral as a royal retreat; in fact, the royal estate is only about 30 miles upriver from Crathes. However - you sensed a 'but' coming, didn't you? - these are probably the very reasons I don't enjoy is as much as I would like to. In short, it gets crowded. There are cyclists, families with buggies, ramblers, people with dogs everywhere. The free unofficial car park near the main entrance and the presence of ample parking across the road (more on that later) result in easy access, and there is a good-sized National Trust car park next to the castle proper. In summer, when they do open air concerts (Jools Holland, Katie Melua, van Morrison, Blue, Runrig) there are whole fields opened up for parking! And so to the specifics. Unless you're a history buff, once into the castle is probably plenty - there are no special ghosts or gory stuff here, unlike other nearby castles. The place isn't particularly big. The sculpted gardens are interesting, and the enclosed garden is good: if you know your plants, it is fascinating as I discovered from a companion during one visit. There's a tea & scone place (more people milling around!). Overall, it's a convenient place to reach, good parking/access, ultra-fresh air to walk in. There's the Milton restaurant across the road with a large car park, if you fancy a proper meal afterwards. Alternatively, you can visit the Milton's car park next to its helipad and gawp at the Aston Martins and TVRs and such-like (they don't call Aberdeen the oil capital of Europe for nothing!)... Last weekend, with the snow and everything, it was still a good refreshing walk, nothing strenuous.