Eilean Donan — Attraction in Scotland

NO PHOTOS ALLOWED INSIDE! After visiting this castle, I honestly felt like I had been completely ripped off. You have to pay for parking, pay to enter the grounds, and then pay again to go inside the castle itself. We also bought the audio guide. The most important thing: photography and video are strictly forbidden inside the castle. This is why you won't see photos of the rooms in reviews, even though you can find information about tickets to the museum interior. My advice: take photos from the car park and leave. There is nothing worth doing beyond that. You won't get any magnificent shots from the castle courtyard, either. I visit museums for self-education. I usually bring my sketchbook and pencils to draw things or take photo notes for later. Here, you cannot bring a backpack and photography is banned. It took us only one hour—including buying tickets, using the restroom, and fully touring the castle with the audio guide—that's how small it is. The audio guide has only nine tracks. I noticed QR codes in some rooms, but I don't understand why this information wasn't simply voiced on the guide. Why should I download yet another app when I've already paid for something that is supposed to give me access to the information? The exhibition itself is not just bad; it’s absurd. You walk into a room where there are modern coloured photos of the royal family standing on a chest of drawers, right next to 18th-century dresses... because, well, I guess there was space. Logic? None. They had a medieval castle model but placed it in a dark corner where it’s impossible to see, so everyone just walks right past it. If I had known this beforehand, I never would have paid for the ticket. It is simply not worth the money they...

Our experience at the Eilean Donan Castle was quite disappointing. The castle is unimpressive and grossly overpriced. Staff is impolite to customers and treats visitors with an attitude.

On our first visit, we were denied entry despite being on time for the last admission at 5pm (the castle closes at 6pm). On the day, the main road leading up to the castle was congested due to a severe traffic accident. The castle staff was aware of the disruption, but opted to deny entry to my group of friends and about 20 more people who had been in a traffic jam to for 3h+ to visit. The lady at the ticket shop, a middle aged blonde, even refused to sell tickets to one of my friends who rushed there while we were parking. He was at the ticket shop at 4.55, but the lady required that all of us would be physically there to sell him tickets. She then proceeded to lock up right in his face.

We came back 2 days later, which clearly was a mistake. There really isn’t much worth seeing. Both the interior and exterior are largely new, owing to renovation works undergone over the last century. The visit fails to show which pieces are historical and which new. Rather, a constellation of caution notices forbids visitors from even taking no-flash pictures of the 21st century furniture, in a poor attempt to disguise it as fragile and antique. Everything is just thrown together: from hundreds-year-old clothing to color family pictures of the current castle owners. As a result, the tour fails to do justice to the site’s many histories, which should be its main selling points instead. The visit hardly takes 30 minutes. Anyone who had the chance to visit some of the many magnificent castles in the rest of Europe will likely leave...

Eilean Donan Castle is undeniably one of Scotland's most iconic landmarks, but our recent visit left us with mixed feelings. On our first attempt, we couldn’t even find a parking spot due to how busy it was, likely because it was the weekend. When we returned the next day, we finally managed to park, but the experience didn’t quite live up to the hype.

The parking fee of £3 is reasonable, but considering how crowded the site was, it might be worth planning your visit during off-peak times to avoid the hassle. Tickets are £12 for adults and £6.50 for children, with a cheaper option of £3.50 if you only want to admire the castle from the outside.

The gift shop is well-stocked with a variety of souvenirs, and there are snacks and hot drinks available, which is convenient. However, the facilities, particularly the toilets, struggled to cope with the number of visitors, with long queues for the ladies’ restroom.

Overall, while Eilean Donan is undoubtedly beautiful and steeped in history, the overcrowding and overrated experience detracted from the visit for us. If you're planning to visit, try to go early or during a less busy time to fully appreciate the castle...