Explore the enchanting world of U.S. castles with our curated list of 10 must-see magical destinations. Discover your next adventure today—save this article!
America has lots of beautiful castles you can visit. No matter where you are—East, West, or in the middle—there’s a special castle waiting for you.
Each one is different, and you can do fun activities while you’re there. These castles not only look amazing but also have a lot of history. If you love exploring, check out the charming castles across the USA!
10 Fairytale Castles in America You Need to Visit
Castle of Hearst
Hearst Castle, created by the well-known newspaper man William Randolph Hearst, is an amazing place to see! The idea started in 1919 when Hearst got a huge piece of land from his mother. He wanted to make a home for himself and his wife.
He worked with architect Julia Morgan in San Simeon, California, and you can still visit there now. It took more than twenty years to finish, and it has four big buildings, two swimming pools, lovely gardens, a wine cellar, and even a special place for planes to land!
At one time, this American castle even had the biggest private zoo in the world! Hearst kept all kinds of animals there, like zebras, kangaroos, giraffes, lions, and tigers, to make sure his guests had lots of fun.
Today, the State of California owns Hearst Castle, and it’s a special place people come to see because of its incredible design and art from all over the world. You can take different tours to explore one of the most amazing castles in America yourself!
Check out: The Ultimate Road Trip Plan for Exploring California
Biltmore Estate
The Biltmore Estate is a really pretty castle in America with its green grass and fancy design! Built for George Vanderbilt’s family in 1895, it sits in Asheville, North Carolina, and looks out at the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Inside, you’ll find cool places like a big Banquet Hall with a very high ceiling, an indoor pool, a bowling alley, and a library filled with more than 10,000 books. There’s also old art and furniture that make it special.
The American castle has beautiful gardens and a huge vineyard. Back in 1971, William Cecil, who is George Vanderbilt’s grandson, started making wine here, and they still do it today. The Biltmore Estate is really amazing, like the best castle you can see in America! You should go visit it!
The Palace of Iolani
Iolani Palace is a special castle you can visit in sunny Honolulu, Hawaii. It was finished in 1882 when King Kalākaua was in charge, and it was home to Hawaiian kings and queens until 1893. This castle is special because it’s the only one made in a style that mixes fancy Renaissance and Hawaiian designs.
When it was first made, Iolani Palace was super cool because it had things like a telephone, electric lights, and bathrooms inside the building.
You can go on tours and see where the Hawaiian royal family lived a long time ago. It’s one of the special castles in America, with two floors filled with old furniture and galleries. Be sure to check out this unique royal home in the USA!
Amorosa Castle
There’s a special castle in California, right in the hills of Napa Valley, that looks like it belongs in a fairy tale. Built by Dario Sattui and finished in 2007, Castello di Amorosa is more than just a pretty castle—it’s a place where wine is made and sold.
After traveling around Europe and getting inspired by ancient buildings, Dario wanted to create something similar in America. So, over 15 years, he built this castle just like the ones from long ago, with things like a moat and a drawbridge.
The castle has 107 rooms, built with stones and bricks just like those from hundreds of years ago. They used a lot—8,000 tons of stone and nearly a million bricks—from Europe to make it. Now, the castle is strong and impressive, showing how much love went into making it.
At Castello di Amorosa, you can taste different wines and join in exciting events all year round. Want to stomp grapes or dance at a Halloween or New Year’s Eve party? This castle might be the perfect place for that!
Lyndhurst Castle
Head over to the East Coast and look for Lyndhurst Mansion in Tarrytown, New York. This place has been home to lots of families over the years. It was first called “Knoll” and was designed by an architect named A.J.
Davis for William Paulding way back in 1838. People used to call it “Paulding’s Folly” because its quirky and uneven look seemed odd compared to other houses from that time.
George Merritt became the second owner of the mansion and made it twice as big between 1864 and 1865. He named it “Lyndenhurst” after the new Linden trees in the front yard.
Later, in 1880, a rich railroad man named Jay Gould bought the house for summer holidays and changed the name to Lyndhurst, which is still its name today.
His daughters, Helen and Anna, looked after the house at different times. When Anna passed away in 1961, she gave it to the National Trust for Historic Preservation to take care of it.
Lyndhurst looks like a castle from a fairy tale with its special Gothic Revival style. Inside, it still has the old furniture from long ago, and you can see all of it if you take a tour. People even use it for filming TV shows and movies like Project Runway and The Blacklist. It’s a famous place that you won’t want to miss!
Ha Ha Tonka Mansion
In Camdenton, Missouri, near the Lake of the Ozarks, there’s a place called Ha Ha Tonka State Park. Here, you can find the remains of a beautiful castle, one of the prettiest in America.
Back in 1905, a man named Robert McClure Snyder, who lived in Kansas City, started building this castle.
He wanted it to be a summer house for his family and bought about 5,000 acres, including a lake. To make sure everything was just right, he even brought in stonemasons from Europe to help build it.
In 1906, something sad happened. Robert McClure Snyder got hurt in a car accident before he could see his castle finished. But his sons decided to continue their father’s dream and completed the castle in 1920.
They lived there for some time, and later it became a hotel in the 1930s. Then, in 1942, a fire destroyed a big part of it, leaving only ruins. Today, you can visit the remains for free because the state bought the land in 1978 and opened it to everyone.
At Ha Ha Tonka State Park, you can take a walk and see amazing things like deep holes in the ground, caves, tall cliffs, and bubbling springs. You might want to sit by the lake for a picnic and watch boats glide by. The castle is one of many special places in America where you can enjoy nature and learn more about the world around you!
Boldt Castle
In 1900, George C. Boldt, who owned the famous Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City, wanted to build a beautiful castle for his wife, Louise. The castle was on Heart Island in New York.
But something sad happened in 1904—Louise died before the castle was done. Heartbroken, Boldt stopped building and never went back to the island.
For 73 years, the castle sat quietly unfinished. Then in 1977, the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority took over and decided to complete what Boldt had started.
Now, you can get to the castle by a boat or water taxi. From mid-May to mid-October, visitors can explore it. The first floor of the six-story building looks like Boldt had imagined it would, bringing his dream to life.
You can step into Boldt’s bedroom, the grand ballroom, and a snug library. Outside, there’s the Dove-Cote, which was meant to give water to the island, and the Power House, where the machines for making electricity used to be. If you want a fun island adventure with a view of a real American castle, this is the spot for you!
Fonthill Manor
Fonthill Castle was built between 1908 and 1912 in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, by a man named Henry Chapman Mercer. He made the castle to show off his collection of tiles and prints.
When Mercer died in 1930, he gave the castle to his housekeeper, Laura Swain, and asked her to turn it into a tile museum. She did a great job managing it. Even after she passed away in 1975, the castle has continued to welcome about 30,000 visitors every year and is now a National Historic Landmark.
The castle has 44 rooms, over 200 windows, and 18 fireplaces. Inside, you’ll see lots of Mercer’s tiles, furniture, and his special things.
You can explore the ten bathrooms and five bedrooms, going from the basement all the way up to the tower. If you have a camera, you can take pictures of all the amazing things you see as you visit this incredible American castle!
Loveland Castle
In the Midwest, in a place called Loveland, Ohio, there’s a pretty castle named Chateau Laroche. A man named Harry D. Andrews started building it in the 1920s. He got the land from a newspaper that gave people land for buying a year of their paper.
The castle’s name comes from a military hospital in France, where Harry worked as a medic during World War I. People say that during the war, he was wrongly declared dead, so his fiancé married someone else. Harry was also very smart, with an IQ of 189, which is really amazing!
Harry Andrews spent most of his life building the castle. When he passed away in 1981, he gave the castle to his Boy Scout group, known as the Knights of the Golden Trail. People say the Knights still watch over the castle even now.
You can visit Loveland and walk around the castle on your own. They also hold events like weddings and overnight stays for scout groups. Come check out the special design inspired by French, German, and English styles, and maybe even spot a ghost in this one-of-a-kind American castle!
Hammond Fortress
In Gloucester, Massachusetts, there’s a grand place called Hammond Castle, finished in 1929. It’s named after John Hays Hammond, a brilliant inventor and scientist who loved medieval buildings because he spent some of his childhood in England.
Hammond had an incredible 800 patents for about 400 inventions, including radio control and naval weapons. He was friends with other famous inventors like Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Edison.
Hammond Castle is full of special features that Hammond thought up to make his home different. He built a pool with steam pipes that kept the water warm and helped tropical plants in the courtyard grow.
Inside, there’s a huge pipe organ, the biggest of its kind at the time, and a special machine to record the music. The castle mixes different styles, turning it into a unique and amazing place.
In America, there’s a castle with a view of Gloucester Harbor, surrounded by tall, lovely trees. You can wander around by yourself or visit on a special candlelit tour on Thursday nights.
This is linked to Hammond’s love for working at night and resting during the day. Hammond Castle is known as one of the coolest castles in America, promising an adventure you’ll always remember!
All over the United States, there are many beautiful castles to discover!
Want to Explore More?
Each castle has its own interesting history, and they are all amazing places to see. If you have any questions or want to share your favorite castle to visit, just let us know in the comments below!
