You could follow the royals to exotic honeymoon destinations around the world from Hawaii to the Seychelles. Or you could just choose to spend your post-wedding idleness in a real castle, channeling your inner regal nobility. Here are some of our favorite castle and palace hotels, ideal for being pampered like the sovereign couple you are — jousters, moats and jesters may or may not be part of the package, but dreams fulfilled are guaranteed.
Château Louise de La Vallière
Loire Valley, France
Nothing says fairytale like a 16th-century storybook castle in France’s storied Loire Valley, where bygone Parisian nobility escaped the city for bucolic honeymoons and repose. Château Louise de La Vallière, part of the Relais & Chateaux collection, snuggles into a forest amongst winelands near Amboise. With just 20 rooms and suites, the hotel delves into its past with staff wearing period dress and décor summoning the ornate pomp of former times. Embracing a 47-acre park, the retreat has a spa and gastronomic restaurant, but couples may find themselves most fixated by the grandeur of their Grand Boudoir, one of the peerless rooms ideal for honeymooners, chateaulouise.com.
Anantara New York Palace Hotel
Budapest, Hungary
Like the most pampered royalty, you’ll celebrate your nuptials nibbling 24-carat-gold cakes and sipping coffee at Anantara New York Palace Hotel, Budapest’s elegant New York Café, the favoured salon for the city’s poets and artists for more than a century. Minutes from the storied Danube River, this luxurious palace on glitzy Erzsébet Körút Boulevard evokes the imperial era as a Belle Époque architectural marvel. Columns, chandeliers, ornate carvings, marble galore — even a courtly watchtower — set an aristocratic scene suited for the new dynasty you’ve created together. Book the Ruby Presidential Suite, an elaborate sanctum, kitted out in red hues — there’s even a red Murano glass chandelier, anantara.com.
Pestana Palácio do Freixo, A Leading Hotel of the World
Porto, Portugal
Buzzy Porto, as densely redolent with cultural flavor as its famous wine (port, of course) lies on the Douro River in northern Portugal. These days a favorite port for river cruises and hotspot for oenophiles, it offers up a slew of uber modern boutique hotels. But, those enamoured with flamboyance and extravagance can revel in regal romance at Pestana Palácio do Freixo, a restored Baroque palace, replete with a Versailles-like Hall of Mirrors, on the banks of the river, a short drive from the city center. Book the Suite Nicolau Nasoni, which features an enormous deck above the water, lhw.com.
Ashford Castle
County Mayo, Cong Ireland
The sort of place you expect to see knights in armour, court jesters juggling and perhaps a hidden dungeon or two, Ashford Castle boasts Rapunzel-esque towers, sturdy stone ramparts and crenelations aplenty. A 13th-century castle that once housed the Guinness family, the lavishly restored, five-star castle hotel lords over Lough Corrib, anchoring a massive, wooded estate. Be peers of the realm as you explore the posh fortress, a bastion of Irish history. Go falconing, fishing, ride horses or relax in the spa, then retreat to your suite, one of Ashford Castle’s exceptional staterooms. Note: Consider booking with Brendan Vacations, an outfitter who can organize an entire itinerary of castle stays in Ireland and Scotland, ashfordcastle.com, brendanvacations.com.
Schloss Elmau
Bavarian Alps, Germany
Don’t be surprised if you see a unicorn galloping amid the countryside that surrounds lofty Schloss Elmau. In a realm that brims with mountain peaks, forests, glimmering lakes and meadows of wildflowers in season, this stately castle hotel beckons. A snow sport paradise in winter, a hiker’s dream in summer, the resort caters to wellness buffs all year offering six separate pampering spas. Fit for kings and queens, the junior suite with balcony is as priceless as the crown jewels, schloss-elmau.de/en.
