A Visit to Arundel Castle

Living near Windsor we see Windsor Castle often, but it still never fails to impress. There's lots of history, it's stunningly imposing and it's been been a royal home and fortress for over 900 years...

So imagine our surprise when we visited Arundel Castle recently and found that it had all those same characteristics plus a wonderfully enchanting appearance.


Arundel Castle
Both an ancient castle and a stately home, the castle is located on a hill in West Sussex, not far from the sea. The original castle was founded in 1067 by Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Arundel, one of William the Conqueror's most loyal barons. It has been the family home of the Dukes of Norfolk for over 850 years.

The area around the castle is expansive with nice walks and several other buildings to explore, including the Keep and the Fitzalan Chapel and garden.


Fitzalan Chapel

But in addition to the castle, and much like Windsor, the little town of Arundel is a charming location, packed with lots of history and well worth the visit. It is another of those neat old market towns, exuding character.


Arundel Town

Open April through October, Arundel is situated between Chichester and Shorham. And here's a tip: the upstairs bedrooms are only open Tuesdays through Thursdays. Call +44 (0)1903 883136 or visit their website for more information.

Restaurant Review - The "Spice Route", Windsor, England

We spend a lot of time in the the UK, as you might have noticed, and we live not far from Windsor, where we maintained offices for several years. Windsor is a great destination, not only because of the castle, which is one of the oldest continuiously inhabited castles you will find anywhere, but also for the town itself. From the new Windsor Royal Station shopping venue to all the restaurants, coffee shops and pubs, there is always something going on in Windsor.

You will probably not be surprised that we have developed some strong favourites for dining out. We often attend the Theatre Royal in Windsor, and we usually eat in town before the performances begin. Our absolute favourite restaurant is the Spice Route. This is much more than an Indian restaurant - it is a true culinary experience.

Spice Route was launched in 2001 by celebrated broadcaster and author, Mridula Baljekar, whose coveted cookbooks define gourmet Indian cuisine. Many of these unusual recipies find their way to the tables of grateful guests in the restaurant.

We had the good fortune to dine there last night before seeing "Private Lives" at the theatre. The food was excellent, as always! We started with an interesting and very delictable dish of Halloumi Tikka - a perfect marriage of Cyprus halloumi cheese and Indian spices, grilled in a clay oven.

Arlene enjoyed Mridula's signature dish, Scallops in Poppy Seed Sauce, while I had a delicately spiced Biryani with marinated chicken thigh fillets. Accompanied with Peshawari Naan bread, it was the perfect pre-theatre dinner.

We highly recommend Windsor and the Spice Route!

To learn more about Windsor, view our Thames Valley pages on The Savvy Traveler website.

Travel Information: Windsor can be reached from London Paddington via Slough. Take any train to Slough (from 16 to 50 minutes, depending on stops), then take the Windsor spur line which runs every 15 minutes from Platform 1 in Slough directly to Windsor Royal Station. Alternatively, you can take Southwest Trains from Waterloo to Windsor Riverside Station (approximately 55 minutes).

Glasgow - During the Edinburgh Festival?

Well, yes. It's sad, really, that Edinburgh seems to take the majority of attention when thinking about a trip to Scotland. And especially in the late summer, during the Festival. Say "Glasgow" on the other hand, and it conjures up visions of factories and smog. Nothing could be further from the truth, of course, as Glasgow has many unique features, and one of the best museums (The Kelvingrove) we've seen anywhere.

Glasgow has a lot going for it, and the surrounding area simply cannot be beat. Not the least of the attractions is Culzean Castle (pronounced: "culeen"). It is about an hour by train to Maybole, which is only a 5 minute bus ride from the castle. The castle and grounds are beautiful, and the interior was the last one done by the famous architect Robert Adam.

This is a must-see for anyone who likes sea vistas, Robert Adam or classic castles. Well worth the trip to the countryside!

We made our way to Glasgow by train from London and really enjoyed the trip. It was fast but also had many enjoyable views - plus, the service on Virgin Trains was excellent.

There is a strange blend of old and new in this city, much of which was influenced by the almost art-deco architectural styling of Charles Rennie Mackintosh, who, along with his followers came to change the face of the city in the late 1800's. This is even carried over to the Modern Art Museum, which is housed in a beautiful classical building!

This old/new theme is what brings me to our hotel - this post was actually supposed to be a hotel review, so we probably ought to say something worthwhile about the Millennium Glasgow.

I have to start by admitting that I am stumped. I'd love to have something critical to say about this property, but the hotel was great! And even better, the rate we got from Venere was unbelievable for this quality property. So yes, as you read on you will see that it gets top marks all around!

Situated right on George Square, the very heart of Glasgow, this property could not be better positioned. Everything you want is within easy walking distance, including the Hop-On/Hop-Off tour bus if you want a nice city tour. One of the two main rail stations is just behind the hotel, and an Underground station is very close by.

The hotel is housed in an old building with character, but don't let that fool you, because here's that "old/new" connection - this is a completely modern hotel, re-done within the last few years to the highest possible standard. The rooms are modern and well appointed. They are well insulated from the noise of the busy square, and there is even air conditioning. Wi-Fi internet access is available, and there are further internet terminals in the hotel lobby. (There is also a great little internet cafe only a block away which would be a much more reasonable alternative!)

There are several room grades, and we happily accepted the complimentary upgrade to a "Club Suite" when we checked in. This gave us an absolutely huge room, by anyone's standards, with some sitting space in addition to a King size bed. And that is a US King size, not the typical British King/US Queen! If you purchase a Club room, there is also access to a special lounge with some more free goodies. (Unfortunately as we were not granted access with our complimentary upgrade.) But any room you choose will be suitable in this hotel.

There you have it - nothing bad to say about the hotel. Ok it's got 4 stars instead of 5, but at this price who cares? So here's a travel tip: Plan a trip to Glasgow...you won't regret it!

A Trip to Northamptonshire

This weekend we ventured to Northamptonshire to attend the "Festival of History Festival" sponsored by English Heritage. It was a truly interesting event covering over 2000 years of English history from the Romans through World War II.


Romans Marching

We highly recommend it for anyone planning to be here during the late summer next or successive years - it usually takes place in mid-August. It is held at Kelmarsh Hall.


Kelmarsh Hall

Rather than create separate reviews, we thought we would take this opportunity to mention some of the highlights of the trip, including our lodging and food recommendations. We stayed at the Travel Plaza between Market Harborough (a really great little "market town"!) and Desborough in Northamptonshire.


Market Harborough

The room was sparsely decorated but had everything needed for the 3 night stay, and considering our £59/night rate, we could not say anything bad about it. It is quiet, the staff is friendly and helpful, and there is even free wireless internet access - something you don't find often on this side of the world. There is an Asian-theme restaurant offering mostly Indian cuisine, which we very much enjoyed, but the breakfast is not included and really isn't quite up to what you might find around elsewhere in the area, so use it only in a pinch.

We started the trip with a visit to Althorp, the ancestral home of Charles, Earl Spencer, and the late Diana, Princess of Wales.


Althorp

We were very impressed with the house and grounds, which would be well worth the visit even without the connection to Diana, but the extra attractions of the exhibits about her life and works, and of course the beautiful memorial, make this a must-see stop.


Diana Memorial

We also appreciated the fact that Earl Spencer took the trouble to create an electronic visitors' guide for those touring the house with lots of detail and history about the family and the house. We have visited many, many of the great houses, and very few of the present owners actually take the time to do this. Well done!

We also visited Rockingham Castle, which was originally built at the orders of William the Conqueror in 1068 to help consolidate his hold on the English countryside.


Rockingham Castle

For the last 500 years or so of it's 900 year history, it has been home to the Watson family. As you can imagine, it has gone through many architectural changes throughout it's history.


Library

But as you can see from the picture of the library, it remains still quite livable. It is well taken care of by it's own private trust.

On the same day we also ventured to Lamport for a visit to Lamport Hall. Held by another private trust, this house is shown by tour and outlines the history of the Isham family, who occupied it since the mid 14th century.


Lamport Hall

Check the website for times, because it is only open on a limited basis. After the tour, be sure to have a tea in the wonderful dining room which now serves as the tea room in this interesting property.

Finally we would be remiss if we did not mention The Swan, a terrific bistro in Lamport just down the road from the house. Don't miss the Garlic Chicken and Basil with Pancetta Risotto and Butternut Squash - that one could win an award!