Skip to main content

Lowther Castle & Gardens

Book your visit

The Story of Lowther exhibition is now closed and will re-open in a brand new format in the spring.
Also date for the diary: OR A Celebration in Gold 19th April – 6th May.

Lowther Castle & Gardens

A stunning Lake District visitor attraction

Of the many treasures waiting to be discovered in the English Lake District, Lowther Castle is a particular gem. Built at the turn of the 19th century on the site of two previous houses, the castle was a grand affair boasting a room for every day of the year. Its gardens were the envy of the north.

But in 1957 the castle was demolished. Just the façade and outer walls remained standing and for over half a century, the place was empty – home only to chickens, pigs and the odd bat. The gardens were lost to wilderness.

Today Lowther Castle is one of the most intriguing visitor attractions in the country. Dramatic ruins, gardens within gardens, an adventure playground to rival the best in the land. We look forward to welcoming you.

A grand day out..

As you set out to visit Lowther Castle, we would like to make a few suggestions. Bring your children, your grandchildren, your friends, your dogs (on leads). Dress for all weathers, wear big smiles and expect to stay a while.

Lowther Castle is full of stories. Many of these are told in the exhibition, the Story of Lowther. And if you go exploring, through the ruins, through the gardens and woodland, you will find plenty more food for the imagination. The same family has lived here for 850 years and you can see and hear their echoes.

Meanwhile, if the younger members of your team wish to make their own stories, then seek out the lost castle, one of the UK’s largest adventure playgrounds. And when all of you are ready for a rest, you can retreat to the café or the takeaway and have some delicious freshly-made food.

The castle ruins and gardens are open every day from 10am to 4pm in winter and 10am to 5pm in summer. For castle and garden entry fees, click here. Last entry to the gardens 1 hour before closing.

PS. Cycle-hire is also on the menu so once you have explored the castle and gardens to your satisfaction, you can climb aboard a bicycle and journey around the wider park.

Gardens
Exhibition
Castle
the lost castle Adventure Playground
Lake District Honey Company
Cycle-Hire
Lowther Estate

#lowthercastle

Excitement about OR (19th April-6th May) building. 520 flags in production. South lawns in preparation. Volunteers coming forward to help with installation. Even the squirrels....#lowthercastle #OR #celebrationingold #stevemessam #charity #fundraising @jamesplaceuk

Excitement about OR (19th April-6th May) building. 520 flags in production. South lawns in preparation. Volunteers coming forward to help with installation. Even the squirrels....



#lowthercastle #OR #celebrationingold #stevemessam #charity #fundraising @jamesplaceuk
...

492 new rose specimens planted in the Rose Garden. A great achievement by our tip top team of gardeners and garden volunteers and one of many winter jobs ticked off in readiness for the coming flowering season.#lowthercastle #gardensofinstagram #roses #newbloom
#newbloomsweepsclean

492 new rose specimens planted in the Rose Garden. A great achievement by our tip top team of gardeners and garden volunteers and one of many winter jobs ticked off in readiness for the coming flowering season.

#lowthercastle #gardensofinstagram #roses #newbloom
#newbloomsweepsclean
...

Happy Mother’s Day – to all mothers four-legged and two – from everybody at Lowther and in particular from the conservation team working in Lowther Park and across the Lowther Estate.#nextgeneration #natureregeneration #cumbriaconnect #naturefriendlyfarming #lowtherestate #lowtherpark

Happy Mother’s Day – to all mothers four-legged and two – from everybody at Lowther and in particular from the conservation team working in Lowther Park and across the Lowther Estate.



#nextgeneration #natureregeneration #cumbriaconnect #naturefriendlyfarming #lowtherestate #lowtherpark
...

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY
Spotlight on Elizabeth Ogilvie, the Lowther Estate's newly appointed Resident EcologistWalk up one of the hills or the moors or down into one of the valleys that is embraced by the Endangered Landscapes programme, Cumbria Connect, and you might find a busy female scientist. She may be trapping moths or ground beetles. She may be counting flocks of farmland birds, checking camera traps for red squirrels or looking out for one of the beavers that have been introduced to the river Lowther.Elizabeth Ogilvie’s brief is wide – as Lowther Estate’s recently appointed resident Ecologist, she is here to monitor the success of the estate’s nature restoration programme, to show with scientific evidence that the introduction of traditional species, the rewiggling of rivers, the restoration of peatlands and flood-plains, the planting of wildflowers and greatly increased afforestation – that all these efforts do in fact bear fruit.Elizabeth’s path to Lowther began at the University of Birmingham and she has gained wide field experience through The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust and the RSPB. Let’s hope that her example – as we celebrate International Women’s Day – inspires countless other young women to join the ranks of dedicated scientists and conservationists working towards reintroducing a sustainable and thriving natural landscape.#lowtherestate #lowthercastle #conservation #moths #poplarhawkmoth #internationalwomensday

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY
Spotlight on Elizabeth Ogilvie, the Lowther Estate`s newly appointed Resident Ecologist



Walk up one of the hills or the moors or down into one of the valleys that is embraced by the Endangered Landscapes programme, Cumbria Connect, and you might find a busy female scientist. She may be trapping moths or ground beetles. She may be counting flocks of farmland birds, checking camera traps for red squirrels or looking out for one of the beavers that have been introduced to the river Lowther.

Elizabeth Ogilvie’s brief is wide – as Lowther Estate’s recently appointed resident Ecologist, she is here to monitor the success of the estate’s nature restoration programme, to show with scientific evidence that the introduction of traditional species, the rewiggling of rivers, the restoration of peatlands and flood-plains, the planting of wildflowers and greatly increased afforestation – that all these efforts do in fact bear fruit.

Elizabeth’s path to Lowther began at the University of Birmingham and she has gained wide field experience through The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust and the RSPB. Let’s hope that her example – as we celebrate International Women’s Day – inspires countless other young women to join the ranks of dedicated scientists and conservationists working towards reintroducing a sustainable and thriving natural landscape.

#lowtherestate #lowthercastle #conservation #moths #poplarhawkmoth #internationalwomensday
...