A Visit to Huntingtower Castle
If you’re staying with us in Crieff, you’re quietly surrounded by castles — each one offering a different kind of day out.
Huntingtower Castle is one of the closest.
It’s not the grandest or most famous, but that’s part of its appeal. This is a place you can explore at your own pace, without crowds, and with space to notice the details.
We often include it as a gentle stop on our English holidays — somewhere conversation happens naturally, as you move through the rooms and grounds together.
This guide will help you decide if Huntingtower Castle is the right fit for your time in Scotland.
All photos below were taken during our visits.
Tip: You can ask to see the castle door keys when in the Huntingtower gift shop
Huntingtower Castle in Perthshire
Just outside Perth, Huntingtower Castle dates back to the 15th century.
It is a medium-sized castle in great condition and off the beaten track, so it’s relatively quiet to visit.
The castle is unique for its two tower houses, which were later connected by a gallery.
This gallery creates a high, scary space, especially when you know the legend that Dorothea, daughter of the 1st Earl of Gowrie, was caught in a compromising situation with her lover.
To escape detection, her lover leapt between the two towers.
Huntingtower Castle Ceiling
For established castle fans, Huntingtower is noteworthy for its painted ceiling, which dates back to the 16th century.
The ceiling has intricate and colourful designs, including floral patterns, mythological figures, and biblical scenes.
The ceiling has been well-preserved.
Any visitor experience should include lying on a blanket (some are provided) and enjoying the spectacle.
A Thrilling Visit
For history fans, it was once owned by the Ruthven Family, who held James VI captive here for ten months.
For sensation seekers, Huntingtower Castle is an amazing visit with spooky winding staircases, high, sheer walls, and an internal connecting bridge that gave me butterflies to cross.
Huntingtower Castle | Our Highlights
The castle has a fabulous medieval wooden door that you can swing shut with a bang.
You’ll have to trust me on how satisfying this is!
It has a terrifying roof terrace
You can peer out across fields and grazing deer.
Best of all, it is home to hundreds of bats
(protected in the UK).
It is dramatic, medieval, Scotland at its best and it’s thrilling!
Add a Scottish castle to your time here
If you’re exploring Perthshire, Huntingtower Castle is an easy and worthwhile stop.
If you’d like, you can meet me there and turn your visit into a shared English experience — with gentle coaching, natural conversation, and space for the whole family to use their English as you explore together.
I offer these one-day experiences for individuals, couples, and families.
Huntingtower Castle
How this English conversation activity helps your English and positively impacts our community:
✅ Great for mental/physical health
⭕ benefits our local community.
⭕ preserves craft skills, historic machinery, monuments etc.
⭕ supports Scottish industry/agriculture
✅ gets you talking with a rich and diverse selection of people, or about diverse subjects (the Historic Scotland staff are very friendly!)
⭕ supports arts & artists
✅ explores Scottish wildlife in non-invasive ways
🟠 a good introduction to Scottish culture
✅ financially contributes to preserving culture
✅ It is for fun & feeling good in English.
If This Holiday Feels Like What You’ve Been Looking For
If this way of experiencing English feels like something you’ve been looking for, you can explore how a full week is shaped here:
→ Blue Noun English Language Holidays in Scotland
Or, if you’d prefer to talk it through, you’re very welcome to get in touch and ask questions.
Perthshire & History Guides
Start Loving Scotland
These blogs are your invitation to experience Scotland at a gentler pace: to slow down, unwind, and get curious about places and stories you won’t find on the standard tourist trail, but you will fall in love wiht on a Blue Noun language holiday.
Why Choose Perthshire for a Language Holiday in Scotland?
Further Ways Blue Noun Language Hub Shares History
Discover how we use Scottish history to unlock your English.
