Scotland

Castle Douglas can be found roughly 19 miles from the city of Dumfries in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. Strangely there is no actual castle in Castle Douglas. The town is a traditional country market town with many links to agriculture. Driving around Dumfries and Galloway you will notice that the whole area appear far greener than most places in Scotland, with plenty of lush green meadows, small woods and larger forests dotted across the beautiful countryside. There are plenty of places to visit in and around Castle Douglas and below I introduce you to three extremely popular tourist attractions.

Castle Douglas Art Gallery

Castle Douglas Art Gallery first opened in 1938, having been gifted to the town by Mrs Ethel Bristowe, a talented artist in her own right. In 1996 the gallery was upgraded with lottery funding from the Scottish Arts Council. The gallery is open from Easter to October, and has a variety of exhibitions ranging from fine art and craft to photography. There are other attractions not far from the gallery, two of which are Threave Castle and Threave Gardens. The gardens are only about 1 mile away and Threave Castle about 2 miles away, and the castle is accessable through the garden.

Threave Castle near Castle Douglas

Threave Castle

Threave Castle is unique because it is built on an island in the middle of the River Dee. To reach the castle one has to walk for about ten minutes through fields and woods, until you reach a small jetty. At the jetty there is a brass bell and rope pull, which signals the boatman to come and take you to the island. The castle was built in the 1370’s by Archibald Douglas, known as Archibald the Grim, not long after he was created Lord of Galloway in 1369. Threave Castle became Archibald’s stronghold, until his death in 1400. The name Threave probably comes from the Old Welsh word Tref, meaning “Homestead”.

Threave Gardens

Threave Gardens were originally part of Threave House, which was built in 1872 by William Gordon, a Liverpool businessman, who had bought the Threave Estate as a summer home for his extensive family in 1867. The house and estate were passed to the National Trust for Scotland in 1948. The NTS have since continued to maintain and develop the 24 hectares of gardens around Threave House as a visitor attraction. The gardens are renowned for their springtime displays of daffodils, as well as for their series of discrete gardens. These include (among others) the Secret Garden, a Peat Garden and a Woodland Garden. One will also find a visitor center here.

If you are looking to stay in Castle Douglas you will find plenty of accommodation listings on the following sites;

Castle Douglas Hotels & Accommodation – http://www.virtualscotland.co.uk/accommodation/castledouglashotels.htm

Hotels and Accommodation in Castle Douglas – http://castledouglas.hotelreservationhelper.com/