“Harry Potter”-Inspired Accommodations for Your Next Vacation
No Hogwarts? No problem! There’s been a growing trend over the past few years toward magical hotels and other accommodation options, and who wouldn’t want to live like a witch or wizard for a night or two? (For the record, MuggleNet is not sponsored by or otherwise affiliated with any of these places. We just think they’re cool.)
Not surprisingly, there are plenty of options out there. Condé Nast Traveler has some suggestions, including the medieval keep at La Flocellière in France, as listed on Airbnb.
Castles
Castles can be found throughout most of Europe, but Scotland has no shortage. VisitScotland.com, the consumer website for Scotland’s national tourist board, has an entire list of castles to stay in. Worried that they’ll be more like the Hogwarts dungeons? It certainly doesn’t look like it. Glenapp Castle in Ayrshire and the Balmoral in Edinburgh, for instance, are five-star hotels.
The Balmoral has another draw besides its luxury: It’s also where J.K. Rowling completed Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Back in 2008, the Telegraph reported that it would cost fans £1,000 a night to stay in the famed room 552.
Now, the Balmoral has renamed its room 552 to the J.K. Rowling Suite.
The J.K. Rowling suite features a beautiful sitting room with turret[-]style alcoves and decor inspired by the Scottish woodlands. This suite has [a] view over Calton Hill.
This suite is where the J.K. Rowling finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. It contains a marble bust of Hermes, the Greek god of travel, signed by J.K. Rowling herself. The door knocker is a brass owl in her honour.
Currently, a night in the suite starts at £1,500, so you might need some Felix Felicis if you plan to stay there.
Common Rooms
Want the feeling that you’re at Hogwarts without the castle? There’s the Canongate Luxury Homestay in Edinburgh, which looks and sounds like a cozy substitute for the Gryffindor common room.
The master bedroom (witchery themed) features a kings [sic] size four[-]poster bed with custom hanging Harry Potter blankets as well as a 43” Sony digital TV. The second bedroom has a double bed and is also equipped with a 43” Sony [d]igital TV. The living room has a double sofa bed and a flat-screen TV with a BT TV box, which includes movies and sports channels, PS4 & Xbox [One]. There are two reasonably sized cupboards for guests to hang clothes and store luggage. We also provide 2 hair dryers, clothes hangers, bathrobes and towels and a three[-]tier electric airer to dry your clothes. The bathroom has a drench shower head and complimentary toiletries provided such as [s]hower cap, vanity kit, [and] sewing kit.
London’s Georgian House Hotel has also become known for its wizard-inspired accommodations. (Really, there’s just something about a four-poster bed.) The Wizard Chamber, as the room is known, even has stained glass windows.
Concealed behind a bookcase door, curious guests can enjoy venturing to the Wizard Chamber on the lower ground floor of our 19th[-]century hotel. Pass through a portrait-lined passageway that is bathed in candle light [sic] that casts dancing shadows across the walls.
Created to conjure a mysterious and [G]othic feel, each room features faux castle details such as stained glass windows, stone walls, archways, trunks, cauldrons, four-poster beds hung with velvet curtains and an abundance of other curious artefacts. Wood[-]burning stoves, cauldrons in fireplaces and tapestries complete the look.
If you prefer a more Slytherin vibe, we can’t promise any giant squids; however, the Crazy Bear group of hotels in the United Kingdom has some suitable options. Take, for instance, the Junior Suite Ten at its Beaconsfield location, a dark and regal choice.
The Crazy Bear Beaconsfield opened in 2008 to spectacular international reviews, including Conde Nast’s Hot List for best new hotels in the world.
The oldest documented building in Beaconsfield, a fifteenth[-]century coaching inn, has been meticulously restored and elaborately designed to provide dramatic architecture and uncompromised luxury.
The Crazy Bear Beaconsfield is a unique oasis in quintessential England and the antithesis to bland hotels.
Shell Cottage
While you might not be able to stay at Shell Cottage, Cornwall is a popular destination. The National Trust lists restored beach and sea view cottages for your next vacation. From the photos alone, all of them look like perfect places to be with friends.
One option is Doyden Castle in Port Quin.
Be king or queen of the castle when you stay in this intriguing cliff-top fantasy fortress. It was owned by Samuel Symons, an infamous bon-viveur, in around 1830 as a place to entertain his friends. Now, it plays hosts [sic] to an eccentric one-bedroom holiday home full of quirks from its past. Inside you’ll find arched [G]othic windows, a cosy open fire and even the original wine bins in the cellar.
The Burrow
The Weasleys’ quirky family home in the fictional Ottery St. Catchpole might not be real, but there are other options if you plan to stay in Devon. A large cottage, such as Broad Ley Cottage in Exeter, sleeps up to six guests, and another four guests can be accommodated in another cottage nearby.
Broad Ley is one of three adjoining holiday homes that form Mooredge Cottages, a former farmhouse on the border of the Killerton Estate. A stunning example of a traditional Devon farmhouse, the thatched cottage includes many original features, from the open-beamed ceilings to the inglenook fireplace.
Camping
If you have the urge to go camping like Harry, Ron, and Hermione did while on the run, we would suggest that you find somewhere to do it legally. The Western Telegraph reports that campers could face fines for camping at Freshwater West in Wales, where the Shell Cottage scenes were filmed.
Subject to planning permission, enforcement action is to be introduced at Freshwater West from mid-July in a bid to crack down on problems associated with illegal camping.
To deal with increasing visitors, camp fires [sic] in the dunes and traffic concerns due to the numbers of cars and camper vans parking along the narrow access route, the Pembrokeshire Coastal Forum, Pembrokeshire County Council, the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and the National Trust have been consulting over measures to make getting to and from the beach safer.
In short, wherever your travels take you, we hope that you have a magical time. Have you had a vacation inspired by Harry Potter? Tell us about it in the comments below!
