Castle Tours & Open House

Guided Tours At Powderham Castle

Join one of our guided tours to hear the history of the Castle and the Courtenays.

On our Castle tours you will see the many majestic rooms and hear fascinating stories about the Courtenay family as told by our knowledgeable and engaging guides. All of our guides adapt each tour to suit their audience, so it is an entertaining experience for all!

The State Room Tour guides guests through the grandest rooms of the Castle – the public face of Powderham.  Visitors explore chronologically Powderham’s illustrious architectural history, from its medieval foundation, through Civil War sieges, Georgian, Rococo and Regency expansion, to its dramatic neo-Gothic culmination.  All of this via secret doors, long libraries and even a hidden ballroom.

The Upstairs Tour offers a different view – Powderham as a private home of the Courtenay family and their staff for over 600 years.  Charlie and AJ invite visitors into never-before-seen family bedrooms, and offer a host of intimate and personal insights, spooky stories, and winding staircases used for generations.

To accompany the tour routes, we recommend our Powderham Castle guidebooks, written by Charlie himself, sharing for the first time his own stories of growing up at Powderham, and what he has learned of his remarkable home.  For old and new visitors alike, this is the perfect time to come and explore the Home of Devon.

You can check our tour availability here. All tours are limited to around 15 participants. 

Open House

Explore the Castle at your own pace in our daily Open House sessions.

For those who love to explore, discover our Open House sessions, allowing you to visit the State Rooms and find out the hidden secrets of the Castle at your leisure.

Our knowledgeable team of guides and stewards will be situated throughout the Castle to answer any questions you might have. 

Please note: The upstairs rooms are available via guided tour at 12pm and 2pm. Between 3pm -4pm they are available via free flow.