A sophisticated solo travels to London and Highclere Castle
As an avid fan of Downtown Abbey, I had planned during my trip to London to also satisfy my lingering Downton cravings by getting lost in one of England's most beautiful estates, Highclere Castle.
The castle was used as the main filming location for the ITV/PBS drama series Downton Abbey, which brought the castle international fame. After my lovely stay at Oakley Hall Hotel in Basingstoke, I ubered my way up to the castle grounds as I had a ticket for an annual event they call "Heros at Highclere".
I was thrilled to find out that Julian Fellowes, Author of Downton Abbey, was going to be speaking to a group about the filming of the new first movie, my timing was absolutely perfect to visit the castle!
It was a charity weekend to mark 100 years since the end of the First World War and mark the centenary with costumes, vintage cars, airshows, a carousel, exhibitions, cream teas and more.
While the Crawley family is fictional, Lord and Lady Carnarvon, real-life British nobility, actually live on the grounds at Highclere at a separate country house.
It was also the last chance to see the Castle before closing to film the Downton Abbey movie.
The castle tour gives you the chance to step inside the castle's rooms and see how the Crawley Family lived.
There is the stairway down to the kitchen area, but will be greatly disappointed to find out that in the cellars, one will not find Mrs. Patmore and Daisy working on dinner for the household and guests, instead there is an Egyptian Exhibition.
Everyone was able to wander the magnificent grounds and gardens as Highclere spans 6,000 acres, so there's certainly no shortage of places to explore.