I’ve got to say, after visiting Ravenwood Castle in Ohio last year for dinner, I wasn’t entirely certain what to expect from Clayshire. But our getaway weekend at Clayshire Castle was AMAZING.
So we arrived a little later than we meant to Friday evening as apple maps decided to dump us out on some poor farmers driveway about 30 minutes from the castle saying, “You have arrived.” Heck no we haven’t. It’s dark, we’ve been driving on gravel roads for the past 30 minutes, and I’m hearing banjos and waiting to see Jason come out of the corn. Thankfully, Waze had our back and was able to reroute us and we arrived around 8pm.
The host greeted us at the door in full costume, and gave us the full tour of the castle. Inside the castle they have five bedrooms they rent out, a library, small kitchenette, costume closet, and a gym. Outside the castle is the hot tub, walking trails, hedge maze, large chess set and pond.
We spent most of the rest of the evening in the small cedar hot tub and were able to stargaze, the night was beautiful and so incredibly clear you could see the Milky Way band across the sky. The rooms were nice and modern while having those special “renaissance/medieval” touches. The bed was incredibly comfortable and we both slept soundly.
Breakfast was served at 9 in the main hall and (thankfully!) was not “traditional.” Saturday’s breakfast was a fruit parfait, and a wonderful thing called German Eggs with sausages and grapes on the side. Jacob and I liked it so much we got the recipe from the hosts! There were also blueberry muffins, orange juice and coffee. Sunday’s breakfast was a warm peach and blueberry compote (Basically cobbler without breading), currant scones, bacon, and three different flavors of quiche. And the whole time “Lord Doug” or “Lady Jo” were bringing out dishes or refilling drinks, they would give you tidbits of trivia or stories, or the meanings behind old nursery rhymes. And at the end of breakfast, they send whatever leftovers with you in bags or containers for snacks later!
After Saturday breakfast, we put on some costumes from the guest costume closet and had a small photoshoot. I was expecting the cheap “crushed velvet-bought at walmart-halloween costumes,” but these costumes were either very well handmade or bought and incredibly beautiful. (And sizes from XS to 4X!)
And since there was a birthday party there Saturday afternoon, we made the roadtrip to Spencer, got lunch from Wendy’s and dinner from the local walmart. Dinner was chicken pot pies and mashed potatoes that we prepared later in the microwave at the Castle.There’s not many other food options near that aren’t fast food or very fancy, I was hoping for an Olive Garden or Red Lobster, but Marie Callender tasted just fine.
We hiked most of the trails around the castle, all very nice through some older woods. I wished I had a horse to gallop along them though!
In all, it was a great experience and we will most likely be back, hopefully bringing some friends to join with us next time! The hosts were lots of fun, always calling you “M’lord” or “M’lady,” and very knowledgeable about the renaissance time period. It was a really fun weekend, getting to dress up to play King and Queen and relax.
*I’m adding in a small edit here to say that I was already impressed from when I booked last year and their website calendar wasn’t updated, allowing me to book a room for two nights that was already booked on one. I received a call from Jo saying how sorry she was, but that we could only have one night, and to make up for it, they would give it to us at half price. I was fine with that, not a problem, I was just excited to be staying a night in the castle. But then a few months ago I got a call saying that the room had opened up for that second night if we still wanted it! And of course we still did. I would have to recommend a second night if you can, it allows more time to relax and enjoy the castle.*
Our New Adventure 