Casa Loma Castle

Casa Loma Castle

Casa Loma is an exquisite neo-Gothic castle built in the early part of the last century in Toronto, southern Canada. Its name means “house on the hill” in Spanish. The intricate mansion with towers is built on one of the elevations of the city. Its exquisite forms and picturesque decor give the impression that Casa Loma Castle was transported to the lands of the New World from straight out of medieval Europe.

Video: Casa Loma Castle

What to see

These days, Casa Loma Castle has been turned into a museum that is visited by almost every traveler to Toronto. Weddings and lavish private parties are held here. The fairy-tale setting has appealed to movie directors, so Casa Loma is often the setting for movies and TV series.

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Today, tourists can visit 98 rooms and appreciate the strict Gothic beauty and luxurious decoration of the castle. It is equipped with all the life support systems that existed at the beginning of the last century. The mansion has heating and ventilation systems, elevators and telephone, showers and even steam heating of flower beds.

The castle houses a large organ, a beautifully finished library, a rifle collection, and a gallery of works by Canadian painters. The stable building houses an exhibition of photographs. Especially popular is the observation deck, which offers a wonderful view of the city streets and the vast expanse of Lake Ontario.

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Tourists

For visitors, Casa Loma Castle is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Note that the ticket office closes an hour earlier. From April to October, tourists can visit the homestead park, where live music concerts are regularly held. In addition, there is a restaurant and a souvenir store for guests of the castle.

History of Casa Loma Castle

In the early XX century, businessman Henry Pellat decided to realize his childhood dream and invested a significant part of his earnings in the construction of a luxurious mansion. The project of the building was prepared by the famous architect Edward Lennox. The construction lasted three years and was completed in 1906. True, the owner had to lay out for the new castle a huge sum – 3.5 million Canadian dollars.

World War I and the economic crisis that followed prevented Pellat from finishing the interior. In 1923, he sold his mansion and began living on the family farm. Ten years later, the local municipality took possession of Casa Loma. At first the building was going to be demolished, but then it was turned into a tourist attraction.

How to get there

Casa Loma Castle is located in downtown Toronto at 1 Austin Terrace. It is a 10-minute walk from the nearest Dupont subway station.