The last day of 2025 was a misty one down in Dunedin as we made our way towards Larnach Castle – the perfect setting for an old building, it really gave it a whole different mood.
The castle had been on my list of places to visit for years, so to see it standing in front of me after all this time was special.
Joining me was Kendall, who had studied the building back in school. Dad had to wait in the car because the building wasn’t wheelchair-accessible.
Walking up to the grand entrance, we noticed you had to ring the doorbell for the receptionist to let you in and greet you before you wandered the building on a self-guided tour. This was a really cool, quirky feature that fit in with old traditions and was pretty unique to Larnach Castle.
I recently visited Werribee Park Mansion in Melbourne and didn’t experience a grand entrance like the one at Larnach.
Our highly knowledgeable receptionist knew we were interested in the paranormal and offered a few pointers to watch for.
As in the ballroom, look at the picture on the wall from a distance, then move closer and see how it changes. From a distance, it looked like a skull, almost shaped like a candle.
Once I’m standing half-way in the room, it is clearly a photo of a man. She also told us to look out for the ghostly painting in one of the rooms, which we discovered for ourselves: a silhouette of the castle above a clear image of it. It did take us some time to figure out which painting she was talking about, but it was fun looking and guessing, like a game to see who could find it first.
You could easily get lost wandering around the different rooms as I did! Such an impressive place, with so much to look at that you could spend hours there. I loved all the detail in the ceilings and the fact that it had a marble bathtub weighing 1 ton! The original working drawings of the castle caught my eye, as I love learning the history and backstory of each place I visit.
Two things left me questioning their meaning. The hanging mannequin in one of the rooms seemed ghostly, so we assumed it was a representation of a former resident of the castle. We just found it a little strange to be there in the first place, and it gave me a fright when I looked up as it was so unexpected. The mannequin was holding a dangling trail of cobwebs, which was a laugh to see. Secondly, the pine cones on each chair throughout the building were a different sight to see.
Walking up the narrow staircase to the top of the castle made us dizzy, but it heightened the experience. Kendall didn’t feel well, not even in the castle, and wanted to go outside for some fresh air. It definitely had a mysterious vibe, in my opinion, but I felt fine inside.
I highly recommend the visit to Larnach Castle, even if you are just quickly passing by, as we did.
