Kryal Castle
We are studying Medieval History with The Story of the World 2 for school this year, so knights and castles are all the rage with my boys. Since Australia has no real medieval castles we decided to go to Kryal Castle, an adventure park about an hours drive from here, to get a taste of all things medieval. I have heard very mixed reviews about it, so we really didn’t expect much, but a day out is always a good day in my books. As Kryal Castle came into view we got a little excited as it looks the part standing majestically on the hill-side, guarding the land. We hoped this wasn’t the best bit.
We entered over the moat, and a certain poser in our party, who will remain nameless, had to get his picture taken.
The entrance foyer was imposing along with its dragon to guard it. On through a labyrinth that tells the story of a dragon, Ooshna, who lives under the castle, and various other characters who were a little brittle for my liking.
There is a time-table of events, and it is advisable to plan your trip around them, unlike us. Miss one and you might not get another chance. We arrived too late to see the Skills Combat Display, but in time for the puppet show with its corney slap stick humor, over done just the way boys like it. The park has just re-opened after the winter and was rather deserted, perfect for me as there were no people getting in my photos!! This is a church where you can really get married.
A dungeon, terrifying to see what they did to crooks. Not for the faint hearted.
There was a lot of nice details around the place, like these windows.
The great thing about going somewhere like this with a bunch of know-it-all-homeschool kids is that they can show you every single inaccuracy with the building. It does make a homeschool mum proud! Can you see those windows on the wall? Me too! They shouldn’t be there.
The Knights of the Round Table meet every day, and you can watch them talking about a quest. We thought this was a little lame, but watchable, barely.
What medieval castle would be complete without a sword in a stone? All the boys gave it their best trying to pull it out, so much so that I had to tell then to not try so hard as I thought it was getting loose!!
A certain somebody with a King Arthur pose going on.
We then went to see the Wizard in his workshop. This was our highlight. The wizard was fantastic and engaged with the audience while he made a healing salve and a potion to keep away vampires. The room is also great for a look round, and had a Harry Potter feel to it. He was so good that we went back for the second performance, and we were in luck because he made different potions. Some school girls were really enamored with him, and they giggled through the whole performance. I was hoping he would turn them into toads, but he didn’t.
There is a daily jousting torment, which you must not miss. It was amazing. Watching knights on horseback charging towards each other, and hearing the clash of spears on shields you are momentarily taken back 700 years.
What is a parent to do when the kids need to burn off some excess energy before the drive home? A maze to the rescue! Stick the kids in here and they will running around for a good 20 minutes. There is only one way in/out so you know those little munchkins can’t escape from you, and a perfect way to to tire them out before the drive home.
Our visit to Kryal Castle here in Australia turned out to be a great day out.