A winemaker built a $40 million replica of a medieval castle in Napa Valley
If you’ve ever wished you could roam the halls of a castle while sipping wine—well, there’s a castle in Napa Valley that will make your dreams a reality. The Castello di Amorosa is open and ready for business.
The castle is a recent build, but it’s full of the old-world charm one would expect from a real 13th century castle. As if the structure itself wasn’t fascinating enough, the fact that it’s situated on a vineyard makes a trip here that much more dreamy.
That’s exactly how the owner, Dario Sattui, planned it.
After years spent exploring medieval castles, Sattui was ready to create a replica—right in the heart of California wine country.
Sattui started construction back in 1994. And now the completed castle includes 107 rooms, eight levels and a total of 121,000 square feet. There are also details such as a drawbridge and a moat because, well, it is a castle, after all.
As you can imagine, this has become quite the popular spot for wine tasting. Because who doesn’t want to feel as though they took a trip to Italy without ever leaving the U.S.?
“I never had the intention to build a tourist trap,” Sattui told the St. Helena Star, a local newspaper. “What I had the intention was to build something unique, something beautiful, something authentic, something I personally love, and I was hoping that other people respond to it as well, and they have.”
You can book luxury tours and tasting packages if you’re looking to make your trip to the castle extra special. These range in price from $950 to $20,000 per couple.
The various packages include hotel prices, meals and more.
Or, you can just get a general admission ticket to the castle—which is much more affordable. Prices for general admission are $25-30 per person.
There’s also the Napa Valley Wine Train which costs $266 per person. It allows you to tour the castle while simultaneously taking in views from the Silverado Trail while onboard a train.
There are a number of ways you could choose to visit the Castello di Amorosa, but all of them lead to you sipping vino in a castle, which definitely doesn’t sound like a bad way to spend the day!