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<p>A couple of weeks ago, we put out a <strong><a href='/en/discover/making-memories-with-moana' target='_blank'>blog post</a></strong> that was inspired by Disney’s latest animated film, Moana. Ever since then, our love of Disney classics has inspired us all in the office to re-watch some of our favourites. The films we watched were largely from the ‘Disney Princess’ range, as they include some of their greatest classics, and offer a great sense of how far we’ve come by the time we get back to Moana. One of the most notable trends in these features is the focus on grand castles and palaces that act as a geographical centrepiece for the stories. Many of these stories are centred around old European stories, so these buildings always looked somewhat familiar to us whilst still being fantastical. Being the travel nuts we are, the one thing that immediately came to mind for us was “Wouldn’t it be wonderful to visit these places in real life?” Much to our delight, we discovered that you can! Nearly all the royal residences in the long line of Disney Princess classics are based on equally amazing places in the real world! So, without further ado, here’s some of the ones we’d like to see most out of the European-inspired selection:</p><h4><strong>Tangled</strong></h4><p><img alt='Mont saint Michel, France' src='https://www.hoppa.com/resource/blog/uploads/2017/01/Depositphotos_75821251_m-2015.jpg' style='height:667px; width:999px' /> Mont saint Michel, France Rapunzel’s main goal throughout Tangled is to make it to this very location – to follow the star where she will find her family. As it would be such an important payoff for the character, the castle she finds herself at needed to be dramatic and incredibly unique. Enter Mont Saint-Michel, an island commune in Normandy, and one of the most dramatic and unique strongholds that you’re likely to find. Technically centred around an abbey and not a castle, Mont Saint-Michel looks far more impressive than originally intended, due to the increased fortifications put in by Charles VI in the 15th century. The buildings on this island appear like they’re cascading down the isolated mound, the architecture becoming one with nature. The later additions of the monastery’s imposing walls and tall spires create a distinctive fairy-tale look, with the surrounding waters giving scenic and unforgettable views. At high tide, the meagre population of 50 people are cut off from the mainland, but they’re kept occupied by the tourists that flock here, as this great location has inspired countless other works of beloved fiction.</p><p>For <a href='https://www.hoppa.com/en/france'>airport transfers to France</a>, click our page.</p><h4><strong>Beauty and the Beast</strong></h4><p><img alt='Chateau de Chambord' src='https://www.hoppa.com/resource/blog/uploads/2017/01/Depositphotos_3182590_m-2015.jpg' style='height:750px; width:1000px' /> Chateau de Chambord For Beauty and Beast, a structure was needed that could be both intimidating and beautiful. When the spell is broken and Beast becomes a man again, his home becomes brighter and more welcoming, too. Finding a design that could be somewhat sinister and then eventually cheerily inviting proved to be difficult for animator Glen Keane, until he visited Chateau de Chambord. In a later interview, he described his initial view of the chateau as “An ominous, impressive place with all of these spires and just standing there before us,” and then went on to say “I’ll never forget the morning driving up there through the mist and fog and seeing it there. I thought, 'This is the Beast’s castle. This is where he lives.'' The distinctive French-Renaissance chateaux is one of the most recognisable in the world. It took twenty years to build, changing constantly as construction went on, and was never actually completed as it was intended. Chateaux from the 16th century such as this deviated from traditional castle design by replacing fortifications with extensive gardens and water features. Long corridor rooms became a thing of the past, and open grand halls replaced them. This decorative take on a militaristic style, mixed with the almost menacing jagged towers and over-the-top facade, made Chambord the ideal castle for the Beast.</p><h4><strong>The Little Mermaid</strong></h4><p><img alt='Chillon castle, Switzerland' src='https://www.hoppa.com/resource/blog/uploads/2017/01/Depositphotos_63725407_m-2015.jpg' style='height:650px; width:1000px' /> Chillon castle, Switzerland Now, this is one I did not expect to have a direct real-life counterpart. Prince Eric’s castle in The Little Mermaid is right on the water’s edge, with a private beach. In the real world, Chillon Castle in Switzerland is exactly that, teetering on the eastern shore of Lake Geneva. The earliest parts of the castle date back to around 1005, as an outpost to control the road from Burgundy to the Great Saint Bernard Pass during the reign of the Roman Empire. Since then, it has continually had many additions to the structure to fit the various new purposes it was given, culminating in its current form as the number one historic tourist hotspot in all of Switzerland. The location of the castle could not be more perfect for The Little Mermaid, being neither fully on land or water. Although its design lends perfectly to a fairy-tale aesthetic, it’s clear that the real reason it was chosen was because of how effectively it acts as a metaphor for the bridge between Ariel and Eric’s worlds.</p><p>For <a href='https://www.hoppa.com/en/switzerland'>airport transfers to Switzerland</a>, click our page.</p><h4><strong>Snow White</strong></h4><p><img alt='Fortress of Segovia' src='https://www.hoppa.com/resource/blog/uploads/2017/01/Depositphotos_5398501_m-2015.jpg' style='height:667px; width:1000px' /> Fortress of Segovia Taking a different turn, let’s talk about a villain’s home instead. In Snow White, the titular character has no grand residence, opting to essentially act as a squatter in the home of seven tiny men. The grand estate featured in Walt Disney’s first feature length masterpiece belonged to the main antagonist, the evil Queen. Whilst it has never been abjectly confirmed, it is widely believed that the basis for this particular castle is the Alcazar of Segovia in central Spain. It sits upon a clifftop at the confluence of two rivers, almost looking like a ship breaking through the water. It stands out from the dense surrounding forest as a larger than life monument to a time long gone. For hundreds of years it was used as the home of Spanish monarchs, until eventually being repurposed as a military academy. Presently, like all the castles on this list, it is a place for tourists to visit, only with the added features of a museum and military archive. The castle also acted as part of the inspiration for the real life Cinderella Castle, which can be found in Florida’s Magic Kingdom as well as Tokyo Disneyland. The iconic Cinderella Castle was designed by Herbert Ryman in the early seventies, taking influence from several castles across all of Europe. One of them, however, had already been used as the primary template for another Disney attraction…</p><h4><strong>Sleeping Beauty</strong></h4><p><img alt='Neuschwanstein castle, Bavaria, Germany' src='https://www.hoppa.com/resource/blog/uploads/2017/01/Depositphotos_102967318_m-2015.jpg' style='height:667px; width:1000px' /> Neuschwanstein castle, Bavaria, Germany The film of Sleeping Beauty is not where this castle is best known from. In actuality, the Sleeping Beauty Castle is the most popular icon of Disney's theme parks. In 1955, Herbert Ryman got to unveil his first fairy tale castle to the world in Anaheim, California. Although it’s only around 77 feet (23m) tall, it appears much larger due to clever use of forced perspective. The spellbinding appearance as well as its significance to Disney led to its usage as the official logo of Walt Disney Pictures. To this day, children and adults alike instantly recognise this modern cultural touchstone. The castle it is based on is one of the ones also referenced for the Cinderella Castle, Neuschwanstein Castle. The Romanesque Revival palace can be found in southwest Bavaria, Germany – the place where the majority of these various fables originated. Commissioned and entirely funded by Ludwig II of Bavaria in 1869, the construction was ambitious in terms of scale and intricacy. It was derided by Ludwig’s contemporaries, but is now celebrated as one of the crowning achievements of its time. The construction process was complex, its stylistic influences numerous, and internal features extravagant. Ludwig never saw the castle completed, as he died in 1886, having only slept for 11 nights within the castle walls. The king never intended for the palace to be publicly accessible, but after he also died, it was opened for paying visitors. Thankfully, the secluded location kept Neuschwanstein Castle completely safe during both world wars for us to enjoy to this day. This impressive, magical-looking building was a no-brainer choice for Ryman to model the Sleeping Beauty Castle after.</p><h4><strong>More to discover</strong></h4><p>But of course, this selection is just scratching the surface! Disney’s employees have a long history of travelling the world in order to do thorough research, sketching out awe-inspiring locales from across the globe. If your favourite Disney film wasn’t included on our list, and you want to find out where it was based on, maybe you should turn on the commentary track in the special features to hear it straight from the creators! It may turn out to be a source of inspiration for your next great adventure.</p>

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Our Five Favourite Fairy Tale Castles