Hallwyl Castle

Hallwyl stands on two islands in the Aabach just below Lake Hallwil, linked by wooden bridges, and it is the water that makes it - the buildings sit low with the stream running round and under them, so the approach is across bridges rather than up a hill. The von Hallwyl family held it from the thirteenth century until 1994, when the last owners gave it to the canton, an unusually long single tenure. Walther von Hallwyl's wife Wilhelmina, a Swedish heiress, financed a thorough restoration in the early twentieth century and left detailed records of it. The rooms are shown with period furnishing, a working smithy and a mill, and the outer island holds the farm buildings.

What you actually see

• Two islands linked by bridges - the Aabach running round and under the walls.
• Seven centuries in one family - held until the gift to the canton in 1994.
• An early twentieth-century restoration - financed and documented by Wilhelmina.
• Smithy, mill and farm court - the working buildings on the outer island.

When to go

April to October. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Closed through winter. The interiors are furnished rooms rather than grand state apartments. Public transport is a bus with modest frequency. It is popular with school groups on weekdays.

Nearby

Lake Hallwil is upstream; Lenzburg castle is north-east.