The World’s 100 Best Palaces · 2026

The Best Palaces in the United Kingdom

12 of the 100 palaces in The World’s 100 Best Palaces 2026 are in the United Kingdom. The highest placed is Cragside in Rothbury, at number 10 in the world. Penrhyn Castle in Bangor (number 27) and Windsor Castle in Windsor (number 30) follow.

Royal palaces

Windsor Castle is a working royal residence; visitors see the State Apartments, Queen Mary's Dolls' House and St George's Chapel. Hampton Court Palace is on the Thames at the edge of London and has Tudor kitchens and a hedge maze. The State Rooms of Buckingham Palace are toured with an audio guide.

Country houses

Cragside near Rothbury was the home of Lord Armstrong and the first house lit by hydroelectricity. Waddesdon Manor was built for Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild in the style of a French château. Blenheim Palace is where Winston Churchill was born. Chatsworth House stands in parkland in the Peak District. Mount Stuart is a neo-Gothic house on the Isle of Bute.

Castles that are family homes

Alnwick Castle is the home of the Dukes of Northumberland and Arundel Castle that of the Duke of Norfolk. Dunrobin Castle near Golspie belongs to the Sutherland family and has walled gardens above the sea. Penrhyn Castle near Bangor is a 19th-century neo-Norman house.