A fascinating piece of history, Bannerman Castle was a delight to see in person, since Ive glimpsed it from the train many times, when on the Hudson line. It was wonderful seeing it during foliage season. The views from the island are breathtaking, particularly at sunset. You must consider wearing extra layers as it gets bitterly cold, what with it being the last tour of the year on October, 31, especially when the sun is about to set, and carry a scarf or something compact and warm to put on the metal seat of the boat that takes you to and from the island, unless you court hypothermia. On the ride back to Beacon, we were treated to a rare Full Hunters Moon, hanging buttery yellow, huge and majestic over the Hudson. I have never seen a Moon of such magnificent beauty! It even made me forget I couldnt feel my extremities for a moment. It was the absolute highlight of a very interesting day trip. Visiting Pollepel island would be a great experience in late spring or summer, as well.

The tour was amazing. Not too pricy and very informative

Bannerman Castle Trust Inc. provides a great service! Book a tour with them to see Bannerman Castle and you wont regret it! The boat ride was relaxing and safe. The tour of the island is about an hour and half and its plenty of time to learn about the rich history and explore.They have a beautiful pollinator garden which is cared for by a few volunteers, which I also admired and loved (so many butterflies around the castle made it truly magical!) Bannerman Castle is truly the gem of the Hudson --we are so thankful to the staff for preserving it and would love to go back soon!

Worst experience ever! They sell a expensive dinner in the castle for charity. I understand the money goes to a good cause but they need to put more effort serving people. We got there and the placed us at the worst tables, nobody care about us like for 30 mins until someone notice that we were there, they brought the “dinner” wich was just a bag with cold food. So if you are expecting a romantic castle island dinner this is not the place.

The tour for Bannerman Castle is awesome from the boat ride to the actual castle! I had no idea that its historic tale connects to Brooklyn. The building is very unique, and it carries a sense of beauty despite it nearly falling apart due to time and weather. Definitely come to visit before time and nature takes over this beautiful landmark.

This is an incredible marvel rich with American history. The tour guides are wonderful, and it’s basically guaranteed to be a memorable experience. Well worth a visit. For young kids, it’s a little long and slow, but it’s still easy enough, and some will appreciate the natural surroundings and adventure.

If you are in to beautiful scenery and history yuh ou should visit the island. Great tour guides. Best time of day is when you can catch the sunset.

The tour we took of Bannerman Island was wonderful. The tour guides were friendly and knowledgeable. First you take a boat ride down the river to the island, and then walk around the island to see the castle (which was used to store army supplies) and the Bannerman Family house. The paths are easy to walk on - with the exception of one part at the other side of the island thats a bit steep. However, people who didnt feel up to is simply waited at the top until the other group returned. The story of the family is interesting with lots of historical tidbits, and I really enjoyed.

Wonderful experience so glad we were given this as a gift. I highly recommend this to everyone

Awesome place to visit. It was a memorable for me.

Historical monuments, majestic.

We loved our trip to Bannerman. Because of Covid there was some hypersensitivity from staff regarding safety/procedure.They rely on a few posted signs and volunteers to wrangle people.We didnt realize the tour was mandatory and we assumed we could freely explore the island by ourselves for the 1.5 hours we had(our own inaccurate expectations). The first 30-45ish minutes youre required to stay with the guide for a historic tour.The island is so beautifully cared for and loved by the volunteers and staff.Overall it was educational and beautiful. Id like to return once Covid restrictions are lessened to see if the experience is more relaxed/focused on personal exploration.

Well preserved historical structure, every part of this island is picturesque, very happy to have set my foot in the premise of this castle. Went from Beacon side, metro north station and/or parking is directly across street of the pier.

One of New York States hidden treasure! Its such a magnificent experience exploring the island and learning its interesting history.

Amazing history behind this beautiful site and the views are amazing

Probably not for small children - they may get bored. Nice boat ride out and interesting history about the island.

Amazing place and people that maintain it. What a unique, historical place. A must visit.

Interesting trip you going there by small boat which is great because you can enjoy a little breeze and beautiful views, then you get off the island and gett a funny, nice guide to tour you through the history about the Bannerman Island. Lovely views and great people

Terrific journey! Highly recommended!

Went to the Island to movie night. Saw the so lame its good movie Bill and Teds Excellent Adventure. Guides very knowledgeable and Island has a gift shop and there were plenty of chairs and tables to sit around during the performance. There was a gift shop with t shirts and photographs and variety of movie food and drink for sale.Great fun and with a date it could have been romantic. Disabled be warned their are a lot of steep stairs. Stairs are wood and uniform not rickety but lots of them.

Surprised at how much I enjoyed the tour of Bannerman Castle. The grounds are beautiful and well kept and the tour guides are passionate about the history!

Had a ball. Great outing!!

Beautiful day on the Hudson. Lots of boats. Island in bloom. Lots of butterflies butterflies.

Pure magic resides here.

If you just want to take a look at the island, there is a observation deck close to the walkway bridge over the train track. Otherwise you needs to book the boat at beacon, or kayaking to the island.

Great experience. I grew up in the Hudson valley always wondering what was here, and I got to see it. Knowlegable staff.

I hate history lessons! But even I was totally enthralled. This is worth the $. Things you cannot see from land.

My mistress of the dark bought tickets to the production of Dracula. A evening ferry brought us over just at sundown to experience a open theater under the stars. This seven character play was wonderful. A up close rendition of the age old tale of Count Dracula. Renfield was amazing, goosebumps. The island is totally worthly of a visit, tour or movie.

Beautiful place fulfills of history

A must see for Hudson Valley tourists! The organization is doing everything it can to maintain the castle and residence. I went in the fall and it was so gorgeous!

Very nice tourWalking and stairs are a must.

I kayaked around the island today. Amazing views and a cool spot!

Very interesting local history tours.

A fun remnant of what seems like a more fun time in nyc history. can you imagine all the nimbys today if someone wanted to pull of this kind of stunt?

Great spot to visit and walk around. Beautiful views of the Hudson and well kept gardens too.

Great N.Y. historical information

We were there to see a Show, Dracula. It was very entertaining and it is Awesome that live shows are being shown from that Amazing Historical Castle. It was an Awesome experience. Will definitely be back. They also gave an interesting tour.

An island in the middle of the Hudson acquired by an enterprising Scottish immigrant, considered by many to be the father of gun collecting. Fascinating backstory. Gorgeous views. Privately maintained. Worth the tour.

Very well organized and we had a good time. Boat left on time and on the island the guide was very knowledgeable.

Beautiful day. Tour requires climbing many steps and steep rocky paths, so not suitable for people who have mobility issues.

We just passed by the island. I don’t think I’ll ever make it to visit the castle. A place I’ll never be. Was drawing in the circus while passing by it on the train. We gonna visit a Patrick, the publisher to discuss the potential publication of the circus.I submitted my citizenship yesterday. Will see how it goes.The castle is abandoned.

Bannermans Castle is a fascinating place. Its fun to go on the tour and learn the history. For the past two years weve been attending plays there that are fundraisers for its preservation.

Loved it was there way back 1976 on a camping trip went up Hudson looking for place to put a s tent and have the boat safeBam the island with its own harbor at hi tide pierA mote draw bridge down yes but stillAnd a Castle

Very cool from the boat ride to the island tour. Tour guides were very nice and knowledgeable. Perfect for pictures

Awesome tour, lots of fun. They have a gift shop now. Tour guides and boat crew were great. They need a snack bar out there that serves burgers.

The Tour Guides were amazing

What an amazing place!!!! My first time here and its beauty wrapped in amazement. I urge everyone to take the tour! It will blow your mind!

We did the tour and loved it!!! I want to come back and see a show here. It was lovely.

A quick stop-over at a surprisingly quaint little castle. You could go inside the property for some interesting artefacts on display, but we spent most of our time outside in the gardens. Has a great view of the Hudson from its upper balcony. Dont forget to peek into the little grand central terminal - a train stop made for the mini train that used to run through the property

Great get out of new york activity. Tickets can be booked online . There is a small gift shop and out door toilets on the island so eat and go to toilet before going out to the island .

Had a truly awful experience dealing with them. Arrived on time but the boat had left early, and they would do nothing. A long drive and a bunch of money very casually stolen from us- a real bummer.

This place is a hidden treasure! Just make sure you book early on the weekend as the ferries fill up quickly.

Wonderful gourmet dinner! Beautiful scenery and fun company!

If you like stuff like this, youll like this trip.

The boat ride out was extremely pleasant and all of the guides and staff were not only extremely pleasant but they knew their information and were passionate about it!The island is beautiful and becoming more so with all of the work that is being done.

Such a great island to tour and learn history.

Ive always loved this castle and the tour was well worth the trip!

Great place . Wonderful senic views.

Fun fact. Bannerman purchased the island in November 1900,[2][3][9] for use as a storage facility for his growing surplus business.[11] Because his storeroom in New York City was not large enough to provide a safe location to store thirty million surplus munitions cartridges,[9] in the spring of 1901 he began to build an arsenal on Pollepel.

Ive known about Bannermans Castle for years and have always wanted to visit, but never seemed to find the time. So, when my birthday weekend arrived this year, I chose it as my birthday adventure and was not disappointed!I purchased tickets a week in advance, and that was almost too late. These tours sell out fast! Luckily, I was able to get 3 tickets for the 11AM Saturday tour.The boat ride to the island was fun, and the captain gave a lot of great information about the towns we were passing. The river was where we wanted to be on such a hot day!We arrived on the island and were split into 2 groups. Our tour guide was Abby, a fun and informative guide who took the time to answer questions and point out things people expressed an interest in. The tour was well paced with tons of information.My only regret is that the tour takes you to the gift shop kind of in the middle of the tour, and theres no time to go back, so if you dont purchase your souvenirs then, you have no other opportunities. Im a postcard junky, so Im bummed I didnt get to add to my collection.Over all it was well worth the price for the tour. Interesting, informative, and unique!

Awesome piece of history.

An Adventure !!great staff

Great history, amazing views went to the 6pm tour, perfect to see the sunsets. Store was close to buy keepsakes otger than that is was a good blast of the past still standing.

OMG! This was so much fun. There tour was will organized and it was a beautiful day. What a great trip :)

Amazing

Its devastating to see gorgeous history ignored and left to decay for decades to the edge of nonexistence before someone actually cared.If every person who visit would donate the cost of a bag of mortar, it would go a long way in supporting whats left of the gorgeous hystorical structure.

Loved this place.

Really nice castle in upstate new york

Excellent place to visit

Wonderfully built and maintained island home with a sadly dilapidated castle with a tragic but interesting backstory with a good amount of local and foreign history, friendly tour guides and picturesque views for people of any age. I heard that they also do plays! Overall, 10/10

Great service and wine

Wonderful day trip! The tour guides were extremely knowledgeable and entertaining.Fascinating local and international history.

Only certain times of year they give tours of this place and its only accessible via kayak or private boat. You can go as a party of one or a group the company has boats to accomodate for this. Overall great place for photographers and beautiful historical oasis

Such an interesting place. Will definitely be going back.

You cant go on the island any more, on your own !

Beautiful

Excellent your guides with great sense of humor :)

Boondoggle! Historical significance is marginal, tours are overpriced.

Worth a visit! Its pretty cool with a different history.

First there.Interesting placeMy tour guide Wes was very knowledgeable.

This place is well worth visiting! Take a tour.

Perfect quick getaway with beautiful gardens and stunning views.

Great timeFriendly peopleYou need to be physically fit to climb

Amazing place!

Saw this from the train and was like, “Yo! That place looks fake!” Need to come back and explore this place!

Great staff fun time.

Very cool place with beautiful views

Patrick O’Leary is the guy who google street view it. So I’m thankful, with out him I would never have found this place. He’s also on instagram (patrick_oleary_art. )

Beautiful. A lot of cool history.

WOW!!! Thats All That I Can Say...

Great to actually get on to this island that I had only seen from shore.

If you a lover of history then you must visit the Bannerman castle...40min on the Hudson Metronorth...ferry to the island and the rest is History

Its such a great historical place to visit in the Hudson Valley.

Great day on the Hudson

My property now. Hahahahahaha.

Best day ever

Good

Beautiful

Amazing place to visit by kayak

Feels like been in Europe but the history is so American, worth it.