Boo castle, Breven's mill and car park in Vingåker

Boo Castle is a beautiful terracotta-coloured palace reminiscent of a fairytale castle. Not too far away, you can also visit the beautiful Brevens Bruk and see the lots of deer. For our part, it then ended with a castle and campsite in Vingåker.

Boo Castle

Boo Castle is a so-called "fideikommiss", i.e. an "entrusted estate" that is bequeathed in a specific order. The estate is owned and managed by the Hamilton family, and hunting and fishing are mainly organised here. Next to the castle is the restaurant "Boo Natur".

Boo Castle is located by Lake Avern, about 28 kilometres southeast of Hallsberg. The castle is located in Hallsberg municipality, in south-eastern Närke.

Visiting Boo Castle

We would neither hunt nor fish, but wanted to visit Boo Castle because we are on a "castle trip" with the motorhome. Boo castle is also one of the castles that we are particularly fond of because it is so beautiful and "fairytale-like" with its towers and its bright red colour.

We parked in the small car park and first strolled around the so-called "Lower Park". There used to be only a marsh here, but in the 19th century Carl Diedrik Hamilton had a park built as a tribute to his first wife Anna Katarina Hamilton.

We then went to the gates of the castle park. There was a small sign that you were welcome to visit the park if you swiped 25 SEK / person. Said and done! The park is not so big, but if nothing else, it is from here you have a beautiful view of the castle and can get nice photos.

In the castle park we saw a gigantic tree, and passed some nice horses on the way down to the high obelisk that we saw at the end of the park.

The obelisk, known as the 'Great Stone', was erected by Hugo Adolf Hamilton in preparation for a planned visit to Boo by Oscar I. It was never realised. The visit never took place, as the king fell ill and died in 1859. However, the stone was left standing. The obelisk is 17 metres high and stands on it:

To King Oscar the Good from grateful subjects 18 8/8 60

The use of letters

Not far from Boo castle you will find Brevens bruk. We had not planned a visit here, but passed by and had to stop because it was so nice. Brevens Bruk was once an ironworks, but today it is mainly a forestry and agricultural company.

Deer at Brevens Mill

As we continued the car journey we had to stop. again. We have never seen so many deer before. It is unfortunately difficult to photograph them with the mobile phone camera, but behind the fences we saw hundreds of.

Sävstaholm castle in Vingåker

We then continued the motorhome trip to Vingåker. Since we are on a "castle trip" we check out all the castles we find and in Vingåker there is Sävstaholms castle. This castle was built in 1666 by Gustaf Larsson Sparre. The castle usually has exhibitions, but is currently closed due to the pandemic.

For me (Helena) this particular castle has a special meaning. In the 1930s, the castle was bought to run a school for children with intellectual disabilities. When the county councils later took over education, capital was released and the Sävstaholm Foundation was formed. This foundation financed my doctoral thesisand thus a doctoral salary for me for four years.

RV park in Vingåker

We ended the day at the car park in Vingåker (Vingåkerbadet car park). This is not a picturesque or scenic place, but an excellent place to stay for the night! There is free electricity here, and next door there is a bathhouse and petrol station.

See more in the neighbourhood

From Vingåker, it is not far to the manor house and Julita Farm Open Air Museum. It is also not too far from the the stunning Stora Sundby Castle.

Have you visited Boo Castle or Brevens Bruk?

Have you visited Boo Castle, Brevens Bruk or Vingåker? How was your experience? Please tell us!

Facts about Boo Castle

• Country: Sweden
• County: foolishness
• Municipality: Hallsberg
• Style: Neo-Gothic
• Material: Stone
• Owners: Fideicommiss with Carl-Hugo Hamilton as holder
• Drift: Leased by Boo Egendom AB, with CEO Carl-Fredrik Hamilton.
• Read more: You can find more information at the castle's website

Activities at Boo Castle

• Forestry and agriculture: There is active forestry and agriculture on the estate.
• Hunting and fishing: Hunting is organised at Boo Castle, especially for fallow deer. The Boo Estate includes 23 lakes and a total of over 1,000 hectares of fishing waters. Fishing licences can currently be purchased via iFiske.
• Afternoon Tea: The castle's website states that they offer Afternoon Tea in the Boskulla Corp de Logis, on certain Sundays.
• Boo Nature restaurant: Right next to Boo Castle is the Boo Natur restaurant, which offers, among other things, a tasting menu.
• Boo church and the Boo daffodil: Not far from the castle is Boo church where, at the right time of year, you can see the special Boo daffodil. This special daffodil comes from Scotland and may have been here for 250 years.

History at Boo Castle

• 1624: Gustav II Adolf donated the estate to the Scottish commander Alexander Leslie in recognition of his efforts during the Thirty Years' War.
• 1692: When siblings Anna and Gustaf Cruus died, the area around Boo was inherited by their daughter Anna Fleming.
• 18th century: On the site was a mansion with four wings.
• 1723: Anna Fleming married Hugo Johan Hamilton, and Hamilton created a fideicommiss by inheritance, exchange and purchase.
• 1780: Karl Didrik Hamilton had the mansion rebuilt.
• 1878-1882: Boo Castle was built by Hugo Johan Hamilton, the then feudal commissioner at Boo, to designs by Johan Fredrik Åbom. The client was the member of parliament Hugo Johan Hamilton af Hageby. The castle was painted white and had dark carpentry.

20th century to the present

• 1925-1927: The interior was remodelled and renovated under the direction of architect Ivar Tengbom. At the same time, landscape architect Rudolf Abelin created a new park in the English style.
• 1959: The castle was painted in a red-pink shade, which was the colour of the original 1875 drawings.
• 2008-2010: The castle was renovated and given the colour scheme it has today.
• 2015: The veranda was glazed in accordance with the original drawings.