5 Real Castles That Inspired Fictional Movies

5. Forbidden City - Mulan

The Forbidden City is found in Beijing, China. It is currently a tourist destination showcasing Chinese art and artifacts that have been in existence for over 5000 years. The castle was home to 24 Chinese emperors who ruled between the 14th and 20th century. It is an enormous building, with unique and ancient Chinese architectural designs. The Forbidden City has 960 buildings with over 8000 rooms in them. It is this captivating palace that inspired the production of a Disney World animation known as “Mulan” in 1998. The film won many Annie Awards such as the Best Animated Feature.

4. Taj Mahal - Sultan's Palace

Taj Mahal is located at Agra in India. It inspired the “Sultan’s Palace” which was used to film movies such as “The Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin” and “The Return of Jafar.” Actually, this palace has been used as inspiration for many Disneyland movies and video games. Taj Mahal was built by a Mughal Emperor known as Shah Jahan. He built this elegant and magnificent palace in memory of his wife called Mumtaz Mahal. The mausoleum was built with white marbles which make it a heavenly sight to behold. It is one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

3. Alcazar of Segovia - Cinderella's Castle

The magical Cinderella’s castle stands at 189 feet tall and is known to be the most photographed castle in Walt Disney World. The castle was inspired by castles such as the “Alcazar of Segovia” in Spain and the “Neuschwanstein Castle” in Germany. One lacks words to describe this fascinating castle whose spires soar high in the sky. It possesses royal blue rooftops which may keep one gazing at the top of the castle all day. The Cinderella castle has 27 towers which are named 1-29. Two of the towers, 13 and 17 were deleted before construction because they were hidden from the rest. The tallest tower is number 20. Tourists should pray their visit is scheduled on those nights when the castle turns on over 16 million colored lights. On such days the view of the castle is spectacular, to say the least.

2. Mont St. Michel - Tangled, Lord of the Rings

Mont St. Michel is a legendary castle which is located on a tiny island in France. Apart from being used in “Lord of the Rings” movie, the castle has been used to film many other movies such as “Brotherhood” and “Tangled". The Mont St. Michel castle has also inspired the creation of video games. The castle has a pyramidal shape and an epic presence all around it. Visitors are welcomed by a drawbridge into the castle. There are shops and restaurants which help make the tourists more comfortable during their visits. Mont St. Michel has a spectacular look given the fairly ancient architecture used to build it.

1. Neuschwanstein Castle - Disneyland Castle

The Disneyland royal castle which was used in the movie “Sleeping Beauty” was inspired by the "Neuschwanstein Castle" found in Bavaria, Germany. This castle was opened to the public in 1886 after the death of King Ludwig II. It is believed that the king had built the castle to hide away from the public because he was shy. Today the castle is visited by over 1.4 million tourists every year.