Hold Stirling and you control Scotland. This maxim has ensured that a fortress of some kind has existed here since prehistoric times. You cannot help drawing parallels with Edinburgh Castle, but many find Stirling's fortress more atmospheric – the location, architecture, historical significance and commanding views combine to make it a grand and memorable sight. The current castle dates from the late 14th to the 16th century, when it was a residence of the Stuart monarchs. Here are the top things to see while you're there.

　　

The Royal Palace

The undisputed highlight of a visit is the fabulous Royal Palace, which underwent a major restoration in 2011. The idea was that it should look brand new, just as when it was constructed by French masons under the orders of James V in the mid-16th century with the aim of impressing his new (also French) bride and other crowned heads of Europe.

　　The suite of six rooms – three for the king, three for the queen – is a sumptuous riot of color. Particularly notable are the Stirling Heads – reproductions of painted oak roundels in the ceiling of the king's audience chamber (originals are in the Stirling Heads Gallery). The Stirling tap­estries are modern reproductions, painstakingly woven by expert hands over many years, and based on 16th-century originals in New York's Metropolitan Museum. They depict the hunting of a unicorn – an event ripe with Christian metaphor – and are breathtakingly beautiful. An exhibition at the far end of the Nether Bailey (at the castle's northern end) describes their creation, often with a weaver on hand to demonstrate the techniques used.

　　The Stirling Heads Gallery, above the royal chambers, displays some of the original carved oak roundels that decorated the king's audience chamber – a real rogue's gallery of royals, courtiers, and biblical and classical figures. In the vaults beneath the palace is a child-friendly exhibition on various aspects of castle life.

　　

Other buildings

The other buildings surrounding the main castle courtyard are the vast Great Hall, built by James IV; the Royal Chapel, remodelled in the early 17th century by James VI and with the colorful original mural painting intact; and the King's Old Building. The latter is now home to the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders Regimental Museum.

　　Other displays include the Great Kitchens, bringing to life the bustle and scale of the enterprise of cooking for the king, and, near the entrance, the Castle Exhibition, which gives good background information on the Stuart kings and updates on current archaeological investigations. There are magnificent vistas from the ramparts towards the Highlands and the Ochil Hills.

　　

Best time to visit

It's best to visit in the afternoon; many tourists come on day trips, so you may have the castle almost to yourself by about 4pm.

　　

Tickets for Stirling Castle

Tickets and audio tours must be booked online in advance. Guided tours of the Royal Palace are included in the admission cost.