Scottish castle on a sprawling estate for sale for barely €35,000, though there’s a catch

Brough Lodge on Fetlar, one of the Shetland Islands with only a few dozen residents, was built in 1820 by businessman Arthur Nicholson. He placed the palace on a 40-hectare estate and drew on architecture he had seen during his travels to France, Switzerland and Italy.

The last Lady Nicholson left the palace in the 1980s and the building has stood vacant since then. In 1998, the Brough Lodge Trust was established to maintain the building. That fund is now putting the palace up for sale. A “philanthropic entrepreneur” is being sought to turn the site into a “world-class sanctuary”.

The castle can be yours for €35,000 alongside the estate, but interested buyers should read the small print as well. The funds required a mandatory renovation in which the existing building should be preserved, but 24 bedrooms and a restaurant should be created, among other things. The total cost of the mandatory refurbishment is estimated to be less than 14 million Euros. “According to the plan we developed, we could respect the historic character of the building.”

Future guests of Brow Lodge will not only enjoy spectacular views of the North Sea, but also take yoga and textile classes and experience Shetland traditions such as weaving and knitting.