Hearst Castle reopens to visitors after 2-year closure. ‘It feels good to be back’
With bright 100th anniversary flags flying over new displays in the Visitor Center, Hearst Castle opened Wednesday to the public for the first time since March 16, 2020.
The sense of excitement for opening day was palpable.
Visitors heading for the first tour of the day cheered as they got on the bus at the Visitor Center and when they exited it on the hilltop. There, tour takers were greeted by more cheers from staffers eager to have the public back at the historic monument in San Simeon.
The former estate of media magnate William Randolph Hearst had been closed to visitors for more than two years due to COVID-19 precautions and a $13.7 million project to repair about half of the storm-damaged access road that connects the Visitor Center to the hilltop.
“Hearst Castle is a state treasure, and we are thrilled to reopen this wonder to the public to enjoy in a safe and responsible manner,” California State Parks Director Armando Quintero said in March, when the San Simeon monument’s opening date was announced
On Wednesday, visitors were finally able to take the first in a series of the long-delayed tours focusing on the wonders of the Castle — including its resplendent garden, in full spring bloom, and approximately 20,000 artworks and artifacts.
Stephanie Kirkland and Shawn Crawford of Oceanside, who took their tour at 9 a.m. Wednesday, made a special effort to be there for the first bus on opening day.
It was Kirkland’s second visit to the Castle, she said, but this time she found herself “paying more attention to the rugs and tapestries,” because of Crawford’s interest in them.
But she and Crawford said the highlight of the tour was the warm greeting they got when they arrived at the Castle.
Hearst Castle visitors, staffers react to reopening
As people lined up for the 11 a.m. tour on a sunny, breezy and cool Wednesday morning, a couple from London said they’d tailored their trip to make sure they could participate in Hearst Castle’s reopening.
Others on that tour hailed from the Philippines, Sweden, Brazil and Alberta, Canada, as well as Ohio, Texas, Arizona and Oregon.
Elizabeth Lucas and her daughter, Carolyn Blackman, came to the Castle from San Luis Obispo to celebrate Blackman’s 75th birthday.
Earlier, Bay Area residents Samir and Hira Baig were keeping their children — Dayaan, 6, and Ameen, 2 — occupied as the family waited for the bus.
Hira Baig said she was anxious to experience “the isolation and grandeur of the castle.”
“I liked the movie ‘Citizen Kane,’ “ her husband said, and he wanted to see if Hearst really was like anything like his fictional counterpart, Charles Foster Kane.
In the museum area of the Visitor Center, Josie and Antonio Acantilado of Lincoln were waiting for their nephew and niece-in-law, Sante and Nanette de los Santos from Calgary, to return from the 9 a.m. tour.
That family structured their five-day vacation around the Castle’s reopening day.
The Acantilados, who had visited the castle regularly since the 1980s, decided to sit out the tour after an already long trip through Yosemite and Sequoia national parks.
Others at the Visitor Center said they were glad to finally be back and serving the public at the monument.
Paso Robles resident Joel Pullen, the operations manager for the Photogenics firm that takes pictures of people before they board the bus and sells them, said he’s “very, very excited” about the reopening.
“It feels good to be back with the public, helping getting the guests back up to Hearst Castle,” Pullen said.
He estimated that, on their busiest days, he and his employees will take about 2,000 photos.
Employees at Aramark and the Hearst Castle Beef kiosk also expressed eagerness and happiness about being back at work.
Some Castle staffers and others who hadn’t seen each other since the Castle’s closure shared fist bumps and hugs during impromptu reunions.
On Monday, longtime San Simeon businessman Michael Hanchett of Cavalier Resorts contemplated what the Castle’s reopening will mean for local entrepreneurs, who have been experiencing a long, fiscal dry spell due to the Castle closure.
“I think it should kick off a good summer for all!” Hanchett said.
New ‘Unsung Heroes’ display, Julia Morgan tour
On Wednesday, while visitors waited to board the 52-passenger buses that would take them from the Visitor Center to the hilltop for tours, they gave a lot of attention to a new three-panel display that had been created by staffers.
Individual sections of the “Unsung Heroes” display honor Hearst, Castle architect and designer Julia Morgan, her staffers and the contractors and craftspeople who turned Hearst and Morgan’s artistic dreams into reality.
The “Unsung Heroes” display and a new tour celebrating Morgan were created to honor the 100th anniversary of when construction began on Hearst’s hilltop estate.
Castle staff had planned a year-long centennial celebration. Then the coronavirus pandemic hit, the state shuttered the Castle and festivities had to be postponed.
Cara O’Brien, the Castle’s museum director, said many aspects of the 100th anniversary celebration were delayed rather than canceled — including the launch of the Morgan tour, the display and the celebratory flags and banners at the Visitor Center.
Quintero, California State Sen. John Laird and San Luis Obispo County Supervisor Bruce Gibson were among those who got an early look at the new Julia Morgan tour, which focuses on the career achievements and challenging life of the trendsetting architect and designer.
Kara Woodruff, Laird’s senior policy advisor, said Wednesday via email that the tour “was such fun and quite fascinating.”
“I have a new appreciation for how hard she worked over her lifetime to become an icon for California architecture,” she wrote. “It required great patience and perseverance, and being able to diplomatically manage her relationship with William Randolph Hearst, among others. It’s about time she gets some recognition and credit for that!”
Gibson said Tuesday that he and other attendees “were excited about the reopening, (and) the cool new tour that brings to life such an interesting, influential personality. It’s fantastic.”
Guides leading Castle tours include graduates of training classes held during the pandemic.
“We have guides who’ve never seen the public on the hilltop, and who’ve never yet given tours to those visitors,” Dan Falat, supervisor of the State Parks district that oversees Hearst Castle, said the week before the opening.
Opening day brings changes to tour schedule, ticketing
Falat said early Wednesday that about half the available 2,200 tickets were sold, and others likely would be purchased before the end of the day. That‘s about normal for a non-holiday week, he added.
Falat said he expects the Castle’s first open weekend since the closure to be a sellout.
Guests who’ve taken Castle tours before will notice some differences from those offered pre-pandemic.
Tours will be “bus-to-bus” with a controlled start and finish, meaning that visitors won’t be given time to wander the grounds on their own after each daytime tour. But Falat said recently that the free-roaming walkabouts are expected to return as soon as the state allows.
Admission prices have also changed, increasing from $25 to $30 per person for the three main tours, but officials are quick to point out that there’s been no actual price increase.
The total ticket cost for all daytime tours and the more expensive night tours now includes reservation and other fees that had been add-ons before the Castle stopped selling tickets, Falat said.
Tickets for special semi-private tours — which include semi-private Julia Morgan, Art of San Simeon and Hearst & Hollywood tours —cost the same as before, but those prices also incorporate the fees.
Castle officials warn that they expect that some tours will fill up quickly, especially on weekends, holidays and throughout what’s expected to be a busy summer, so planning ahead is advisable.
A few tickets were still available Wednesday for the Foundation at Hearst Castle’s Grand Reopening Party.
Combined with its popular Twilight on the Terrace event around the outdoor Neptune Pool, the event will be held Saturday June 4. It includes live jazz music, dancing, wine, craft beer and food. Many attendees dress in period costume, but doing so is optional.
Up to 50 Foundation members may choose to pay extra for a special hour-long sunset after-party, complete with swimming in the pool, perks and swag bags; the Foundation’s Michael Young said about 20 of those special tickets were still available on Wednesday.
Funds raised by ticket sales and auctions go toward the Foundation’s support of preserving the monument, including artifact restoration, and for the nonprofit organization’s award-winning educational programs for students.
Reservations and information
For Hearst Castle ticket reservations, call 800-444-4445 or go to www.reservecalifornia.com. Reservations can be made up to 56 days in advance.
COVID-19 precautions are being observed, according to the state guidelines in effect at the time. To be sure what the latest protocol is for your visit, check the website right before it or on that date.
For details about the Castle and its history, go to www.hearstcastle.com or search for Hearst Castle on YouTube and Facebook.
For information about the Foundation and reservations to the Twilight event, go to foundationathearstcastle.com. Twilight tickets are $195 per person for Foundation members, $225 for nonmembers, or $1,000 including the after-party.
This story was originally published May 11, 2022 at 1:21 PM with the headline "Hearst Castle reopens to visitors after 2-year closure. ‘It feels good to be back’."
