Earl and Countess of Carnarvon open doors of Highclere Castle in Hampshire to select guests

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

Fans of the hit TV series Downton Abbey are to be given the opportunity to “live like the lord or lady of a stately home” and stay in the castle where the show was filmed.

To mark the release of the Downton Abbey film, the Earl and Countess of Carnarvon have posted their residence of Highclere Castle in Hampshire on the Airbnb booking website.

The advert invites two guests to stay in one of the house’s 300 rooms on 26 November and be “treated like royalty”.

For the price of £150, the couple will join the earl and countess for evening cocktails in the saloon followed by a traditional dinner in the state dining room, waited on by the castle’s own butler.

After dinner, coffee will be served in the library before the guests retire to one of the principal bedrooms with an en-suite bathroom and views over 400 hectares (1,000 acres) of rolling parkland.

“Throughout the stay, Lord and Lady Carnarvon will immerse the guests in the rich history and heritage of Highclere Castle with a private tour of the castle, the Highclere estate,” the advert says.

While the room is listed as coming with a hairdryer and shampoo, it will not have wifi or a TV.

Reservations open at noon on 1 October and applicants are expected to have a record of good reviews from their previous Airbnb bookings.

Applicants need to show they are “passionate about Downton Abbey” in the message they include when requesting the reservation and the most creative submission will be chosen.

“It’s an absolute privilege and pleasure to call Highclere Castle my home and I am delighted to be able to share it on Airbnb for a truly unique stay,” wrote Lady Carnarvon in the advert.

“Highclere Castle has been in the Carnarvon family since 1679 and has an incredibly rich history. I am passionate about the stories and heritage of Highclere Castle, and I am looking forward to welcoming our future guests.”

Highclere was rebuilt in the 1840s in the Jacobethan style by the architect Charles Barry. Its grounds were designed by the landscape architect Capability Brown.