Built in the foothills of South Mountain Park, the Mystery Castle has an interesting history of how it came to be. Obviously not a castle in the traditional sense of the word, it became known as a castle by a man and his daughter that he built it for.
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The man, Boyce Gully, used to build sandcastles with his young daughter, Mary Lou, and she would always ask him if he could build her a strong castle that wouldn’t wash away like the ones made of sand. Unfortunately, Boyce was diagnosed with tuberculosis when she was young and he decided to run away from his family so they wouldn’t catch it. He went all the way to Arizona and started building the castle his daughter had asked him for.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MYSTERY CASTLE
Built with every kind of material imaginable such as stone, adobe, auto parts, old rail tracks, and telephone poles, Boyce managed to scrape and salvage enough materials over the course of many years to make an 18 room castle complete with fireplaces, turrets, odd winding staircases, and oodles of nooks and crannies. There is even a chapel, cantina, and a dungeon!
In addition to all of these little oddities, there are a ton of knick-knacks all over the castle so it really pays to take your time in each room of the tour to study all the details. Along with these Boyce also planted little surprises all through the castle like precious stones, necklaces, gold nuggets, and even some cash. With these treasures, Boyce designed some of the furniture and then there is even an original Frank Lloyd Wright sofa! Such contrasts in the items from expensive gems to discarded items, but all of it lovingly selected by Boyce for his little girl’s castle.
Sadly Boyce died in 1945 before he could send for his family to join him. His daughter was an adult when she came to find out about what her father had created for her and she moved there to live in her fairy tale castle. Until her death in 2010 she shared her beloved castle by giving tours and today we can still visit it to see just what her father built and learn all about this unique home and it’s own “princess”.
PLAN YOUR VISIT TO THE MYSTERY CASTLE
Information last updated November 2019
HOW TO GET THERE
The Mystery Castle can be found at 800 E Mineral Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85042.
You can get to the castle by the 7 and 16 buses, both of which stop at Dobbins Rd & 7th St which is about 15 minutes walk from the castle.
Parking is available on site and is free of charge to visitors.
HELPFUL LINK:
- If you need an app that will navigate you around whether walking, driving or using public transport and even works offline then click for a guide about how to use Here WeGo.
OPENING HOURS
Opening hours are 1100-1530 Thu-Sun, closed on Mon, Tue and Wed. The Mystery Castle is only open from October to May. Opening hours can vary, so please check the Mystery Castle Opening Times for the latest information.
The tour runs on a circular basis, so you join when you arrive and then stay until the guided tour returns to where you started. This means you don’t have to hang around waiting for a tour to start.
You will be outside some of the time as you walk between the various parts of the castle. But, as much of the attraction is indoors, any time of year is a good time to visit. We would recommend you allow about an hour to fully enjoy the castle.
HOW TO BUY TICKETS
Basic admission prices are $10 for over 12s, $5 for children over 4 and free for under 4s.
ACCESSIBILITY
Because the castle was not built as a tourist attraction, accessibility is restricted with plenty of stairs within the castle to climb.
For accessibility details please visit the Mystery Castle Website.
IS THE MYSTERY CASTLE WORTH THE VISIT?
As a curiosity and unique attraction within Phoenix, Mystery Castle is well worth a visit. The guides are great at telling the story of how the castle came to be and explaining many of the features of the various parts of the castle. The story itself is interesting, sad and heart-warming as to how Boyce Gully came to Phoenix and ended building the castle for his daughter. His daughter, Mary Lou, lived in the castle until she passed in 2010 and used to give tours to tourists.
See what others think of this attraction on Trip Advisor.
ADD TO YOUR PHOENIX ITINERARY
From stunning mountain drives and trails to desert landscapes with their unique flora, Phoenix has plenty of attractions to tempt visitors, from the quirky to the mainstream.
IN THE AREA
- Taliesin West is the winter home of esteemed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. It is now home to his foundation and is open for tours of this stunning example of how he designed in harmony with nature.
- One of the most popular trails in the White Tank Mountains, Waterfall Canyon Trail passes ancient hieroglyphs en-route to the waterfall. Only running after wet weather, dry weather allows you to climb right up into the fall area that would normally be inaccessible.
- Explore 140 acres of Papago Park at the Desert Botanical Garden. Over 21,000 plants are laid out in several ecosystems for visitors to explore.
- Drive the stunning Apache Trail, part-paved, part-gravel road through the beautiful Superstition Mountains. Just beyond the Roosevelt Dam at the far end, you can see ancient cliff dwellings at the Tonto National Monument
- See how people lived in Pioneer times at the Pioneer Living History Museum. Visit 30 homes, both authentic and recreation to see how life was lived in the late 1800s.
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RESOURCES | PLAN YOUR TRIP TO PHOENIX
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These are a few tours we would recommend for your trip to Phoenix.
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