Boldt Castle & Yacht House to open Saturday, May 11, for the season

ALEXANDRIA BAY, NY – The Thousand Islands Bridge Authority, owners of historic Boldt Castle and the Boldt Yacht House, will open its facilities for the 2019 season as scheduled on Saturday, May 11th, and will remain open daily through Sunday, October 20, 2019.

The Boldt Facilities have prepared in advance for the high water and boat dockage is available for patrons to visit Boldt Castle via boat lines and private vessels.

This season will premiere a new fountain on the channel side of the island that will also be visible from the shoreline and alit at night. The fountain was constructed using poured concrete walls and bottom. A one of a kind four-foot-tall by three-foot-wide ornate water feature will adorn the back wall of the fountain. Craftsman created its stone veneer in the spring, meticulously hand cutting every stone, using the same methods the men who originally built Boldt Castle used. All of the granite stone used for the veneer was repurposed from granite found on Heart Island. The walls will be finished with poured concrete caps created on site. This beautiful new feature is a must see!

Restoration work continues on Alster Tower. This year features the addition of a completely unique S-shaped door in the Venetian Room. Craftsman restored and re-built an original “S” shaped door separating the Venetian Room from the Shell room. With its curved doors and windows all closing and interlocking together it is truly a unique set of doors.

Rehabilitation of Alster Tower has moved to the original café. All millwork, original tiles and its ice box have been removed for restoration. The original floor and framing were removed after years of rot and water damage and new subflooring installed. The new floor has been reframed and masonry repairs made to further reinforce and strengthen the structure. Seven new white oak windows have been built to replace the current ones and a new entrance door and frame has been
built by facilities craftsman reusing all the original locking hardware and band iron.

During the Authority’s 42 years of ownership of the former Boldt properties on Heart Island and the Boldt Yacht House on Wellesley Island, millions of dollars have been invested in rehabilitation efforts and improvements. At the same time, the Boldt Facilities have hosted over 1,100 wedding, have counted over 6.2 million visitors to these historic properties and provides over $46 million annually in economic activity for the Thousand Islands Region.

For more information on Boldt Castle please call 315-482-2501 or log onto
www.boldtcastle.com for admission rates, wedding information and links to scenic cruise operators offering stops at the Castle. For general 1000 Islands tourism information, including lodging, call 800-847-5263 or log onto www.visit1000islands.com.