Where does Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series take place?

Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series takes place in Malpas, UK.

What distances does Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series offer?

Entry options include: Mile, 2.5K, 5K.

How is Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series rated by runners?

Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series has an average rating of 4.43 out of 5 from 54 verified participant reviews on Racecheck.

What is Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series like?

Based on participant reviews, runners describe it as: Ideal for beginners (52% of reviews), Large Festival Atmosphere (74% of reviews), Remote Nature (94% of reviews), Lake (100% of reviews).

Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series reviews

Name: Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series
Start: 2026-06-20
End: 2026-06-20
Location: Malpas, UK
Rating: 4.43

Amy R.

4.9

· 2026 2.5K ·

Well organised event. Clear instructions at the start. Only issue was clarity of water and a bit shallow at the far end. I guess this is pretty usual for lake swims though unless it’s a much bigger expanse of water.

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Thank you for your feedback Amy!

Emma S.

4.1

· 2026 2.5km ·

Enjoyable race with in great surroundings & decent organisation. It would be helpful if a few things could be updated, which others have also mentioned. Pre-race info - there’s a lot of it, but some is incorrect/out of date & important details are hard to find. E.g. you could rem...

Enjoyable race with in great surroundings & decent organisation. It would be helpful if a few things could be updated, which others have also mentioned. Pre-race info - there’s a lot of it, but some is incorrect/out of date & important details are hard to find. E.g. you could remove the incorrect info about the swim course & parking. Directions & signage - please provide a postcode or location to aim for as Cholomondely Castle has lots of entrances & I ended up driving around to find the right one. The car park says triathlon, which makes those attending other sports think they have to go elsewhere. Pre-race swim info about bag drop is confusing & not what you get on the day (a centralised, manned gazebo bag drop for all events & a gazebo bag drop at the start, which is not controlled). The water is so shallow at the first turn that you scrape your hands on stones on the bottom & I bumped my hip on a rock. People were walking around it in the triathlon. Registration didn’t know the answer to questions I had, so I was glad to have arrived early to be able to find out for myself. A couple of us nearly missed the event because we were told to wait at bag drop for someone to take us to the start & no one came. Great things - surroundings, having lots of sports coming together over 2 days, plenty of toilets, changing room, food options, clear course marking, snacks after event, showers. A few small tweaks would make it a 5 star event. I will probably do it again for the surroundings (& because I won a free entry) & will be better equipped to enjoy the day with my knowledge from this year.

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Thank you Emma you for your detailed feedback! We are glad you enjoyed your race. We will certainly review all your feedback points and see how we can improve for next year, as well as in our other races. Thank you!

Dionne R.

4.9

· 2025 5K ·

Great event again, having looked at the details and location prior, I knew the lake wouldn't be huge and that it was a tight fight for the distance but the organisers did a fantastic job of making the most of the space in the lake that they could, ensuring the laps worked for eac...

Great event again, having looked at the details and location prior, I knew the lake wouldn't be huge and that it was a tight fight for the distance but the organisers did a fantastic job of making the most of the space in the lake that they could, ensuring the laps worked for each discipline. Yes it was a little shallow at the turning points at either end and silty / reedy but this has no reflection on the organisers and is completely out of their hands, it's also in my opinion, part and parcel of open water events. Spectators could access points along the lake and several small jetties to watch if they wanted as viewings from the entry and exit points weren't great, again something that cannot be helped. Staff were fantastic, goodies were top notch and the event village had a lovely atmosphere. Will 100% return again !

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Danny W.

3.6

· 2025 5K ·

Overall the event is very pleasant, the race village with live music is very chill, the backdrop of the castle with decent weather, and family-friendly participation for all levels - made for a very nice atmosphere. For the cost of an entry, it would be nice for one spectator tic...

Overall the event is very pleasant, the race village with live music is very chill, the backdrop of the castle with decent weather, and family-friendly participation for all levels - made for a very nice atmosphere. For the cost of an entry, it would be nice for one spectator ticket to be included. Signage wise, we got a little confused with the carpark sign into the grounds, as the turning stated 'Triathlon' carpark however as we weren't competing for a triathlon so we drove past it and into the cycling route - I know it can sound pedantic but the signage just needs to say 'Carpark' as not to single out a particular sport unnecessarily. Feedback regarding my race itself: The course felt a little confusing for the 5K - which wasn't helped with directions being slightly different to the pre-event video, the water itself is quite brown which made it harder to spot the weeds and lilies (I swam into a few), and as others have said, the water level at times quite shallow where it wasn't possible to swim but to dig my hands into the mud to pull myself forward - I don't really know what could be done about this, it's just what we experienced. I may have also been bitten on my face and neck during the swim as I noticed three bites afterwards. We also found it a shame that spectators were not able to see the swim from any vantage point very clearly - especially for the start and finish itself. The staff we encountered were all very helpful and I thought the kayakers during the course were great as well - always visible. There were good amenities, like for toilets etc. Food and drink options were decent as well, and plenty of carparking.

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Dear Danny, thank you so much for your review and your feedback. We have taken your comments into account and will consider these points for our future races. We are so glad you enjoyed the beautiful venue, and that you had a good experience with our wonderful staff and volunteers. Thank you for your participation and we hope to see you again soon!

Amanda G.

4.0

· 2025 2.5K ·

Lovely atmosphere at this event, it’s the 2nd time I have done the swim series. Staff are amazing and the organisation is superb. My issue this year is the lake itself - almost everyone exited the water completely filthy with mud and reeds; my wetsuit had clumps of mud INSIDE it ...

Lovely atmosphere at this event, it’s the 2nd time I have done the swim series. Staff are amazing and the organisation is superb. My issue this year is the lake itself - almost everyone exited the water completely filthy with mud and reeds; my wetsuit had clumps of mud INSIDE it after finishing. At the turning points it is extremely shallow; my hands were hitting the floor as I stroked. The course itself is also very confusing - despite a very good briefing at the beginning, when you’re in there and sighting, it’s difficult to remember “am I back to red now, or another green” etc. You rely on others with the same colour hats as you to follow but there’s a worry if they’re going wrong, so are you! For these reasons I wouldn’t choose Cholmondeley as my step up to a 5k next year.

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Thank you so much for your review. We are sorry that our event did not meet expectations. We have made a note of your feedback and will consider this moving forward for our future events. Thank you for your participation this year.

Lucy H.

4.5

· 2025 2.5K ·

Very well organised race with good atmosphere and friendly staff. yes the water was a little silly and some weeds in places, but no more than you would expect in a shallow lake. The only (very minor) area to improve would be the swim exit - extremely soft underfoot and sinking...

Very well organised race with good atmosphere and friendly staff. yes the water was a little silly and some weeds in places, but no more than you would expect in a shallow lake. The only (very minor) area to improve would be the swim exit - extremely soft underfoot and sinking. Would be better with some sort of ramp exit.

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Thank you so much for your review, we are so glad that you enjoyed the event this year. Thank you for your participation and we hope to see you again soon!

Sophie T.

4.7

· 2025 5K ·

My First 5k race, thoroughly enjoyed the whole day! Was very well organised from all the signage for parking to the swim course map. Everyone was so helpful, was such a great addition having bananas, Oranges and sweets at the finish :) the swim was in a lovely lake, a fair few we...

My First 5k race, thoroughly enjoyed the whole day! Was very well organised from all the signage for parking to the swim course map. Everyone was so helpful, was such a great addition having bananas, Oranges and sweets at the finish :) the swim was in a lovely lake, a fair few weeds but that's pretty understandable. Course was easy to understand. Only thing I would say is that it was pretty expensive especially to have to pay for a spectator on top of it. But altogether me and my mom had a great day, so thanks to all the event workers.

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Thank your review, we have noted your points. Thank you for participating and we hope to see you soon.

Will F.

4.6

· 2024 5K ·

This was my first 5k swim! The event was very well organised. All the staff were very friendly and helpful. The briefing beforehand along with the videos made the course very easy to understand. The staff at the end of the course were equally friendly. The only downside was at th...

This was my first 5k swim! The event was very well organised. All the staff were very friendly and helpful. The briefing beforehand along with the videos made the course very easy to understand. The staff at the end of the course were equally friendly. The only downside was at the far end of the lake, the water was very shallow and my hand was hitting the ground, and because of the lack of depth, there were also weeds / undergrowth to swim through.

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Karen L.

4.9

· 2024 Mile ·

Outstanding event from start to finish!

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Thank you so much for your review, we are so glad that you enjoyed the event as much as we did! Thank you for participating, we hope to see you again soon!

Marie Y.

4.8

· 2024 5K ·

I enjoyed everything about this event. It was my first Castle Race Series event (having been part of numerous other events) and from the pre-race info to the post-event comms, it's professional and well executed. I attended alone and every member of the crew that I spoke with was...

I enjoyed everything about this event. It was my first Castle Race Series event (having been part of numerous other events) and from the pre-race info to the post-event comms, it's professional and well executed. I attended alone and every member of the crew that I spoke with was fabulous. The registration process on the day was easy, there was somewhere to change and the race briefing was clear. The route had some twists and turns, which made it interesting and the marker buoys were easy to spot. I've seen some feedback from other participants on here and yes, there are some lily pads and reeds to swim through; it's a lake not a swimming pool, that's what we love, right?! I had a positive experience with the kayakers, they were close enough to help show the route but not so close that I felt I'd collide with them. I received messages within 24hrs of finishing with my time and finishers' pic. Thank you to the team!

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Thank you so much for your review, we are so glad that you enjoyed the event as much as we did! Thank you for participating, we hope to see you again soon!

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Cholmondeley Castle - Swim Series