Tovrea Carraro Society

The mission of Tovrea Carraro Society is to provide a unique experience for visitors to Tovrea Castle at Carraro Heights; preserving, maintaining and restoring its historic structures, gardens and grounds, in partnership with the City of Phoenix.

In the Spring of 2010, after years of restoration, due to the economic crisis and budget reductions, all plans to open Tovrea Castle at Carraro Heights to the public had to be put on hold. That same year, a small group of community volunteers recognized the need to make this landmark available to the public and formed Tovrea Carraro Society, a non-profit organization.

In 2011, the City of Phoenix through its Parks and Recreation Board, approved an Agreement with Tovrea Carraro Society to operate the Castle on behalf of the City. The Society is responsible for handling all aspects of the daily operation of the Castle including fundraising efforts, volunteer recruitment and training, scheduling and hosting public tours, special event bookings, promotional efforts and community outreach programs.

Operating a Castle in the Desert is a dream come true, but an expensive dream, at that.

Our operations include the regular preventive maintenance of the castle building, visitor center, the cactus gardens irrigation systems, the tour trams and much more.

Even changing the nearly 200 light bulbs on a regular basis is fun, but costly. And then you have the repairs that MUST be made: the nearly one-hundred year old Castle has beautiful doors, windows and hardware that need special repair, as do the lighting fixtures. Our harsh climate here in the desert means that the Castle's unique and wonderful features need constant attention.

Hey, we're not complaining; it is a pleasure to work on such an iconic structure. But, it takes extra dollars. As an all-volunteer organization, all monies raised through tours, events and donations go directly toward special restoration projects and daily operations, repairs and maintenance. In fall of 2018, the Capital campaign to raise funds to REfurbish, REbuild and REcreate the 7 Outbuildings on the property was kicked off and continues to this day.

You can help us continue to keep this treasure in great shape by donating to Tovrea Carraro Society, where you can be sure that your contribution goes back into 'our' Castle in the Desert - keeping it open to the public for years to come.

Testimonials

"This was a fun tour. Growing up in Phoenix I have seen this castle on the hill my whole life. It was a lot of fun to get the history and to finally be able to see the inside." Melissa, G., Guest in November 2023

"Great tour with volunteer guides that clearly enjoy showing the property. You'll learn so much about 'that random castle off the 202" Bryce M, Guest in October 2023

"Historic house that is iconic for AZ. Great information learned on the tour. I would recommend signing up to get tickets and take the tour. Very cool! Brianna G, Guest in September 2023