Things to do · Dursley
Berkeley Castle
The castle in the Severn vale where Edward II is said to have been murdered in 1327, home of the Berkeley family since the late twelfth century, open Sunday to Wednesday in season with guided tours, gardens and a restaurant in the walled garden.
Family-friendly
A real medieval castle still lived in by the family whose name it carries, with guided tours twice a day. Uneven steps make it hard going for anyone unsteady, and dogs get no further than the Kitchen Garden.
- Good: Guided tours at 12pm and 2pm, £2.50
- Good: Free car park
- Good: Restaurant and shop in the walled Kitchen Garden
- Worth knowing: Open Sunday to Wednesday only
- Worth knowing: Uneven Keep Steps; first floor not accessible to wheelchair users
- Worth knowing: Dogs only in the Kitchen Garden; assistance dogs in the castle
About
Berkeley Castle stands in the Severn vale below the Cotswold edge, about 4.5 miles (7km) west of Dursley. The Berkeley family have lived here since the late twelfth century. The keep was begun in about 1067 and the shell keep enlarged in 1153, the curtain wall and the walls of the Great Hall date from 1160 to 1190, and Thomas, Lord Berkeley remodelled the inside in the 1340s. Cromwell's troops breached the wall in 1645.
The keep holds the cell said to be where Edward II was murdered in 1327, beside a dungeon about 11m deep. The Great Hall keeps its fourteenth-century ceiling, and the old chapel, now the Morning Room, a painted ceiling whose decoration draws on John Trevisa's 1387 translation of the Book of Revelation. Guided tours at 12pm and 2pm take an hour and a quarter. Our story of Dicky Pearce, the jester of Berkeley tells of the fool who died here.
The castle opens in season from Sunday to Wednesday, 11am to 5pm, with last admission at 4pm. Adults pay £17, children aged 3 to 16 £9 and a family of four £48 (2026), and the tour is £2.50 more; you can book online or buy at the ticket office in the Kitchen Garden, and the castle is cashless. Allow two to three hours. Arrive at 11am to see the rooms before the noon tour.
For younger children, Cattle Country Farm Park at Berkeley Heath Farm has indoor play barns and farm animals.
The Keep Steps are uneven, and the first floor is not accessible to wheelchair users. Only assistance dogs may go into the castle and grounds, though dogs can join you in the Kitchen Garden, where the restaurant is. Our guide to Cotswold houses and castles has more.
Opening hours and season
In season, Sunday to Wednesday, 11am to 5pm; last admission 4pm. Guided tours at 12pm and 2pm. The castle does not publish its season dates, so check before travelling.
Facilities
- Free car parkDisabled spaces near the main entrance; coach park
- The Kitchen GardenRestaurant and gift shop in the walled garden
- ToiletsTwo blocks, both with disabled toilets and baby changing
- Dogs in the Kitchen Garden onlyAssistance dogs only in the castle and grounds
- Woodland play areaCastle-themed slide and a see-saw
The details
- Time to allow
- Two to three hours, with the tour
- Features
- Restaurant · Shop · Parking · Guided tours · Play area
- History
- Berkeley family home since the late twelfth century; Grade I listed
- Parking
- Free visitor car park with disabled spaces near the main entrance, and a coach park. Satnav GL13 9PJ.
- Without a car
- Cam and Dursley is the nearest station, about 6 miles away by the castle's reckoning; it suggests booking a taxi from there.
Photos
The castle from the gardens Photo: Robin Poitou, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons 
Across the park Photo: Philip Halling, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons 
The inner bailey at dusk 
The café
Location
Accessibility
- Accessible toilet
Entry is by the Keep Steps, which are uneven. A ramp leads to the Armoury and Great Hall; first-floor rooms are not accessible to wheelchair users, and mobility scooters cannot enter the building. Some garden areas suit wheelchairs, but the terraces have steps only.
Places to stay nearby
-
Hunts Court Huts
Glamping · North Nibley
Two glamping pods and a shepherd's hut for two, each with its own wood-fired hot tub, on a working farm at Forthay, North Nibley, by the Cotswold Way.
Hot tubs · Walker-friendly
Verified Oct 2026
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Forthay Bed and Breakfast
B&B · North Nibley
A late seventeenth-century farmhouse B&B with four rooms for two in the hamlet of Forthay, below the Tyndale Monument at North Nibley, on the Cotswold Way.
Dog-friendly · Walker-friendly
Verified Nov 2026
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Woodland House
B&B · Dursley
A seven-room B&B in a quiet cul-de-sac six minutes' walk from Dursley, with a hot tub, a sauna, a guest kitchen and parking for seven cars.
Walker-friendly · Hot tubs · Family-friendly
Verified Nov 2026
Nearby walks, places and things to do
- Cattle Country Farm Park 1.4 km away
- Leaf & Ground, Dursley 5.6 km away