Caernarfon Castle, north-west Wales, United Kingdom

Caernarfon Castle is one of the best-preserved medieval castles in the United Kingdom and the most famous fortress in north Wales. King Edward I began building it in 1283, after his conquest of Wales, as both a military stronghold and a seat of English royal power. Its polygonal towers and walls banded with coloured stone, said to echo the walls of Constantinople, rise above the mouth of the River Seiont on the Menai Strait.

The castle is closely linked to the British monarchy. Edward II, the first English Prince of Wales, was born here in 1284, and in 1969 the future King Charles III was invested as Prince of Wales inside its walls. Visitors can explore the towers, wall walks and gatehouses and see exhibitions on Welsh history and the princes of Wales. The Eagle Tower, crowned with three turrets, gives wide views over the town, the harbour, Anglesey and the mountains of Snowdonia.

Visitor Information

Together with Conwy, Beaumaris and Harlech, Caernarfon forms the UNESCO World Heritage Site Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd, listed in 1986. Two of the towers house the Royal Welch Fusiliers Museum, which covers more than 300 years of Wales’s oldest infantry regiment and is included in the ticket. Allow two to three hours for the castle and a walk along the medieval town walls.

From 1 September 2026 to 31 March 2027 an adult ticket costs £14.90, seniors over 65 pay £13.40, juniors aged 5–17 and students £10.40, and a family ticket costs £47.70; children under 5 enter free, and booking online saves 5%. The castle is open from 9:30 to 17:00 between March and October (until 18:00 in July and August) and from 10:00 to 16:00 from November to February, with last admission 30 minutes before closing. It is closed on 24–26 December and 1 January.

The castle stands in the centre of Caernarfon, right by the harbour. The nearest mainline railway station is Bangor, 16 km away, with frequent buses to Caernarfon; the bus stop is about 200 metres from the entrance. By car the town is a short drive from Bangor, Anglesey and Snowdonia. From the station below the castle, steam trains of the Welsh Highland Railway run through the mountains to Porthmadog.