Bamburgh Castle offers guests a rich dose of history in a stunning setting. Visitors pay an admission fee and can choose to explore alone or with an audio guide (additional cost). Must-see areas include the State Rooms, keep, and the fortifications that command wonderful panoramas over the dune-fringed beach and Bamburgh village.
Prebooking a skip-the-line ticket lets you bypass any entry lines on the day. Alternatively, several tours from places such as Edinburgh visit the castle alongside other Northumberland and Scottish Borders attractions, including Holy Island and Lindisfarne. Some tours adopt a Harry Potter theme, focusing on nearby Alnwick Castle, which doubled as Hogwarts in the Harry Potter movies, while also visiting Bamburgh Castle.
Bamburgh Castle overlooks Northumberland’s North Sea coast midway between Newcastle and Edinburgh. Regular buses serve Bamburgh village, just a stroll away, and the nearest railway station is Chathill. Drivers can reach the castle via the B1341 from the A1. For ease, join a tour that includes round-trip transport and other local sights.
Bamburgh Castle is open daily between February-October, and at weekends in the intervening months. It can get very busy between May and October and during winter holiday weekends. Booking admission online will let you skip any ticket-booth lines. Alternatively, arrive as close to the opening and closing times as possible to miss the crowds.
Be sure not to miss the castle’s historical highlights. Check out the bottle-shaped Keep Hall gate–designed to allow knights on horseback to enter—and trawl the Archaeology Museum to see the stunning 7th-century gold brooch famous for depicting a creature dubbed the “Bamburgh Beast.” Families with older kids will particularly like the Armory, with its displays of vicious-looking weapons, including pikes and a 15th-century bow.