Tonbridge Castle

Beautiful area without and within the castle walls. Very well preserved and maintained grounds. Personally, I was disappointed with the experience… not enough meat in there for me! There is a great view overlooking the town from the now disappearing battlements. There is free parking on site… BUT, beware, it is only for 30 mins… it’s all you need, really!!!

Tonbridge has a lovely example not only of a motte and bailey castle but also an Edwardian gatehouse of the type seen at Harlech and Caerphilly. The only thing that lets it down is the rediculous price of entry to the gatehouse. In Wales you pay less to get into an entire castle.

Lovely surroundings and peaceful place. A recommended place to visit if you are in the area for sure.

On a recent visit to Tonbridge my daughter decided she wanted to go exploring the castle! We walked around the grounds and then went and asked about going inside. We opted to show ourselves around, and were given a electronic key to get in the door under the archway. It was a bit eerie knowing we were only ones in there! It was in places very dark and other very steep but I throughly enjoyed having a look around, almost as much as the kids! You have a booklet to take around with you, firstly to point you in the right direction and also so you can read about each room you enter. It took about 40mins max to walk around and look at everythig but well worth the money.

I beautiful example of a Motte and Bailey Castle, situated right in the centre of Tonbridge.
The gatehouse tours are excellent with audio and plenty of signage. They take about an hour. You can also walk up pathways to the top of the motte (the hill) and admire the views from up there.
It’s open every day and is easy to find right alongside the high street and next to the River Medway. There are car parks all around. The nearest is the Upper Castle car park approached by Castle Street (yes, indeed!) (The Lower Castle car park is free on Saturday afternoons and Sundays and just a short walk).
The castle sits just inside Tonbridge Park, a huge area for sports activities, walking, flying kites, you name it! Tonbridge is very lucky to have such a wonderful piece of history and such a lovely park alongside.
The Castle is also a venue for Wedding and other ceremonies, so a luxurious occasion can be enjoyed here.