Bishop's and Earl's Palaces, Kirkwall

PricingHalf price in your first year of English Heritage membership, then freeEH memberHalf, then freeNon-member£8.50

EH members: half price, then freeInfo

Half price, then free, for English Heritage members

This place is cared for by Historic Environment Scotland. First-year English Heritage members get 50% off the ticket price; members who have renewed get in free. Bring your valid membership card, and any pre-booked tickets, to ensure entry.

Pre-booking is recommended at Edinburgh Castle, Skara Brae, Stirling Castle, Blackness Castle, Urquhart Castle, Doune Castle and Maeshowe. Bookings are limited to six people per membership.
Bring the card itself: joint and family memberships admit the named holders only.
Historic Scotland does not offer reciprocal admission to National Trust properties, and a National Trust card is not accepted here.

More information

Entry

Non-member prices

Adult (aged 16 to 64)£8.50

Child (aged 7 to 15)£4.00

Concession (aged 65 and over)£6.80

Pricing details

In-person price; £7.50 booked online, and 25% off online with code GOOD25 for visitors arriving car-free. One ticket covers both palaces. One undated price table is published for the April to September season; recheck on reopening in 2027. Children under 7 free but need a ticket; up to two carers free per transaction; Young Scot card holders pay £1 online. Explorer Pass accepted in summer. No family ticket, Orkney joint ticket or audio guide. English Heritage members: half price in your first membership year and free after your first renewal, on showing a valid card; bookings capped at six people per membership. Historic Scotland members free.

In-person price; £3.50 booked online; under-7s free with a ticket. English Heritage members: half price in your first membership year and free after your first renewal, on showing a valid card; bookings capped at six people per membership. Historic Scotland members free.

In-person price; £6 booked online. English Heritage members: half price in your first membership year and free after your first renewal, on showing a valid card; bookings capped at six people per membership. Historic Scotland members free.

ParkingFree parkingFree for all visitors

No charge for anyone.

Parking details

Historic Scotland says on-street parking is available nearby and a free car park is available on Great Western Road. Orkney Islands Council lists Great Western Road (South), KW15 1AN, with 150 spaces and 4 disabled bays among its long-stay car parks, which are free of charge; Great Western Road (North) is pay and display. The council's free East Kirk long-stay car park on Thoms Street (42 spaces) is about 220 m east. Visitors find road parking limited.

Driving pin: Great Western Road (South) car park, 351 m from HES's pin. Direct buses run to Kirkwall from St Margaret's Hope, Stromness, Houton, Tingwall and across Orkney, and the palaces are a short walk from Kirkwall Travel Centre; National Cycle Route EV12 passes the palaces, and staff will accommodate bikes. Book online with code GOOD25 and arrive by bus, train or bike for 25% off.

About

Two palaces face each other beside St Magnus Cathedral in the historic heart of Kirkwall, once the Norwegian capital of the Northern Isles. The Bishop's Palace was built in the early 1100s, at the same time as the cathedral, probably by Bishop William the Old, and is the only bishop's palace ever built in Norse Scotland; its west wall has the cathedral's alternating red and yellow stones. King Haakon IV of Norway died here in December 1263 after his failed expedition to the Battle of Largs, and his body lay in state in the hall. Across the road, the Earl's Palace was built around 1606 by Patrick Stewart, Earl of Orkney, known as Black Patie, who was accused of using forced labour and was executed in 1615. It is one of the finest Renaissance buildings in Scotland, with oriel windows, corbelled turrets and a great hall with a fireplace five metres wide. Climb the tower steps, see the vast kitchen fireplace, and pair it with the cathedral tower tour.

ClosedPick a day for times and prices

Until 31 Mar: Closed
From 1 Apr: Daily 10:00–16:30, last entry 16:00

Today, Saturday 24 October

Bishop's and Earl's Palaces, KirkwallClosed

Opening times may change at short notice.

1 April to 30 September daily 10am to 4.30pm; closed for lunch 12.30pm to 1pm; last entry 30 minutes before closing; closed 1 October to 31 March. Historic Scotland recommends booking an entry slot in advance to guarantee entry. Notice on 18 October 2026: the upper level of the Moosie Tower in the Bishop's Palace is closed; all other areas are open.

The Bishop's Palace is entered from the street through an iron gate and down wooden steps. Both routes into the Earl's Palace involve a few steps; inside its grounds the visitor centre is step-free. The kitchen and display are up 2 wide stone steps, the great hall and bedchambers up a wide stone staircase without a handrail, and the second floor by a narrow spiral; the tower's first floor is reached by wooden then narrow stone steps with a rope handrail. No toilets on site; the nearest adapted toilet is at the Kirkwall and St Ola Community Centre, Broad Street, about 120 m away. Small shop; no cafe or audio guide (a paid Orkney digital guide is sold online). Dogs on leads in the outdoor areas.

Dogs: Dogs are welcome in the outdoor areas on a lead; HES's general guidance excludes them from visitor centres and roofed areas. The site is open only 1 April to 30 September.

Photo: The roofless Earl's Palace in Kirkwall, with its corbelled turrets and oriel windows above a lawn under a blue sky. Tim Heaton, CC BY-SA 2.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Earl%27s_Palace,_Kirkwall_-_geograph.org.uk_-_6871638.jpg. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0. Resized and cropped for display; derivatives retain the source licence.