Crichton Castle

PricingFreeFree for all visitors

Free entry for everyone

Entry

Free for everyone

Pricing details

Free entry for everyone; no membership card is needed.

ParkingParking not known

The Trust's page does not say how parking is charged.

Parking details

Historic Scotland lists car parking among the facilities but names no car park and publishes no charge or free statement, so the status is recorded as unknown. Visitors park at the small car park beside Crichton Collegiate Church and walk about 400 m south on a good track to the castle, with a steep final stretch. Reviewers warn that a satnav set for the castle leads to a road with no access: set it for Crichton Collegiate Church instead.

Driving pin: the car park by the collegiate church, 410 m north of Historic Scotland's own pin on the castle. The last miles are a single-track road with passing places, potholes and blind corners. Historic Scotland gives journey planners only.

About

Crichton Castle stands out of sight on a terrace above the River Tyne in a quiet corner of Midlothian, a noble residence from the late 1300s to the end of the 1500s. John de Crichton built the lofty tower house about 1400, and his son Sir William, Chancellor of Scotland from 1439, added a great hall and kitchen round a new courtyard and founded the collegiate church nearby. In 1488 the castle passed to Patrick Hepburn, soon Earl of Bothwell; the 4th Earl became the third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. About 1580 the 5th Earl built the north lodging, its diamond-faceted courtyard front looking more Italian or Spanish than Scottish, and an unusual stables block where bats now roost. The castle is closed and fenced for conservation work with no reopening date, but visitors can walk right round it. Satnav leads to a dead end: park by Crichton Collegiate Church and walk about 400 metres down a track, steep at the end.

Check today’s timesSee all times

Crichton CastleGrounds open; the castle is closed for conservation work and viewed through fencing, no reopening date

Opening times may change at short notice.

Historic Scotland: 'The castle grounds are open for you to explore. The castle itself is currently closed and can be viewed through protective fencing while we carry out vital conservation work.' No opening hours, closed days or reopening date are published (20 October 2026). Visitors can walk right round the fenced castle and the stables beside it.

An unstaffed site with information boards at the gate by the car park. No toilets, cafe or shop. Behind the castle the ground drops steeply into the Tyne valley. Dogs are welcome in the outdoor areas.

Dogs: Dogs are welcome in the outdoor areas; the castle itself is fenced off. No lead rule is stated.

Photo: The tower house and east range of Crichton Castle in warm sandstone above a grassy terrace and gravel path, under a blue sky with clouds. PaulT (Gunther Tschuch), CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Crichton_Castle_alt.jpg. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0. Resized and cropped for display; derivatives retain the source licence.