About
St Briavels Castle was built in the early 12th century as a royal castle on the Welsh frontier and the administrative and judicial centre of the Forest of Dean, a royal hunting ground. King John added a chamber block, and under Edward I thousands of crossbow bolts were made here from local Forest of Dean iron, so in 1292 he added the massive twin-towered gatehouse to guard the arsenal. The gatehouse later became a prison, used for debtors until 1842, and today the castle is a working youth hostel run by the YHA. The exterior and moat can be seen at any reasonable time in daylight, and the inner bailey grounds and gardens are usually open during the day, though sometimes only the entrance and courtyard during group activities; the interior is by YHA staff permission only, so ask ahead. Reviewers find the gatehouse and walls the highlight, with little to see inside. Only assistance dogs are allowed.
Open in daylightFrom English Heritage's calendar
- See notice
The exterior of the castle and moat can be viewed any reasonable daylight hours. The interior is operated by the Youth Hostel Association (YHA) as a working Youth Hostel and is access is by YHA staff permission only.
From English Heritage's published calendar, updated 1 October 2026, with dates up to 16 March 2027.
Opening times may change at short notice.
The exterior of the castle and the moat can be viewed at any reasonable time in daylight.
The YHA runs a working youth hostel inside the castle. Access is usually limited to the inner bailey grounds and gardens from 11am to 4pm, and occasionally only to the entrance and courtyard because of school or group activities.
The castle interior is open only with YHA staff permission; check in advance on 01594 530272 or stbriavels@yha.org.uk.
Free to everyone. Toilets and refreshments are available to visitors during opening hours. Please do not climb on the walls.
Parking: Very limited free parking to the right of the entrance ramp.
Photo: Robert Powell. CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/). Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Briavels_Castle._-_panoramio.jpg. Resized for display.
Dogs at the location: Not allowed. Assistance dogs only; pet dogs are not allowed.
Dog walks in the grounds: Not allowed. Assistance dogs only; pet dogs are not allowed in the grounds.
Leads: Not applicable to pet dogs; assistance dogs only.
Assistance dogs: Assistance dogs are allowed.
PricingFreeFree for all visitors
Free entry for everyone
Entry
Free for everyone
Pricing details
Free to everyone. Exterior and moat open access; inner bailey grounds usually open 11am to 4pm; interior by YHA staff permission only.
ParkingFree parkingFree for all visitors
No charge for anyone.
Parking details
Very limited free parking to the right of the entrance ramp.
Driving arrival: the castle entrance on Church Street (Google castle listing); the parking beside the entrance ramp has no separate listing.
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