About
Tintern Abbey, Abaty Tyndyrn, is a national icon, still standing in roofless splendour on the banks of the River Wye nearly 500 years after its fall. Founded in 1131, it was the first Cistercian monastery in Wales; with the patronage of wealthy Marcher lords the monks began a new church in 1269 and did not stop until they had created one of the masterpieces of British Gothic architecture, consecrated in 1301. The great west front with its seven-lancet window and the soaring arches of the nave still take the breath away, Surrendered in 1536 in the first round of the dissolution, the ruins were rediscovered by the Romantic poets and painters. Reviewers say the site is bigger than photographs suggest and pair it with a riverside walk; scaffolding covers part of the church, so admission is reduced, and the £5 car park charge is refunded against spending in the abbey. Dogs on short leads are welcome at ground level, and the Wye Valley Walk passes the door.
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- Tintern Abbey09:30 – 17:00last admission 16:30
Opening times may change at short notice.
Open daily all year: 1 March to 30 June 9.30am to 5pm; 1 July to 31 August 9.30am to 6pm; 1 September to 31 October 9.30am to 5pm; 1 November to 28 February 10am to 4pm. Last admission 30 minutes before closing. Closed 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January. Cadw may close monuments at short notice in extreme weather.
Conservation notice: scaffolding has surrounded the Gothic church since April 2024 for essential repairs to the weathered sandstone of its upper walls, part of a five-year project; most of the church has limited access, including for wheelchair users, and admission prices are reduced by 10% while the work lasts.
Terrain level 1, accessible: the visitor centre and gift shop are entered from the car park through double doors with a push button, with a low admissions desk; accessible toilets with baby changing as you leave the visitor centre into the abbey; the abbey is mainly flat and laid to grass with some gravel paths and a few small steps, enjoyable at ground level, though gravel can defeat some mobility scooters; the church under conservation is reached by a modern metal staircase or a ramp. Portable induction loop, water refill station, defibrillator, dog bowl, picnic tables, exhibition, gift shop with guidebooks; no cafe or audio guide. Chickens from the neighbouring smallholding may wander in; low ruined walls and exposed drains are trip hazards. Drones are not permitted. Cadw's Beaufort Cottage holiday let stands beside the abbey.
Dogs: Dogs on short leads are welcome all year on the ground-floor levels of the site; upper levels are for assistance dogs only. The Wye Valley Walk, whose stages start and end at the abbey, admits dogs but asks that they follow the line of the path, go on a short lead through livestock fields and near farmyards, and warns that not every stile is passable for dogs.
Photo: The roofless Gothic church of Tintern Abbey above the low walls of its monastic buildings in early-morning sun, with the wooded Wye valley behind. Saffron Blaze, CC BY-SA 3.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tintern_Abbey_and_Courtyard.jpg. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0. Resized and cropped for display; derivatives retain the source licence.
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Walking routes3 routes
Wye Valley Walk, Tintern Abbey to Chepstow Castle(opens the full route on the National Trust site)
WalkDogs, with restrictions9.6 km distance3hr45 to walk
