National Trust - Wray Castle Reviews Summary

Location and Scenery

Pros:

• "Beautiful location with easy access."
• "A walk around the castle grounds offers incredible views of Lake Windermere that are not to be missed."
• "Beautiful sceneries all around, specially the lake view point on the back and the meadows on the front side."
• "The walk from the car ferry is spectacular!"
• "Beautiful grounds, gardens, lake view, surrounded with hills."
• "A beautiful castle with stunning views of the mountain and lake."
• "The castle boasts spectacular views of Lake Windemere and the surrounding hills."

Cons:

• "Pain to get to down a very thin road."
• "Access is really tricky by car down a single track road with few passing places."

Castle Experience

Pros:

• "The best part here is the use of the free car park for National Trust members."
• "Great parking for NT members and excellent starting point for some lovely low level walks."
• "The upper floor is really educational about when Beatrix Potter stayed at the castle one summer and her diaries of mosses and fungi collected to look at."
• "The surroundings of the castle are beautiful as well as the castle itself."
• "The castle is lovely, as are the grounds and has some fantastic views."
• "The castle itself looks amazing from the outside and the rooms look great inside."
• "The castle’s maintenance is really good. It’s in good condition."

Cons:

• "Inside the castle unfortunately closed due to Covid-19."
• "The upstairs is currently closed for repair work. As such there is very little to see."
• "The castle inside is empty so not much to see."
• "Just a few empty rooms on the ground floor open."
• "The inside of the castle is very disappointing."
• "Going inside is a waste of time."
• "The rooms are empty and there is nothing at all to tell you what the rooms were!"

Cafe and Food Options

Pros:

• "Joeys cafe is a wonderful place to pick up a delicious vegan treat."
• "Great coffee shop with lots of selection of cakes and snacks."
• "The café gets good reviews and the drinks and cake were good."
• "The eco friendly cafe has a great selection of food, drink and treats and it is good quality."
• "Fantastic cafe on site, close to the lake for swim and a picnic!"
• "The coffee shop was excellent."
• "Joey's Cafe served nice food."

Cons:

• "Cafe is awful, food and drink are tasteless."
• "Make sure you take food and drink as we waited 45 minutes for the coffee van which was very expensive."
• "I asked for real butter and was told they didn't have any as everything is vegan."
• "We ordered and were given Flora for the scone."
• "We found the cafe to be expensive with limited options/choices for lunch and all meat free."
• "Lunch options for children were awful, it is a plant based cafe so no ham or cheese sandwich."
• "Cafe is separately run and is a bit over priced."

Parking and Accessibility

Pros:

• "Parking space is quiet big and cheap."
• "Free parking for National Trust members 😃"
• "Car park is only small but able to get a spot."
• "Disabled parking outside the front of castle, regular parking just down the slope, free to NT members."
• "Parking free for National Trust members, join now!"
• "Car park is free for members, entry to castle is free for all."

Cons:

• "The parking fee was astronomical at £6 for a few hours and only took coins."
• "Car park is a bit overpriced, way overpriced to be honest."
• "Parking was quite expensive."
• "Parking is only paid with coins, if you don't have coins you can't pay."
• "Car park is crazy expensive."
• "Its free to enter but there's a car parking charge."
• "The parking is a bit expensive £5 minimum for 2 hours."