Caerlaverock Castle Reviews Summary

Castle and Grounds

Pros:

• "This is a stunning castle, steeped in history and absolutely fascinating to explore."
• "The grounds are stunning and very peaceful to sit and watch the birds."
• "The castle grounds are great and the castle is spectacular."
• "Lovely well kept grounds, friendly staff helping parking fast efficient service at the reception."
• "The grounds are lovely to walk through, down through the trees to the older castle site and back up to the much larger castle."
• "Grounds have a lovely walk and from memory the castle is great to walk around in too."
• "The plentiful grounds and play area are great for kids as they burn off some energy, and the castle provides plenty of interest for all."

Cons:

• "Unfortunately the castle is not open at the moment as following covid it needs work to make it safe."
• "Disabled can not get to upper floors of the castle."
• "Once again some areas inaccessible due to needing restoration at the old castle site."
• "The castle could only be viewed from outside unfortunately due to some repair work taking place."
• "Still a lovely place to visit, but the castle is closed as it is not safe and the playpark is closed too."
• "Although a ruin caerlaverock Castle still has a lot of original features and a lovely atmosphere."
• "The castle itself is closed as essential maintenance couldn't be completed due to Covid."

Staff and Service

Pros:

• "The staff were all very friendly and there was plenty of information about each part of the castle."
• "Staff are very friendly and informative."
• "Staff were friendly and helpful."
• "Very friendly (and knowledgeable) guides are on hand to direct you and politely ensure distancing."
• "The most friendly and accommodating person I've met yet in the UK, hands down."
• "Staff very polite, helpful and friendly."
• "The staff were so friendly and the lady Scribe and resident historian who will fascinate you and show boundless enthusiasm."

Cons:

• "Place is lovely but all we wanted was to look at it, take a couple of photos and leave. We were asked to pay £6 per person for the privilege."
• "Lovely scone and coffee in the tea room, however, when we bought our dogs out of the car for a drink of water from the dog bowl a very abrupt, rude and unfriendly older woman appeared swiftly from the shop."
• "2 ladies on site unhelpful and rather rude towards me."
• "Only thing I didn't like was the staff stalking the car park making sure you were going to pay very disorganised set up for the staff and customers."
• "Went to visit this castle got a very poor reception! We were told we needed to reserve tickets which was fair enough. But as we had come out of our way to see the Castle we asked could we look at the Castle from the outside as we didn't think that we were doing any harm but we were told we couldn't even look at it!"
• "Insanely beautiful castle, however we went along just to sit on the lawn and take in the views and we were hounded by the staff that we would have to pay £6. We decided to leave."
• "Suggest you send your staff on a customer relations course!!!!!"

Facilities and Accessibility

Pros:

• "Facilities include toilets and a small gift shop with coffee and food."
• "The visitor's center and toilets are open and there is free parking."
• "Good Toilet facilities which are wheelchair friendly as is most if the site itself, Assistance Dogs are welcome."
• "Facilities include a shop and small cafe, public conveniences with disabled access."
• "The site is flat and wheelchair accessible on the ground floor."
• "Parking enough for a dozzen cars at site and the toilets were immaculate."
• "Picturesque and well maintained grounds and children’s play area with a cafe/visitor’s centre."

Cons:

• "Covid restrictions mean the cafe is closed and you need to pre-book."
• "It does have a maximum height limit on site of 10foot high. This is due to an arch (10Ft) at the entrance to the car park."
• "Unfortunately no wheel chair can navigate around this place in my opinion."
• "Disabled toilets were tiny and the food a lot to be desired."
• "Also for some reason the gift shop/cafe doesn't allow dogs, very bizarre!"
• "It's a shame that the castle itself is closed for the foreseeable future due to some of the masonry looking a bit precarious."
• "Unfortunately, Castle could not be entered due to safety concerns and outstanding inspections."

Value and Experience

Pros:

• "Well worth a visit."
• "Definitely a place to revisit."
• "Would highly recommend."
• "Very good and reasonably priced family day out in my opinion."
• "An authentic castle, a must visit. Great price, knowledgeable, friendly staff who were very helpful."
• "Well worth a visit & the entry fee is reasonable too."
• "Certainly worth the visit."

Cons:

• "Place is lovely but all we wanted was to look at it, take a couple of photos and leave. We were asked to pay £6 per person for the privilege."
• "There is now a £6 charge for visiting the site!!!!"
• "Admission cost is quite expensive. There are some nice walks around the castle, but don't go expecting to fill a full day there as once you've wandered round the ruins and gone for a walk there's not much else to do."
• "Although advertised as dog friendly, you're essentially paying to walk your dog on the grounds, and are not allowed to bring them into the shop or cafe."
• "£2 for a can of soft drink though."
• "Admission cost is quite expensive."
• "Insanely beautiful castle, however we went along just to sit on the lawn and take in the views and we were hounded by the staff that we would have to pay £6. We decided to leave."