Key facts
- Operator
- English Heritage
- Condition
- Partial ruin
- Access
- Staffed, ticketed
Pinpoint
Castle Rd, Scarborough YO11 1HY
Telephone 01723 372451
Possible Opening hours
Opening times change. Always check the official website before you travel.
| Monday | 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Tuesday | 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Wednesday | 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Thursday | 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Friday | 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM |
| Saturday | 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
| Sunday | 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM |
A headland fortress with roughly 3,000 years of activity behind it - Iron Age hillfort, Roman signal station, Viking and Anglo-Saxon presence, then the 12th-century great tower built by Henry II that still dominates the skyline. The clifftop position gives views over both the North Sea and the town below, and on a clear day reviewers say you can see for miles along the coast.
Worth the trip
The sheer depth of history on one headland - few sites in England layer this many periods, from prehistoric to WWII, on a single site.
Before you go
The audio tour covers most areas well, but reviewers wish it went deeper on specifics like the well's depth; some of the keep's higher walkways involve exposed walking, so it's not one for anyone uneasy with heights.
Reviewers consistently rate the views from Scarborough Castle as spectacular, taking in both bays of the coastline, and praise the informative audio tour and the small museum of artefacts. A couple of reviewers mention the cafe stand can close early in bad weather, leaving little option for a hot drink, and one describes an unpleasant encounter with a single staff member, though this appears to be an isolated incident against otherwise consistently friendly service.
“The castle and the surrounding ruins are simply stunning. They certainly knew which strategic point to occupy back then—the view of both sides of the peninsula is breathtaking, and on a clear day, you can see far into…”— Peter Erdelyi, visitor review
