Visiting Chirk Castle: What you need to know

Local lockdown

In line with Welsh Government guidance and local lockdown in Wrexham, the garden and estate at Chirk Castle will be open for local residents only from 2 October. The castle will be closed. If you live outside of the local authority area, please do not visit us at this time.

Under the new local restrictions, people should not travel in or out of Wrexham other than for the permitted reasons, such as travel for work or education.

We look forward to welcoming you back when we’re able to.

The safety of our staff, volunteers, visitors and local communities is our priority and we will continue to monitor the situation and government advice.

Arrival and parking

Please park in the main car park. Once you've parked please have your booking details ready to check in with our staff in the ticket office. If you’re a member you'll also need to scan your membership card.

In order to maintain social distancing, please arrive within your timeslot. Sadly, if you're more than 10 minutes late, we won’t be able to guarantee you entry. Your entry will be at the discretion of the property staff and will be based on visitor numbers and the ability to maintain social distancing.

We have a large car park at Chirk Castle, so there is plenty to space to park away from others. We also have designated parking for blue badge holders; please ask a member of staff on arrival.

Campervans that are used for transport are welcome but are not permitted to stay overnight and we’re unable to welcome caravans and coaches at this time.

There is no limit to the amount of time you can spend at Chirk Castle during your visit, but you will need to exit the property by 5pm.

Staying safe

The safety of our staff, volunteers and visitors is our priority. To ensure that social distancing is maintained we have set up new one-way routes in parts the property. Look out for the signs that will explain any changes to how you can access different parts of the site.

In line with government guidance, you're required to wear a face covering in most enclosed spaces (including ticket office, toilets and cafe) from Monday 14 September. Please bring one with you.

To help keep everyone safe, please follow social distancing and government guidance when you visit. If you’re showing any of the symptoms of coronavirus, or if you've been in contact with anyone who has the virus in the last 14 days, please don’t visit.

What's open?

The garden, courtyard, café (both 10:30am - 4pm), shop (Wednesday to Sunday, 11am to 4pm), estate, car park, wild play area, and Home Farm toilets are now open daily. Please note, we are only able to accept card payments at present. 

To ensure the safety of our visitors, staff, and volunteers the castle, Adam Tower, dungeon, second-hand bookshop and kitchen garden remain closed until further notice. We’re working hard to get these open as soon as it is safe to do so.

Toilets and baby changing facilities are available, with queue markers to maintain a safe one in/one out system. These are sanitised by our facilities team throughout the day.

The Estate

To ensure the safety of our visitors, staff, volunteers and local communities, we've reduced the number of people we can welcome onto the property at one time, so you’ll need a ticket even if you are only planning to visit the estate.

The Garden

The garden is looking lovely, but it won’t be quite as you’re used to seeing it. We have a small team, so the garden isn't perhaps as well-groomed as you might be expecting. There are some weeds and rough edges but please bear with us as we do what we can, as soon as we can, and instead enjoy the many other pleasures that our garden and estate has to offer.

Accessibility

Most of the new one-way garden route follows hard-standing paths which are wheelchair and pushchair friendly and there is seating available to offer you a place to rest along the way. However, one stretch of path is grass, and this may become muddy following heavy rain.

If you have accessibility concerns or need a shorter/step-free route of the garden, please talk to a member of staff at the Garden Entrance who will be happy to help.

Unfortunately, we're not able to offer a shuttle bus service at this time and we are also not able to provide wheelchairs for visitors.

Accessible toilets are available at Home Farm and these are sanitised by our facilities team throughout the day.

Access with dogs

Dogs are welcome in all outdoor areas with the exception of the garden, which welcomes registered assistance dogs only. We just ask that you keep your four-legged friend on a lead at all times.

Please note: We know the Chirk Castle estate is a popular destination amongst dog walkers. However, to ensure the safety of our visitors, staff, volunteers and local communities, we've reduced the number of people we can welcome onto the property at any one time, so you’ll need to book a ticket even if you are only planning to visit the estate.

Booking your visit

In line with Welsh Government guidance and local lockdown in Wrexham, the garden and estate at Chirk Castle will be open for local residents only from 2 October. The castle will be closed. If you live outside of the local authority area, please do not visit us at this time.

Please book your ticket in advance.

Entry and parking are free for members, but please bring your membership card with you. Non-members will need to pay in advance.

• Please book one ticket per person, except for children under five as they don’t need a ticket.
• You’ll need to choose a 30-minute arrival time for the day you want to visit.
• The timeslot is for your arrival time only and you are welcome to stay as long at you like. The property gates will close at 5pm.
• Tickets are for your use only and are not available for resale.
• We'll send your booking confirmation by email. Please make sure you fill in your correct email address when you book to ensure you receive your confirmation email.
• Every Friday we'll release new bookings for visits the following week. You can book up to 18 hours before a timeslot.
• Carers can continue to access our places for free with an essential companions' card. Carers don't need to book a ticket for themselves, but the person they accompany will need a pre-booked ticket.

Due to limited spaces, we’re asking that you only book once a week to allow others a chance to visit.

Help support key workers

To say thank you to our nation's key workers and all they have done for us, we're encouraging visitors to keep the first and last slots of each day free for key workers to use. While we are unable to 'reserve' these slots exclusively for key workers, we hope you will join us in thanking them by leaving these times free. If you or someone in your group are a key worker, please take the opportunity to book these early and late timeslots.

Picnics

You are welcome to enjoy your picnic anywhere in the garden or estate. Please take all rubbish home or place it in the bins provided.

Scooters/Bikes/Skateboards/Rollerblades

Unfortunately, independent toys with wheels are not currently permitted in the garden for health and safety reasons and to aid social distancing.