The best archaeological sites to visit

A warm sunset over the burial mounds at Sutton Hoo, Suffolk 1200332.jpg — Sunset over the burial mounds at Sutton Hoo, Suffolk | © National Trust Images/Justin Minns

From prehistoric footprints to ancient burials and nuclear bomb test sites, uncover hidden stories at the archaeological sites in our care.

We look after more than 90,000 archaeological sites, from stone circles, hillforts and roman villas, to medieval castles, designed landscapes and wartime shelters. Explore the most significant sites in our care and discover how our ancestors lived.

Avebury, Wiltshire: Avebury is home to the largest stone circle in the world, as well as two smaller stone circles, surrounded by a huge henge bank and a ditch. In 2017, excavations uncovered pits, stake-holes, stone tools and pottery fragments. These signs of occupation spanned thousands of years, from Mesolithic hunter-gatherers to the Bronze Age.Explore Avebury
Bodiam Castle, Sussex: Of the many castles in our care, Bodiam stands out as a particularly well-preserved work of architecture. Built in the 14th-century, you can see drum towers topped with battlements on each corner, spiral staircases and a portcullis. It's one of the best-known castles in Europe and rises above a moat, creating an impressive reflection.Explore Bodiam Castle
Castlerigg, Lake District: Castlerigg's standing stones became one of the first ancient sites given to us for protection. The 38 stones are overlooked by a ring of mountains and are up to 3m tall. Neolithic farming communities are thought to have created the circle about 4,500 years ago. It's not perfectly round and is flattened on one side.Explore Castlerigg
Chedworth Roman Villa, Gloucestershire: Set in a Cotswold valley, Chedworth is one of Britain's grandest Roman villas, containing in-situ mosaics, two bath-houses and a water shrine. It's an active archaeological site, with a Victorian museum displaying various discoveries. One mosaic in particular has changed the way we think about the decline of the Romans in Britain.Explore Chedworth
Corfe Castle, Dorset: The Norman castle, set on a steep, chalk hill, was developed during the 12th and 13th centuries and can be seen from across the Purbeck valley. It served as a Royalist stronghold in the English Civil War before being damaged by Parliamentarians. There's a viewing platform in the King's Tower and remnants of a medieval fort to find.Explore Corfe Castle
Dolaucothi Gold Mine, Carmarthenshire: Head underground and pan for gold at the UK's only known Roman gold mine, hidden in a wooded hillside. Between AD 70 and AD 80, the Romans created large, open-cast workings and dug several tunnels to access veins of gold. Dolaucothi also has remains from a 1930s mine yard, including buildings and mining machinery.Explore Dolaucothi Gold Mine

Image of a guided tour descending the stairs into Fan Bay Deep Shelter, The White Cliffs of Dover, Kent — A guided tour descending the stairs into Fan Bay Deep Shelter, The White Cliffs of Dover, Kent | © National Trust/Chris Tapley

Fan Bay Deep Shelter, Dover: This shelter provided shell and bomb-resistant accommodation for soldiers serving on a nearby gun battery in the Second World War. Recent excavations exposed a vast network of tunnels, some of which have been rebuilt. Visitors can tour the tunnels, imagining what life must have been like for the soldiers at war.Explore Fan Bay Deep Shelter
Formby, Liverpool: The shifting sands contain not just shipwrecks but also footprints belonging to our prehistoric ancestors. They show prints from hunter-gatherers and their children, who walked along the coast foraging for shrimps, razor clams and winkles. The sand and mud preserved their footprints, only for them to be exposed by tidal erosion many years later.Explore Formby
Hambledon Hill, Dorset: Hambledon Hill is an Iron Age hillfort and the site of the last known hillfort battle. At 190m high, it rises steeply above Blackmore Vale and the River Stour, offering sweeping views. The fort was a key settlement of the Durotriges tribe and there are traces of 365 roundhouse platforms in the ramparts.Explore Hambledon Hill
Levant Mine, Cornwall: At the top of coastal cliffs, this copper and tin mine extends for around 1,500m beneath the seabed and only stopped operating in 1930. There are chimney stacks and a steam-powered beam pump to see above ground. Its engine stands inside the original Engine House where it wound up the ore from underground for 90 years.Explore Levant Mine
Limekilns at Lindisfarne, Northumberland: Lindisfarne's kilns are remnants of the 19th-century lime-burning industry and are some of the UK's largest and best preserved. Look into their wide openings to see where limestone and coal were poured. The resulting quicklime was removed from arches at the bottom. Trace the wagonway routes that linked kilns to the quarry and jetties.Explore Lindisfarne
Mam Tor Bronze Age fortress, Peak District: Mam Tor is one of the highest hillforts in Britain, standing more than 500 metres above sea level. The defences at the site include a rampart, ditch and bank. The tor was also used for prehistoric burials and contains two bowl barrows. The medieval Odin Mine lies below the cliff face.Explore Mam Tor
Orford Ness National Nature Reserve, Suffolk: From 1913, Orford Ness was a site for the secret development of new weapons, from early military aviation to nuclear bombs. Explore and you'll see the striking sight of six abandoned research laboratories standing on a shingle spit. Archaeological remains lie all over the place, plus you can enter one of the labs.Explore Orford Ness
Sheringham Park, Norfolk: Surrounded by woodland on the estate, Howe's Hill is a mound that hides secrets below. Geophysical surveys have been helping to explore a prehistoric barrow here without needing to excavate. It's a rare and complex feature comprising a Neolithic oval barrow with a Bronze Age round barrow constructed on top of it.Explore Sheringham Park

Surprise View to Fountains Abbey in the summertime — A surprise view to Fountains Abbey at Studley Royal Water Gardens, Yorkshire | © J Shepherd

Studley Royal Water Gardens, Yorkshire: Among the designed landscapes we care for, the water gardens at Studley Royal are a World Heritage Site and incorporate the ruins of Fountains Abbey into their design. Follow the banks of the River Skell down from the abbey to the garden, which has been channelled into canals, cascades and tranquil moon ponds.Explore Studley Royal Water Gardens
Sutton Hoo, Suffolk: Climb the 17-metre-high viewing tower above this Anglo-Saxon burial ground where in 1939, a ship burial and treasure trove were discovered. An exhibition in the High Hall features original objects as well as replicas of what was found, while Tranmer House, once the home of Edith Pretty, has displays about various archaeological digs.Explore Sutton Hoo