Visiting Windsor Castle: What You MUST Know
Planning a trip to London and considering visiting Windsor Castle? If so, there are some things you should know. As the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world, Windsor Castle is a must-see for royal family fans.
It’s the King’s official residence and was the Queen’s favourite ‘weekend home’. She spent most of her private weekends at the Castle, which is also used for ceremonial and State occasions.
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1. Book Ahead
Most importantly, when planning on visiting Windsor Castle, you should check the dates it is open. Currently it is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
During peak times, you will struggle to get tickets if you wait until just a few days before. Of the 3 times I have been to the castle, I experienced this once. It was my most recent visit. While taking my mother there for the first time, I didn’t check on tickets until a few days ahead of our visit, which was around the Easter holiday.
You can find out what happened, and learn other valuable tips in the video I made about it. It’s received 600k+ views on TikTok.
2. Re-admission for One Year
While most people only have time for visiting Windsor Castle once during a London trip, it’s important to note your ticket can be reused.
If, and only if, you sign your ticket at the designated area before you exit the castle, it is valid for one year. They do conduct verification checks when you return, so don’t try to be sneaky!
But, a lot of people don’t know this fact about returning within one year on the same ticket.
3. What You Can See
When you purchase a ticket, you have access to The State Apartments and St. George’s Chapel (if it is open & isn’t a Sunday). However, keep in mind that you are not allowed to photograph anything inside either of these locations.
The State Apartments feature some of the finest treasures from the Royal Collection. When Mr. Sunny and I visited, he enjoyed seeing the trophies of arms and armour that line the walls of the Grand Staircase and Grand Vestibule. The china museum captivated my attention.
It’s important to note that since this is a working royal palace, opening arrangements can change at short notice. There are occasions when the State Apartments could be closed. Entrance to them closes 30 minutes after the last admission time.
While it’s included in an admission ticket, I have never been to the Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House. The queue is always ridiculously long for it. If it’s of interest to you, I suggest you book an entrance ticket to Windsor Castle as soon as it opens and go directly to the Queen Mary’s Doll’s House.
I also give similar advice for seeing the Crown Jewels at The Tower of London. Read my Things to Do Near the Tower of London article for more.
And, speaking of queues, be ready to see a queue wrapped around the street for entrance into Windsor Castle.
How to Get to Windsor Castle
From Central London, you have two options for train travel to Windsor. Also, neither of these routes require booking ahead to save money. This is different from most day trips you would take from London. And there is also another way to get there for those who just want to most convenient route.
train option 1
Paddington Station to Slough, via the Elizabeth Line. Then take a train from Slough one stop to Windsor & Eton Central. You will exit this beautiful train station and directly face the Castle. It’s quite a breath-taking way to arrive.
The change of trains is quite easy. Slough is a small station. However, you might wait a while to get the train for the one stop. Therefore, consider that it may take a while to return the same way, depending on how long you have to wait for trains in between.
Also, it’s important to note that the Elizabeth Line tends to have maintenance or strikes. So, this could really affect your trip plans if this is your preferred route.
You can fairly plan on around 50 minutes for this journey. The journey from Paddington Station to Windsor & Eton Central is £13.40 and is a separate ticket from the Underground.
You can use a contactless card for both. When my mother visited from the US, I used my Oyster card for my journey and a credit card for hers. After a few days, they came out to exactly the same price. It takes a few days for it to register and the right rate. This is assuming you don’t have any foreign transaction fees.
train option 2
Waterloo Station to Staines via South Western Railway and then a train to Windsor & Eton Riverside. You will be just a short walk from the Castle with this route. It’s also frequently unreliable due to rail strikes in the UK.
most convenient option
You may wish to take an Uber to and from Windsor. Sometimes, it’s worth the convenience if you want to spend the morning in Windsor and return early afternoon to London without train hassle and crowds. I chose this return route when my other visited and didn’t regret it. After a long day of sightseeing, I just couldn’t deal with crowds on trains.
3. Visiting Windsor Castle- Special Tours & Day Trips
You can pick up a free multimedia guide which can assist with maximising your visit to Windsor Castle. However, if you have a larger group, you might want to consider a more focused tour. There’s also a Private Guided Evening Tour of Windsor Castle for groups offered currently on Monday, Thursday and Friday nights.
If you are visiting Windsor Castle in combination with any other UK destinations, I strongly suggest you choose one that only goes to one other place. Combining it with Bath and Stonehenge seems to be too much in one day. Feedback I’ve received from readers and people who comment on my social media videos write that it felt rushed and they regretted it.
So, consider this when choosing a day trip in London.
2. Visiting Windsor Castle- Special Events
Windsor Castle offers many family activities such as storytelling and art workshops. It’s also very popular for school trips. So, you will want to check to see if there are any special events happening around when you plan on visiting Windsor Castle.
They could be something you want to attend. Or, they could present crowds that you weren’t expecting, especially if it’s the opening day of a major exhibition or when the Christmas decorations are first on display.
4. Visiting Windsor Castle- Changing of the Guard
Changing of the Guard is supposed to be far more spectacular at Windsor Castle than Buckingham Palace. However, I’ve never been able to see it. It can be canceled at the last minute, so take this into consideration if this is one of the top reasons you are visiting Windsor Castle.
5. London Pass
If you are getting a London Pass, it is valid for Windsor Castle but only for afternoon entry. Normal ticket price for an adult admission at the time of this article’s publication is £35. Remember, a London Pass is only practical if you have several days planned of visiting London attractions for which it applies. It also must be used on consecutive days.
So, it would be smart to use a London Pass if it’s on Day 3 or Day 4 of your London trip. And, you will have been hustling around to many activities the previous days. But, it may be worth a look if you want to pack in as much as possible on one London visit.
6. Visiting Windsor Castle: Souvenirs
As someone who grew up in Daytona Beach, Florida and worked at Universal Studios Florida, I am all too familiar with attractions having at least one gift shop. It’s actually a pet peeve of mine that you nearly always have to exit a ride through the gift shop. While Windsor Castle has several gift shops located around the areas for which your ticket gives you access, they are at least more covertly placed.
That being said, you might want to pick up a few royal souvenirs when there. For me, I tend to buy Christmas ornaments for myself and others when visiting the Royal Palaces. You can buy tea sets and will see many on display. However, unless you have no cares about a budget or shipping, those probably won’t be practical.
You’ll find several souvenir shops near the castle, but they are very touristy. And, I get that’s a bit silly to say because they’re all in essence ‘touristy’.
7. How Long Should You Stay
I recommend a visit to Windsor is at the very least a half a day. But, to truly enjoy the castle and what Windsor offers, I think it’s worthy of an overnight trip if you love everything royal or have your heart set on seeing a castle.
If you’re flying in and out of London via Heathrow Airport, you might want to arrange a hotel in Windsor on the first or last day of your London visit, since it is fairly close. If you live in London as an American like me and are looking for a staycation, there is plenty to do in Windsor for two days.
I have stayed at both the Macdonald Windsor Hotel and the Sir Christopher Wren Hotel. They are equally fantastic.
Hotels
If you’re, planning to stay in Windsor for one or more nights, this is an interactive map of hotels starting from the closest to the Castle.
Final Thoughts & London Travel Planner
Whatever you may choose, you will do yourself a huge favour by checking in advance the Windsor Castle website for dates when the castle may be closed or have shorter opening hours. I can’t imagine going to the town for the first time and not visiting Windsor Castle.
Finally, make sure you get your ticket stamped when you leave, as it will give you access for a full year!
Please leave your ideas and questions in the comments below too. There’s some solid suggestions for London trip planning for you if you keep scrolling too!
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Thank you for the excellent information! Coincidently, just yesterday I booked a day tour from London in August and Windsor Castle is one of the stops. I’m so excited to visit!
Fantastic! Just curious what company you chose for a day tour and how you discovered them. If I can help in any way it’s good recommendations, pubs, etc, please let me know. I really loved our weekend in Windsor. Will publish YouTube video soon about it. Are you visiting London or do you live here?
We are visiting in mid August from the US. I’ve booked two day trips with Viator. One is a Downton Abbey tour and the other is a Stonehenge/Bath/Windsor Castle. I can’t remember how I found Viator but
I used them when I visited San Francisco and had an excellent experience there. Your blog has been such a useful resource in my planning. Thank you so much for your help! Lisa
The queue for the doll house is always insanely long! It’s worth it, though – it looks amazing.
I’ve been to the castle itself about 3 or 4 times now (I live in this area and always have to go and see it when friends or family are visiting, haha) but I still love it. I still prefer Hampton Court for some reason, but Windsor is lovely too!
Thank you for the comment! I have to get to Hampton Court next. 🙂
Hello, great post! I am going with my parents who dont speak a word in English so the visit to Windsor will be a bit limited as I will be translating everything.
do you think 3 hours in the castle is enough? My mother wants to do something else in the afternoon but I am afraid the Castle will consume more than those 3 hours.
Hi Ana! Thank you for reading. I think three hours is enough but you do want to get there early as the line gets very long. I show an example of this in my video. If you want to do something else in Windsor you are fine. Central London is a bit of a distance so I wouldn’t pair the castle with something big in London.
Left a msg here while i was planning my trip and now that its all over (sad very sad) I came back with a nice tip for ppl with limited time in London but wants to visit windsor castle and hampton court.
there is a shuttle between those two places – it takes around 1 hour to drive from one to another, and it only costs 10 pounds per person (one way). I did it and it was very good! You can spend the morning at Hampton Court and go to Windsor in the afternoon (and vice versa).
Can I tour the castle for 3 hours and get to Southampton for my cruise which sails at 4:30? I need to be there by 3
Hi Debbie. I am going to go with a no. When I looked at the train schedules, it looks like it’s an hour and 40 minutes journey. If there are any delays, you will cut it too close. Also, you need to account for time to return to a hotel and pick up your luggage in between the castle and trip. And that would be assuming that you are staying in Windsor at a hotel next to the castle- which I can recommend a fantastic one that I have stayed in. Even though trains run fairly on schedule, I have been delayed in them a few times. It’s not worth missing a cruise to take the chance.
Hello and thank you for all this fabulous information. I have one question, how far in advance should I buy our tour tickets? thank you!