Dunstanburgh Castle

A lovely coastal walk to get up to the castle takes around 20-30 minutes from the harbour depending on how fast you walk. The views from the castle and on the walk up are stunning. The castle doesn't have a great deal left but you can get up the main tower and the views from the top are fantastic. The staff were great and informative. One told us that you can sometimes see dolphins off the coast. There are toilets on site. You will need to park on the road leading in to the coastal town and walk up to the castle.

June 17th 2025 visit. English Heritage - free for members. Just a stunning location for a castle - one of the best castles to visit on a good sunny and windy day! Park near Dunstan Steads instead of Craster - and walk alongside the beautiful golf course. Some incredible history attached to this castle so get a guide book and find a sheltered place to sit and learn...! Brilliant all round. 5 out of 5.

Undoubtedly one of the finest English Heritage sites to visit in the country. Stunning position on the cliffs and the castle ruins are visible for miles. You can walk from Craster (just over a mile), but we approached from Dunstan Steads (under a mile). Excellent views of the birds on the cliffs. At the castle the cliffs are mainly fenced off but there are warning signs of the sheer drop. Terrific views from the top of the castle - care needed on the spiral staircase though. There are toilets , and a small English Heritage shop - very helpful staff. Definitely worth making the effort to visit.

Lovely place to visit. Staff were really friendly, well-maintained, and not too busy. Just mind out that it's a reasonably long walk from the car park if you have a toddler with you!

Lovely Spot and Stunning Views!
We parked at the Craster car park — really convenient, with payment options by card, cash, or app. It’s just a short walk to the beachfront from there. Once you reach the shore, you can take a scenic walk to the castle (about 40–45 minutes). The views along the seafront are absolutely stunning — a pure joy for the soul.

Lovely walk from Coaster to Dustanburgh castle along the coast. We went after 6pm so the car park was free. Lovely place to visit. For a nice evening walk or daytime and go into the castle ruins

I’ve wanted to visit Dunstanburgh Castle since I was a nipper and finally got to visit in October 2025. It didn’t disappoint. Bonus it’s dog friendly but there is cattle/sheep on the section between Craster and the castle itself. Nice ruins to wander around with stunning views. We paid £6.80 each, discount for booking online before going. Not enough signage about the history, probably want to sell you a guidebook for £4.50 instead. We extended the walk by taking our dog down to Embleton Bay afterwards. A great half day out.

Lovely walk to the castle from Craster to see the ruins of the castle. The Dunstanburgh Castle is in hands of English Heritage but it's owned by National Trust so it's free entry for NT members too. The staff made some sarcastic comments about NT when they checked our passes but the rest of the staff were nice and friendly. The castle is situated in a very windy spot but if you go on tower the views are absolutely stunning. There are some benches and tables available in the yard, toilets available too but no running water.

Who likes hiking? Or walking through a random golf course? It takes about 20-30 minutes to get from the parking area to the entrance of the castle. But once you started on the path, you don't want to turn around. You've invested too much time to turn around and walk away (the drive, the parking, the golf course walk, the walk on the path around the entire castle). You have to visit at that point. It wasn't terribly priced, about £4 per person. It has some nice views of the North Sea and the surrounding countryside, and the remains aren't in terrible shape. Though the walk to and from is probably as long if not longer than the walk in the castle grounds itself. Nice place, but I don't think I would go out of my way again to visit.