Thornbury Castle

It's a castle. It's beside a fabulous village. It has sufficient staff. The Chef's / Kitchens are AMAZING! The fresh milk in the room fridge, the complimentary slot gin, all were such beautiful detailed touches. Not a perfect score for trivial reasons, things I' expect from a hotel of this quality, with this price. Having to pick a 15 minute time slot to start breakfast the night before? Really? That is the customers making allowances for the kitchen, not vice versa. Real luxury is not being on a predefined schedule, breakfast whenever I'm ready. All the dining room waitstaff, were very young, presenting as white female, with long hair. Looks like a recruitment biais. It was a lovely Christmas present :) I'd do ot again!

We stayed in the Jane Seymour room for 3 nights which was a good size, and well decorated. The bathroom and shower was great. The restaurant for breakfast and dinner was wonderful and they looked after our dietary requirements. Staff were very pleasant throughout our stay. Heaps of parking onsite. A very cozy atmosphere if you like castles. A great place to base yourself for day trips

My wife booked a pre-Christmas festive break, which was a special DB&B package. The hotel is what you would expect from a Relais & Chateaux establishment. You feel like you've been transported back in time to the Tudor era - grand rooms adorned with paintings of Henry VIII and others. The highlight was the food, which was simply outstanding. Every plate was beautifully presented and the flavours were sublime. I've been lucky to eat in some top restaurants, but my dinner at Thornbury was right up there with the very best. It was a memorable stay.

Copilot is an AI and may make mistakes. Using Copilot means you agree to the Terms of Use. See our Privacy Statement.|Today|Leave a review. Returned from staying at Thornbury castle. Stunning venue. Room immaculately presented. Clean, spacious, smelt fresh and clean. Bed was insanely comfortable. Room was warm and sound. One of the best rooms I've ever stayed in.|Grounds were well kept, even in winter.|Staff were polite, attentive, professional, helpful- nothing was too much bother.|Food was nice. Slightly overpriced in my honest opinion, but perfectly presented and tasted wonderful.|History tour with private historian was informative and delivered with such passion and joy. The whole weekend feels like it was a fever dream. Thank you to all staff for making it so special.|Here’s a polished review that captures everything you experienced while keeping the warmth and authenticity of your words:|I’ve just returned from an unforgettable stay at Thornbury Castle, and it truly exceeded every expectation. The venue itself is stunning, and my room was immaculately presented — spacious, spotless, and filled with a fresh, clean scent. The bed was unbelievably comfortable, and the room stayed warm and peaceful throughout my stay. It was genuinely one of the best rooms I’ve ever stayed in.|The grounds were beautifully maintained, even in the middle of winter, adding to the charm of the whole experience.|Every member of staff I encountered was polite, attentive, professional, and incredibly helpful. Nothing was ever too much trouble, and their care made the stay feel even more special.|The food was delicious and beautifully presented. While I personally felt it was slightly on the pricey side, the quality and flavour were undeniable.|A highlight of the trip was the history tour with the private historian — informative, engaging, and delivered with such passion that it brought the castle’s past vividly to life.|The entire weekend felt like a wonderful fever dream. Thank you to all the staff for making it so memorable.

We last stayed in 2018, and returning this year with our rescue dog felt even better than we’d hoped. We stayed in the King James V room and had a fantastic experience from start to finish.||||We already knew how special the building was, but the upgrades since our last visit are outstanding. The castle at night is beautiful, and the lighting and landscaping around the grounds make it feel magical. The room was warm and comfortable, and the bathroom was huge, complete with our favourite Molton Brown toiletries.||||The staff were exceptional. Every single person we met delivered the kind of service that shows they care about their work and their guests. They were knowledgeable, attentive, and genuinely welcoming.||||The restaurant team were brilliant. We had the tasting menu with wine pairing, and our servers explained each course with confidence and real enthusiasm. They talked us through ingredients, wines, and dietary considerations so clearly that I felt completely at ease.||||We also had Champagne afternoon tea and felt thoroughly spoiled.||||How this place doesn’t have 5 stars is beyond me. I’m already thinking about booking again next year. The experience is absolutely worth it.||||Thank you, Thornbury Castle—your team made our stay memorable, and we’re already looking forward to coming back.

Absolutely sublime! ||This was my 3rd stay at Thornbury and it did not disappoint. I brought friends/family and we had a truly lovely experience. From the moment we arrived at reception to the dinner and drinks to the sumptuous rooms, it was perfect. ||Thornbury is one of my favorite places to visits and stay. The staff is wonderful. Kayla at reception and AJ in the restaurant were attentive and friendly and made our stay an experience.||If you’re considering this beautiful place, I cannot recommend it enough!!

A Photographer's Verdict: The Best Wedding Breakfast I've Ever Tasted! As a professional wedding photographer with 10 years of experience and hundreds of weddings photographed, I have sampled countless wedding breakfasts—and I can genuinely say that the three-course meal I had at Thornbury Castle Hotel is the best I have ever experienced. I was completely blown away by the quality. Each course was amazing, elevating the meal from standard catering to a truly exceptional fine-dining event. If a couple wants to give their guests an unforgettable experience, the food at Thornbury Castle Hotel will absolutely deliver. I cannot recommend this highly enough!

Visiting from Australia we booked a night at Thornbury Castle. We had the loveliest stay, we arrived and were given an upgrade to a suite. All the staff we interacted with were so welcoming and friendly. Our room was amazing. Everything about the stay was perfect. It is such a peaceful location, beautiful gardens to walk around, loved reading all the history. Our dinner was absolutely delicious no complaints, beautifully presented. Will definitely stay again when we visit the UK again. Thank you so much for our lovely stay!

Thornbury Castle has potential, but doesn't live up to expectations. Inconsistency is a recurrent theme. We stayed there four nights and these were my observations. The "kitchen" seems to rule the roost here as almost every question is met with "let me check with "the kitchen." "The kitchen" must be an omnipotent presence because the staff usually has a bit of trepidation when going to ask "the kitchen" questions. They have a small selection of items on the dining room menu and the food is not excellent and any deviation from items on the menu are strictly frowned upon. The menu does not change from day to day. Luckily, you may order from the bar menu in the library. This menu does not change either, but it does break up the monotony. We tended to enjoy this food more, but service was slow and inconsistent . Breakfast is the better option when dining in the dining room. The staff for the most part seems to operate with little or no training. They NEVER filled the water glasses. That's your job. They NEVER poured the wine, again, that's your job. This hotel seems to lack strong leadership. We had two rooms. The Queen Elizabeth room has extremely low beams. If one is over 5'3", one WILL hit their heads. We had to go to the front desk for ice to put on head bumps more than once. The third floor is for the most fit as there is no lift. Yes, I know we were staying in a castle and it was not going to be perfect, but for the price one is paying here, you expect first class service. Having said all of that, the gardens in the back are lovely, the visage from the front lawn is beautiful and the staff, though poorly, trained are friendly. Liam in the library area was very friendly and helpful. They need to have a rotating menu. The options in the nearby town are few to dine. It is possible to have a rotating menu, we also stayed at other manor houses which had wonderful menus and well-trained staff this trip.

A trip to the UK didn't seem complete without finding a castle to visit. Much to my surprise, in my search I was able to find a castle you could also stay at that was rated incredibly well, had dining packages, and historic ties. The rates per night were a bit steep, but I justified it because "how often do ya do something like this?" So we did a night with dinner and breakfast included. Getting to the castle wasn't too bad we rented a car and made the journey into town. Parking is available and I believe they also have a charging area for EV. We checked in and were taken to our room, Queen Margaret's room. The employee was kind and explained some of the amenities like the complimentary gin and the common areas of the castle. We changed and went to explore, there was a wedding the night we were there so I feel like our exploration was cut a bit short since areas were reserved for them. We noticed there was a scale available in the room, but it needed a new battery so we asked at the desk for a replacement and was informed it would be done at turndown service. After walking the gardens, we went for drinks and played some of the games available in the sitting room/lounge. It was a bit unclear as to how to get bar service or the other amenities advertised. Having done research before it felt like there were things to do but upon arrival it was hard to figure out what we were able to do. Dinner was excellent; while sitting in the lounge you're served some almonds/olives and canapés where you place your order and then you're brought back into the main dining room. There is plenty of food even without the formal 6 course meal but it really is a fancy experience and the food is true art. We made an assumption that turndown service would happen at dinner but upon returning to our room- 2 to 3 hours later, everything looked the same. The shower was incredible and the bed was nice. You're provided with a fan which was helpful. Breakfast was a bit disappointing after the dinner we had the previous night- not sure I would need that component again. At check out I was given the invoice for one of the wedding guests, we had to refund that amount and charge the costs for our room. Looking at my statement the charges aren't equal so that's mildly concerning as well. Overall, Thornbury was still a cool experience for the bragging rights of staying in Henry VIII's castle, but I don't think I need to do it again. I'd come for the dinner but maybe skip the overnight stay.

The stay at the Thornbury Castle hotel exceeded our expectations. We've stayed in many beautiful hotels but this stay blew our minds away. Something about staying in a place built in the fifteenth century and eating inside the same rooms that kings and queens dined in. The grounds of the castle hotel are absolutely gorgeous and the interior decor is out of this world - we felt transported back to the Tudor times. We were assigned to Queen Mary I suite and it was absolutely stunning. The windows faced the beautiful old church and this magnificent view added to our experience. The breakfast was included in our room rate and we found the food to be extremely delicious. Besides breakfast, we also had the Afternoon Tea and several dinners here on premises and every meal was exceptional. I loved the fact that they always had tables reserved for the hotel guests. I highly recommend this beautiful castle hotel to everyone wishing to experience the beautiful English countryside.

Brought the family here for a couple nights to live in luxury and it did not disappoint. We got the Anne of Cleves room and just wow, I really don't know how to explain it except it has all the modern needs while staying true to being a real actual castle. The staff was excellent and pretty much everything about it exceeded our expectations. If you have the chance stay here do it, thank me later.

I treated my mum to a afternoon tea for her birthday. We are local to the area but haven't visited the castle before but heard of its good reputation. The entrance to the castle is lovely even more so as the weather was perfect. The grounds are in great condition and to park you have to go through the castle gates. The customer service was high, very polite and well presented staff. The room we had our afternoon tea in was grand but comfortable. The afternoon was lovely and we enjoyed the sandwich selection and the delicious cakes and scones. There were four of us altogether with one teapot between us which I think there should have been a second teapot. Was a bit surprised are only option was tea or coffee and we weren't offered a wider selection of teas to choice from. There was also only three finger sandwiches each which we thought wasn't that many. Overall all everything was well put together. What made the visit was the gardens, after having the afternoon tea we had a walk around the grounds. The rose garden was lovely and I was very impressed.

We had a wonderful time at Thornbury during our holiday. We booked the midweek special; which came with dinner, drinks, and breakfast - all of which were wonderful! We booked a beautiful suite, that even had a kitchenette! The room was cozy and the bed was comfortable. All staff we interacted with there were extremely helpful, kind and warm. The grounds were well kept and though we didn't get a chance to see the garden, but we heard good things. The reception area is small but leads into a beautiful lounge and library. Both of which are charming and cozy. Overall: if you're looking for a quintessential castle stay during your holiday, this is it.

We loved Thornbury Castle, we would recommend anybody the opertunity to have a night in the castle. We took our son who has disabilities, they where fantastic with him. Food was beautiful, my room was delightful, we spent lots of time in the gardens. We look forward in returning one day We went September 2013. Scott

What an amazing hotel!! I stayed here for 2 nights while staying in London. I took the train out to Bristol and took a taxi from there. The rooms are magnificent. You are 100% immersed in the castle experience. The rooms get cold at night due to the nature of the building. The gardens are beautiful. I spent an afternoon just wandering around their gardens. The staff is extremely friendly and it's a short walk to town do enjoy the shopping and local restaurants.

Castle is very cool. Rooms are not for everyone. Workers were extremely nice, although they did not do anything special for us. For a family of 6, they made us get 3 rooms- all of which are very expensive. 2 of the rooms had no wifi. We had no hot water for 1 evening. There was a wedding on a Tuesday which meant we couldn't sit at the bar or in the library. There was no mention of rate deduction for these inconveniences. Breakfast was included in our rate, but was average, at best. Definitely worth the visit, but not sure about the stay.

My sister, cousin and I stayed here at our last stop on an English countryside road trip. It was the nicest place we stopped at, and frankly, the nicest hotel I've stayed at thus fur in my young life. PROS: 1. Amazing grounds. Walk around the gardens and feel like you're in the Secret Garden. 2. Amazing rooms. Wood burning fireplace, sitting area, sherry to sip, super comfy bed, bathrobes and slippers, the list goes on. And they turn your covers down if you want before bed. 3. Pleasant staff. 4. It's a castle. So cool. CONS: 1. Expensive, but you pay for what you get. 2. Restaurant was meh. It was 75 pounds per person for three courses, which was about $140ish USD. Not awful if the food and service were amazing, but the food was sub-par and the service even worse. Don't waste your money dining here. Maybe try out high tea if you're inclined, but skip dinner service. In spite of the bad dining experience and high cost, it's still an amazing retreat to rest at if you want to stay in a neat castle.

This is by far the coolest hotel I've ever stayed at...it was pricey but well worth it for the experience, how often do you get to stay in a real medieval castle? Spent a lot of time just wandering around the grounds, lots to do and see!

What a beautiful castle! The staff here could not be nicer. We had a little mix up with our check in dates, but the front desk staff quickly cleared it up. They were so welcoming when we first got to the hotel. Everyone we spoke to was polite and friendly. They even offered suggestions on where to go when we were in town, which was nice. Our first day, we had cream tea. So much food! It was a good thing we didn't eat lunch that day. We were able to have tea in one of the sitting rooms, which was nice. The staff was friendly and attentive. We ordered room service on our first night as well. Although the dinner menu looked good, it was not what we were in the mood for. The room service menu had some less fancy items, but they were still wonderful. The breakfasts that we had both days at the castle were great. We were seated right away once we came down from our room. I can't complain about the breakfast at all! The grounds at the castle are amazing. When we were there, all the flowers were in bloom. You can tell that they take care of the gardens. Our room (the Bohun room) was large, light and beautiful. We had a very comfortable bed, a nice sitting area, a dining area and a spacious bathroom. Far and away one of the nicest places I've ever been to. Hopefully we'll have an opportunity to come back!

If you're really looking to impress that special someone this February 14th, then the restaurant at Thornbury Castle is the place to go. This is proper luxury dining; make no mistake - with an extravagant price tag to match. That special Valentines Day booking will set you back a cool £87.50 for the set menu - each, that is. If you've got bags of cash lying around then I definitely recommend it - you get to feel like royalty for an evening and the food really is exquisite - all six courses of it. On the other hand, if you're a pauper like me, best to just stick to the classics. Pizza Express it is, then.

My 16 year old son is a fan of Game of Thrones and The Last Kingdom so I looked (exhaustively) for a castle/hotel in Ireland or England during our travels from the USA. I booked this based on the fact that it is a castle vs a manor house and wasn't going to break the bank. Went all out and ordered the Elizabeth Suite. I was worried that I was setting his (and my) expectations too high. B-L-O-W-N away!! Gorgeous , imposing, legit fortress edifice. The Elizabeth Suite was not ridiculously priced and offered in my opinion great value. You have your own entrance to a winding stone staircase with rope as a handrail. Enter the suite with old timber and new gleaming bathroom. So fun! Brought my book to the common area and sat amongst ancient books ( I put my hand on one and imagined that hundreds of years ago someone read this in torch light), large old oil paintings, towering windows while enjoying an ale from Bath. Very attentive and happy staff. Breakfast was good and filling. I did not eat here otherwise but did walk into the quaint town where there are numerous more economical food choices. A+ across the board.

Over in Thornbury on the outskirts of Bristol, Thornbury Castle is an old castle that has been transformed into a very high class hotel and restaurant, of the exclusive Von Essen hotels chain (who basically own a lot of old manor houses and castles and have transformed them into luxury hotels). I've been here on a number of occasions for important family meals, and the service and experience has been impeccable every time. It's an old castle, so expect that style - it's full of old English regality, with large sofas, oak panelled rooms and stately chairs. The waiters will silver serve your meal throughout, and attend to your every need and whim. The menu is gourmet, but the food is simply exquisite; from Home Smoked Pave of Salmon to Poach-Roasted Pheasant Breast, the menu is wide ranging. At the moment they're doing an exclusive festive menu which holds more seasonal dishes. This style nad type of dining is clearly not going to come cheap, but you absolutely pay for an experience with Thornbury Castle. A three course meal will set you back £50 per person, excluding any drinks or extras. I've only ever eaten here so can't comment on the hotel accommodation, but I have every faith that the Von Essen group's attentional to detail and quality will stretch to full capacity in the accommodation rooms. Highly advised for a special occasion.

same as pam the food is exerlant value the staff are really friendly and the food has a mourn touch to the still with interesting dessert and saovyer foods sunday lunch is the best time to go but the after noun teas are in my eyes to die for home made fruit and normal songs a surlection of mini home made cakes and if you go for the full after nown tea home made sandwergis as well it is a meal in it self and is great value for money as i said before and it is well worf a night as well