Leeds Castle Reviews

Great for a day out.. a bit expensive entry ticket 25 pounds, but the place is huge and very well maintained.. there are eateries and washrooms inside near the castle.

Great for weekend day out, don't miss the falconry!

Nothing to prepare specially. You can just go there and enjoy having a great time. Just keep 3-4 hours for the entire visit.

Always an excellent day out whatever time of year you go. The entrance price gets you in for a whole year. There's plenty to see and do for everyone

We are regular visitors to Leeds Castle and absolutely love going there. The woodland walk is tranquil and calm with many different species of trees and wildlife. The castle is beautiful and well looked after. The information given in very factual and informative.
There is a wide variety of food and drink available for all.
The children's activities are amazing and the adventure parks are awesome.
The gardens are beautiful and full of species of plants and flowers.
All in all a wonderful place to visit and is always a huge favourite with our family.

Fun place to spend the day - lots to see and do. The tickets are good for a whole year after you purchase them, so you can revisit if you'd like. The grounds are nice to take a stroll through on the way to the castle, and you can buy a cup of feed at the front entrance to give the birds along the way.

If you are local it is amazing. 1 year pass for the price of one entry. 12 visit this year.... amazeballs

Beautiful grounds. Such a tranquillity about the whole place!

I've been there before and I'll go again... History and beauty.. What more can you ask for!!

Leeds Castle grounds are beautiful, immaculate lawns, well tended borders, and no litter, none, anywhere. They have two great playgrounds for different age groups that we had to drag our children out of. They have an amazing maze, if you will forgive the pun, which is much better kept than the international benchmark that is Hampton Court. There is a falconry display delivered by very knowledge staff. All of this sorounds the jewel in the crown which is the castle itself.



Leeds is immensely picturesque and fulfills the fantasies of a young princess (or prince). However both Hever and Bodium offer a similar experience at much better value and I would suggest you give them a go first.

Stunning place. We love going back to the castle every few months.

We had a great time. It is a place to spend the day with the family.

Fantastic castle and grounds with lots of history right up to 20th century film stars. Loads to keep the kids entertained as well. Real quality place.

superb castle but go there in spring to enjoy the flowers!

Leeds castle is steeped in history and culture of England. Some of the most key people in the world history stayed here, from Henry VIII to JFK. It's perfect for history buffs and people who love to walk through outstanding gardens.

We stayed there in the Maiden Tower facing the castle in the Isabella of France room. This was one of the most memorable experiences ever. After closing you can walk around the grounds as you please and witness it in the quiet (not the geese) of the evening and night. The amenities are fantastic. A bath big enough for a 6ft 2 man to wallow is amazing, as well as a lovely high rainfall shower.

The food in the restaurant is beautiful. Finally a hotel bnb that can cook delicious local food. The vegetarian and vegan options are also delicious as we found out. The pork belly was incredibly fine as well. Top notch full English as well, just what you need on a mini break. I immediately told all my friends and family that this is a fantastic place to stay.

All the staff were incredibly pleasant from the security who escorted the ducks when needed to the people who welcomed us in.

5/5

This is a week organised attraction. It has some lovely antiques in a beautiful castle on a well kept garden site. The real moat is the main of many water features. The sound of running tinkling water is so relaxing, and it is around many More

A real great day out! When you buy a ticket you can re-visit as many times as you like within the next year which really makes it good value for money. It also includes entrance to certain events throughout the year such as the Christmas market.

Beware, on a wet day it is mostly outdoors and you will get soaked! The car park is also based on grass which we saw some cars having trouble with! However on a dry day this is a real gem in the Kent countrywide. Take a picnic, take in the views and enjoy!

Large grounds and great for picnics. The castle itself is relatively small so is not a huge part of your visit. Try to go when there's events on in the fields.

Fabulous day out, beautiful decorations at this time of the year. The food a little expensive for a family.

Great castle, I've visited it 3 times now, once every year around the time where there is a reenactment going on which is great fun, I plan to continue visiting every year and anyone looking into the prospect should too!

Absolutely stunning castle. Lovely to walk inside if you're into history or even if you're not. Also great to bring young children as they have a giant maze and children's play area nearby

I have been here at least once a year and it is still an amazing place to go, especially for the history nuts

Wherever you are from in the world Leeds Castle is worth a visit

Lovely place to visit. A little expensive but everything costs. Would recommend for a nice day out. Nice way to spend a Sunny Sunday.

We live locally and visit several times a year. We were disappointed by the unkempt state of some of the borders. It's usually a picture. We are bringing some visitors to Kent next month, I do hope things improve.

This is a beautiful place, but quite expensive if you only visit once. The admission price acts like a season ticket; you can go back as many times as you like (except for a couple of special events), so it becomes much better value the more you visit - and Leeds Castle really is worth more than one visit.

Gorgeous little castle in a very pretty setting. Very well organised and lots to see and do including falconry display, a maze, and lots of gardens to explore with very friendly ducks geese and swans. Particularly enjoyed the punting on the moat trip with a highly entertaining guide.

Great place to visit, good for kids, lovely walks and gardens, and a great castle, steeped in history

Leeds is a nice place to visit, particularly if there are additional activities taking place there on the day but, to me it just seemed like another English castle, with a hefty entrance fee.

A great place! A huge territory, nature pleases the eye, an interesting tour of the castle, a good children's playground. Many birds can be fed, feed is sold at the entrance. I put 5 stars and recommend.

The best experience of my life, the wedding of my cousins in the castle and housed in it was wonderful a very nice place every corner, the excellent treatment, I wish everyone could visit this magical place full of history.

Was a great day. Husband is in a wheelchair at the moment and all staff willing to help. Even arranged someone to pick us up by the land train instead of struggling on Thank you x

I cannot stress how much I love Leeds Castle. So many different events, the grounds are kept in great shape and the play areas for children are wonderful.

Very impressive with a rich history. Check out the maze and grotto behind the stables.

Love it, so much to see and do. Your entrance ticket lasts a year, which is very good as you really need to visit more than once to see everything.

Fantastic views, family friendly, nice for walks, good food, plenty for the children to do

Excellent facilities. A lot fun for children. Beautiful views.

So much open space, amazing walks and gardens, birds, ducks, geese. Then there is the maze, play area riverside walks...we went on a really cloudy, windy day but it was beautiful. Moody skies over the castle, which was actually really interesting and not the usual heap of old stone. Lovely places to eat, standard kind of higher prices for these places. If you have kids pack a picnic, if you want to eat there it would cost an arm or leg! Nice to see decent coffee #costa. Castle is well looked after, might be nice if the people manning the rooms knew a bit more.

There is also a landtrain to help tired legs get from one end to the other.

Falconers were very knowledgable and the birds we saw were well kept and looked amazing, very tame too. They were not flying due to the weather but came out for meet and greets, very funny characters, seemed to play up to the crowds. Very very good.

Loved it all. Was perturbed by the cost initially but...castle, grounds, gardens, entertainment with return admission for a year added to the ticket price....maybe not so now. I know there are other events too, so will maybe go back when there is something else going on next. It's a whole day out but worth it. Definitely enjoyed myself.

Leeds Castle has always been on my todo/bucket list. We re from Leeds Yorkshire originally and have now settled in Australia . I used to travel over to Europe a lot for work exiting via the tunnel and Dover many times. I d pass the signs for Leeds castle and always used to think one day I ll go !!!
Well we did as a family and we re not disappointed, in fact we were blown away and love every minute.
Prettiest castle in the world! Well from the castles I ve been to then I d also agree..
So so many highlights to mention just a few. I can only recommend you definitely put Leeds Castle on your list. We chatted to the guides and security and they were all so knowledgeable, friendly and helpful.
10 stars For us!!!

Had a lovely day at Leeds Castle today. The grounds are beautifully maintained and the views are amazing from the castle itself. The Castle is very well maintained and there were lots of guides to ask questions, plus lots of things to read up on. There are places to buy food or have a picnic outside of the weather is good which it was for us There is also a large children's play park and a falconry centre.

Beautiful gardens and grounds. The castle and the exhibition is wonderful

Impressive well preserved historical monument with a fascinating history and commited friendly staff

Visit to Leeds Castle was excellent, we took our grand children as we have yearly tickets, the children love Leeds Castle especially, the big maze, boat, train and the children's park. There is always lots to do for families. Only downside was the roast dinner in the restaurant which was cold including the plates, if it had been hot it would have tasted better. The restaurant was also very cold on a bitterly cold day.

Really Cool and has loads of fun stuff, I live in Sheffield and now I wish Leeds Castle Was at the Leeds near me

It is a perfect day out, plenty of shaded areas as well as sunny. Plenty of nice toilets. Lovely food and lovely staff.

It's a full day experience. The castle is absolutely stunning. If you dislike long walks the train does it for you. Great place

Could quite easily spend several hours walking around the grounds and in the castle. The castle was not what we expected but it was different to the usual types.

Leeds Castle is a castle in Kent, England, 5 miles (8 km) southeast of Maidstone. It is built on islands in a lake formed by the River Len to the east of the village of Leeds.

A castle has existed on the site since 1119, the first being a simple stone stronghold constructed by Robert de Crevecoeur which served as a military post in the time of Norman intrusions into England. In the 13th century it came into the hands of King Edward I, for whom it became a favourite residence; in the 16th century, Henry VIII used it as a dwelling for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.

The present castle dates mostly from the 19th century. It has been open to the public since 1976.

From 857 the site was owned by a Saxon chief called Led or Leed who built a wooden structure on two islands in the middle of the River Len. In 1119 Robert de Crevecoeur rebuilt it in stone as a Norman stronghold and Leeds Castle descended through the de Crevecoeur family until the 1260s. What form this Norman stronghold took is uncertain because it was rebuilt and transformed in the following centuries. Adrian Pettifer speculates that it may have been a motte and bailey.

In 1278, the castle was bought by King Edward I's Queen, Eleanor of Castile. As a favoured residence of Edward's, it saw considerable investment. The king enhanced its defences, and it was probably Edward who created the lake that surrounds the castle. A barbican spanning three islands was also built and a gloriette with apartments for the king and queen was added. In the Late Middle Ages, the growth of the royal household meant fewer residences could accommodate the monarchy when they visited. As a result, expenditure on royal residences in south east England generally decreased except for the Tower of London and Windsor Castle. The activity at Leeds Castle during the reign of Edward I was a notable exception to this pattern.

The castle was captured on 31 October 1321 by the forces of Edward II from Margaret de Clare, Baroness Badlesmere, wife of the castle's constable, Bartholomew de Badlesmere, 1st Baron Badlesmere, who had left her in charge during his absence. The King had besieged Leeds after she had refused Edward's consort Isabella of France admittance in her husband's absence; when the latter sought to force an entry, Lady Badlesmere instructed her archers to fire upon Isabella and her party, six of whom were killed. Lady Badlesmere was kept prisoner in the Tower of London until November 1322. After Edward II died in 1327 his widow took over Leeds Castle as her primary residence.

Richard II's first wife, Anne of Bohemia, spent the winter of 1381 at the castle on her way to be married to the king. In 1395, Richard received the French chronicler Jean Froissart there, as described in Froissart's Chronicles.

Henry VIII transformed the castle in 1519 for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. A painting commemorating his meeting with Francis I of France still hangs there.

In 1552 Leeds Castle was granted to Sir Anthony St Leger (d.1559) of Ulcombe, Kent, whose grandfather Ralph I St Leger (d.1470), of Ulcombe, Sheriff of Kent in 1467/8, had been Constable of Leeds Castle.

Excerpt from Wikipedia

Excellent experience, castle staff very informative about the castle. Great day out for the whole family, plenty to do for all ages.

Favourite place! Such a beautiful castle and surroundings. It's a brilliant idea of having the yearly passes, as we were only going for the one day but must have been around 10 times throughout the year.

A fantastic place to visit with the family.
The staff are extremely helpful and accommodating.
Our ticket price included as many returns as we like with the next year.

Magnificent Castle visited, full of discoveries.
Child friendly place
Superb park throughout the visit

Beautiful grounds and castle, a small castle, but a lovely place all the same.

So much to do even when weather not great. The fort play areas kept 4 kids occupied for a good couple of hours. The maze is always a challenge and we all had good fun trying the circus skills today.

Absolutely brilliant place, stayed the night, woke up to gorgeous sunshine, fab breakfast and the best company, xx

The castle is not bad, but lovers of the genre will be disappointed by the completely redone interiors, it has 900 years old flowers in no more than 50, the animals outside are beautiful is the enchanting park

A bit expensive, but the ticket is valid for one year

Most amazing Castle experience! Awe struck. Just disappointed we didn't allow enough time. A must see.