Lovely medieval family day out - I took my two boys for a day at end of May. Good old British weather decided to remind us what we love about it…. Yup it chucked it down! Despite the weathers best efforts we had a fantastic day. I have a five year old and eight year old. Both loved the castle and climbing about the walls etc. What we all really enjoyed most were the shows. We did all three, War of Roses, Falconers Quest and Tebouchet. All entertaining for the kids and adults alike. Worth admission alone. Staff and actors all very professional and friendly. Kids want to return so that can only be a positive and I highly recommend

Brilliant time for the whole family - We went to Warwick Castle over the May half term and had a great time. I would highly recommend it, particularly staying at the Knight's village if you have young children. We had booked for two days (there's so much to see so I would advise taking up the offer of the reduced price entry for second day). On our first day we saw most of the shows and barely had time to see much of the castle. My son loved the trebuchet show, and my daughter was engrossed with the princess tower. My favourite was the War of the Roses show, it was thoroughly enjoyable with some great displays of horse riding, jousting, and the kids loved the dramatic sword fights! It was a nice touch that the knights stayed around afterwards to chat to the kids as well. The falconry show was also amazing, albeit with a little overly dramatic storytelling for the kids. We've been to displays before so I wasn't expecting the kids to pay much attention, but once it started we were all transfixed. There were some truly impressive birds flying very close over our heads, it was beautiful display. We then checked in to the Knight's Village to stay in our tent. Before booking we were debating whether to stay in a local hotel, or pay the slightly higher price to stay on the Knight's Village, but I am so glad we chose the village. My only minor reservation would be that the carvery in the evening, whilst the food was lovely, felt a little overpriced. Towards the end of the meal, and for the rest of the evening, there were three people entertaining the kids; there were knight skills with Sir Jacob and Lady Liz, and princess games with Princess Cecilia. And in addition there was also archery sessions available all evening. My son was straight in there with the swordplay and archery, and whilst my daughter was a bit nervous to start with, Princess Cecilia noticed this and was very encouraging. By the end of the evening, my usually shy daughter was leaving us behind so she could follow the princess everywhere! Lady Liz finished with a bedtime story for the kids, they had a wonderful evening. After sleeping in the tent overnight in very comfortable beds, we then checked out after breakfast and went back to the castle for our second day. We went round the sections we hadn't had time for the day before. The longbowman was very entertaining, the kids enjoyed the Zog quest and show. We went around the castle towers and ramparts which my son found very exciting (lots of steep narrow steps for young children so be prepared to help them, but it's a castle so you know what to expect!). I would have liked to spend more time looking at the historical exhibits inside the castle, but I was competing with the kids attention span at that point! We then had time to watch the falconer show and the War of the Roses for a second time before going home. In summary, we had a brilliant time, the kids didn't want to leave. And I would highly recommend the Knight's Village, it made it such a great experience.

The highlight of my trip to England - Visiting Warwick castle is definitely all day trip and maybe even this wouldn´t be enough to see all. Although I usually prefer guided tours when visiting such places first time here I appreciated that I could explore it by myself, choose my own pace and came back it I had feeling I missed something. There is enough information panels, audio guides and movies. During my visit there were several school trips and generally all is adjusted in a way that it is attractive for children. Although I travel solo I appreciated it and enjoyed together with kids. It was the highlight of my trip to England.

A wonderful place to visit, a great day out. - What a wonderful place to visit. We visited with our two boys (aged 6 and 11) and also met some friends there who also had boys the same age. There is quite a lot to see and do. There was a nice little play area for the boys to play in, and there was a Zog storyline to it, where you could walk around and collect stamps as you did. There were also Dragon Eggs to find as you walked around the Castle and its grounds. (Not sure if this is all year around or just as it is Easter) There is also a maze based on Horrible Histories where again you can collect stamps. You can walk around the castle learning about its history, and there are some steps up to the top where you can walk around part of the castle walls. There are plenty of little side events going off, Archery and A Knights aerobic class to name a few. However, due to it being windy, the Archery and the Trebuchet demonstration (medieval catapult) was unable to be shown. We were able to see the Trebuchet and we were given an explanation on how it worked. We also saw the Falconry display, which is amazing. Quite a few different birds of pray, and they fly so close, it is brilliant. Please see some of the pictures with this review. There are plenty of places to stop for a drink and a bite to eat. All the staff we saw were friendly, funny, helpful and great with the kids. There is also a Dungeon you can visit which they do warn is a jump scare event, so we didn’t take our 6 year old through that, but we did hear it was very good. Everywhere was clean and tidy. They only thing I would say, is due to it being an old castle, if you are in a wheelchair or struggle with walking, some of the ground is old and uneven, and the castle wall walk would be impossible in a wheel chair unfortunately, however I understand why a castle of that age can’t be altered too much to accommodate.

Expensive, but a good day out for all ages - I booked these tickets in advance, which I would definitely recommend, or even better, use the Kelloggs 2-for-1 promotion. Adult prices on the day are £39 each. Prices differ on weekdays, weekends, school holidays etc. We visited on a Monday, during term time and paid £39 for 2 adults. It's definitely worth doing your research to get the best value for money. Ticket prices don't include parking or the castle dungeon. Parking was an extra £7 and is about a 15min walk from the entrance. The dungeon was an extra £8 each, but these prices seem to change depending on the day. There's not a great deal of information on the leaflet provided at the entrance, so I would recommend downloading the free Warwick castle app. We watched the falconry display first, which was amazing and a definite must-see on your visit. I enjoyed the peacock gardens. The grounds are incredibly well maintained. We got some great photos of the peacocks. The route through the castle is well set up, which I like, so it didn't feel like you were missing anything or had to walk back on yourself. The climb to the top is well worth it for the views. As with any attraction like this, the food and drink was expensive. I would definitely recommend taking a picnic. There are plenty of grassed areas to sit, as well as some sheltered benches. One thing I found a bit odd was some of the food trucks only take card payment, so the kids on the school trips who were queuing up to get an ice cream were unable to pay. We were surprised to find the castle closed at 4, so we didn't have time to see everything. You can easily spend the whole day there, with something for all ages to enjoy.

Impressive fairy tale castle, but make sure you go when the weather is good and don’t forget your credit card - We visited on Friday in February half-term with our 7 year old daughter. The castle itself is very impressive - the best preserved I’ve seen and looks like the sort of castle you see in fairy tales. We enjoyed exploring it inside and out. The Grand Hall is very impressive and has a good selection of armour and weapons on display. The other rooms are well presented - you can see the former Tussaud’s influence from the characters on display. Compared to National Trust properties, it’s also nice and bright, warm and airy. Outside, we did the walk of the ramparts which was great, and there was an amazing view from the highest tower. Be warned though - there’s lots of spiral steps up and down and it’s a one way system. If it’s not for you, you’ll have to go quite a way before you can escape. There’s a good display of crafts etc in the basement when you get to the end. We also did the 30 minute complete abridged history tour with Andrew. This was all in the courtyard and was a lightning run through by a clearly very knowledgeable guide. If I were to criticise, I would say that it could have been a little more tailored to the half-term audience in order to keep our 7 year old and her peers engaged, though she did like the bits about poo! Whilst they don’t operate the amazing trebuchet in the winter, the archery competition with several rounds of different types of archery exceeded my expectations and was very entertaining for all. It was more of a show - better than the professional competition I was expecting. The compère in particular was great, but you could tell they all got on well. We also made it to one of the Birds of Prey shows - this was good and well explained by the compère. The barn owl was beautiful, but Simon the falcon was the star of the show with his fondness for terrorising the local pigeons. In terms of the negatives the commercial side of the place is certainly a big one. I bought discounted advance tickets through my union at £18 - less than half of what we would have had to pay on the gate and thought this represented reasonable value. However, kids need to pay the adult rate from the age of 2! That’s a new low for me, and will certainly add up for large families. I was also surprised to have to pay quite a lot for parking on top of that. We got there at 10:30 and there were a few places left in the Stables car park, right by the entrance for a flat rate of £10. The main car park is cheaper at £6 flat rate and quite a walk. The two Warwick Council car parks nearby present better value and are pay as you go, with a maximum charge of £8. That isn’t the end of it though. Want to visit the Dungeon? That’s another £8 each. How about having a go at Archery? £6 each please. We bought a packed lunch with us, and were disappointed that there weren’t many benches and didn’t appear to be anywhere undercover where we could eat it. We were glad we bought it though, as the queue to the main restaurant was out of the door when we looked both at the beginning and end of lunchtime. Our bag was searched on the way in with security staff looking for utensils, so make sure you bring something you can eat with your hands. In the afternoon, we wanted to go somewhere inside to have a hot drink and warm up, but there wasn’t really anywhere - the Conservatory will happily sell you an afternoon tea for £30, but we could only sit inside to drink the hot drinks we bought there with the kind permission of the manager. In short, the castle is impressive and the staff are great, but there’s little to do (other than get a free return ticket) if the weather is bad. Merlin’s commercial influence and the amount for things you have to pay for on top of the not insignificant entry fee will prevent us from rushing back.

Rip off even advance prices. Car parking absurdity. - We paid £22 each for advance entry which, upon discovery of what is actually there is a rip off. We paid £6 to park our car in a muddy field about a mile away from the actual entrance as there was no alternative. We didn't want the restriction of having to rely on a shuttle bus that was infrequently provided. The castle grounds are every bit the aesthetic treat and the interior rooms were the highlight but other than climbing a tower and one mound, there was little left for those without kids to discover. We spent around 2 hours here and then made the 25 minute walk back to the 'field' (where there are no toilets - or en route to the castle entrance - those at the entrance are busy due to everyone arriving at the same time). We didn't waste our money visiting the dungeons. The only positive to the day was that the gift shop did take cash and wasn't card payments only, which some reviewers have stated that it was card payment only. If it was card payment only I would have boycotted out of principle but we did indeed buy some overpriced soft drinks with the legal tender of the state. Which is cash. All in all, I am glad I visited to tick it off the list but we only did so as we staying the area for another reason and had a morning to pass. I wouldn't make a special trip to visit.

Underwhelming - Only came here as we had a Merlin pass and glade it was not to make a single trip here. If you have been to other castles, then you are not missing anything more here. A few plaques and mannequins more than others. Think I preferred the welsh castles visited recently. There was a good falcon display which I enjoyed from the castle mount. You can walk part of the castle wall and towers. The old water mill was interesting. Most of the outside grounds seems to be closed for winter and seemed more but bridge was closed so maybe more available at other times of the year. We took about 4hrs to do all there, including maze and playground. I don’t think I would come back again.

Overpriced tourist trap - We visited this after being told by relatives who saw it maybe 26 or so years ago that it was one of their favorite castles in England. Maybe a lot has changed?? I couldn’t believe how much tickets were for our family of five (£190) and was ready to walk away upon discovering that, but my husband said, “Let’s just do it.” Regrets regrets regrets. We spent as long as we could there, but we watched the winter bird of prey show (three birds, lots of talking, nothing else) but were definitely ready to go after three hours. All the activities and food had long lines, and the “horrible histories” maze was just ridiculous. There’d be one interesting fact, but nothing exciting or challenging about it. The castle was more interesting, but still nowhere near justified the cost. If we had paid 1/5 of the price, I might be able to scrounge up higher praise. As it stands, I’m deeply annoyed that we spent as much time and money here as we did.

Not disabled friendly - WORST EXPERIENCE EVER! I am disabled and booked to go to the castle. Upon arrival! We travelled quite far away, there wa no mention at all that the wheel chair lift was out of order. We were through two ticket check points. When we got to the entrance of the castle we saw the sign. We went back to the ticket desk they said oh we will give you your car park fee back! What about my tickets. They said here's an email contact them. I did. They said oh it just have been on our website that the lift wasn't operational. I said it wasn't. They said ok we will refund you the money. It should hit your bank about 3-5 working days. 6 weeks later it still hasn't. So I emailed to let them know. I was ignored for 2 weeks. Then I got an email. Thank you Michele. FOR WHAT!!! Get your act together Warwick castle. Disabled people have to tactically plan a visit.