Cardigan Castle

The gardens are beautiful, especially the kitchen garden with all its autumn produce. The castle visit was interesting, and the historical information was manageable rather than overwhelming. It felt like good value at £8, and the whole visit took about two hours. The cafe was a nice way to end it. Miss Barbara Woods' story fascinated me, especially her sad ending. It makes me so sad that she ended up in a pauper's grave and the council chose not to pay for a headstone. Given her connection to the castle and Cardigan, I think her life should be celebrated.

The cafe is good, and the gardens are well kept, with a pleasant place to sit for a break. The castle tells an interesting story of how it changed from a 12th Century fortress into a 20th Century home. There isn't parking at the castle, but there are plenty of spaces within a 5-10 minute walk, including on-street parking right outside.

The Escape Room was a highlight. It's based on an item found in the house during renovation and is very well put together. It's on the easier side for experienced players, but a really fun challenge and a great introduction if you've only done a couple of escape rooms, or none at all. We've done about a dozen at different difficulty levels and enjoyed it. The castle and manor house, built on the castle foundations, are both interesting to explore, though not much of the original castle remains. You can see it all thoroughly in a couple of hours. We struggled to find parking nearby, as the closest car park, which can flood, was very full, and there's no parking at the castle. The online information suggested limited dairy-free and gluten-free choices at the restaurant, so we booked somewhere else locally that could cater for us.

A lot of work has gone into making this historic landmark accessible to tourists. An interesting place.