On the drive towards Swanage in the picturesque county of Dorset, you’ll pass right beside the majestic ruins of Corfe Castle. Perched high on a natural grassy mound in the Isle of Purbeck, the imposing castle ruins are a real treat for your eyes.
Although a lot of the castle was destroyed in 1646, there is still plenty to explore. Corfe Castle has almost a millennia of history captured inside its thick stone walls. Plus I’m here to share with you a peaceful countryside walk taking you on a 3 mile loop around Corfe Castle. Along the way, you’ll get to admire the charming patchwork fields, fluffy sheep and amazing scenery that stretches across the Isle of Purbeck.
With tips on where to park and places to visit within the village of Corfe too. Let me help you plan your trip, so you can make the very most out of your day in (and around) Corfe castle!
In this article...
Where to park for visiting Corfe Castle
We parked our car at the National Trust carpark opposite Corfe Castle. It’s very easy to spot with all the National Trust banners and signs directing you straight in. You’ll also see a building at the entrance, which is a National Trust café. Although that happened to be closed when we visited, so I cant fill you in on what their offerings were like.
I recommend parking in this particular carpark if you’re a National Trust member, as your parking here would be free! However, without a National Trust membership, parking costs £5 for up to 4 hours.
After parting ways with a fiver (and reminding ourselves, yet again, to become National Trust members!) We crossed the main road to find (have you already guessed?!) a free carpark at the foot of the castle! So if you would like to try and save yourself a little bit of money, then you may want to try that carpark first (if you’re not a member).
If you continue driving up the road from the free carpark. You’ll discover a small lay-by on the left hand side which is big enough for around 3 cars. Failing all those options, you could park around the quaint village of Corfe and walk across to Corfe Castle from there.
The address for the main National Trust carpark is:
East St, Corfe Castle, Wareham BH20 5DR.
That photo shows you how close the carparks are from one another!
Explore the quaint village of Corfe
Corfe village itself is very quintessentially British. Cute stone cottages with dormer windows and tiny front doors line the meandering streets. It just feels super olde-worlde here!
There is a National Trust gift shop to take a wander around, and a few independent shops selling lots of lovely items and souvenirs to take home. If shopping isn’t your thing, perhaps you would enjoy a look around the model village museum they have in Corfe.
There’s also the free museum called ‘Corfe Castle Town Hall & Museum’ where you can look at the artefacts that have been excavated from the castle and surrounding areas. Including some iguanadon dinosaur foot prints – we are near Dorset’s Jurassic Coast after all! You can even learn the local lingo with some authentic Dorset dialect, and discover what ‘dewbit’ and ‘dumbledore’ mean! The museum is housed inside the smallest town hall in England, so please expect a pocket-sized museum. But I think it’s worth a quick visit, and its free! They have a donations box if you’re able to kindly throw some coins their way.
Corfe is only a tiny village and wont take you long to do a lap around it. So you might want to stop for a drink or a bite to eat in the Greyhound Inn or The Fox Inn which dates back to the 1500’s! Another option would be to enjoy an afternoon treat with some tea and cake in a café, or grab a delicious pastry from Corfe Castle Village Bakery.
All the doors here are very little, so get ready to duck!
On the walk back to the national trust carpark, you’ll head back out of the village where you’ll see this lovely weir in action complete with a Corfe castle backdrop.
When can you visit Corfe Castle?
We visited at the start of February on a blustery, winters day which meant I adorned some rather windswept hair come the end. But Corfe Castle opens its doors to visitors nearly all year round, except for a bit of time over Christmas.
In general the opening times during the darker winter months are 10am-4pm (with last entry at 3:30pm) and when the sun shines longer during the summer, they stay open a touch longer until around 6pm. Click here to check the opening times for when you want to visit.
How much do tickets cost to visit Corfe Castle?
Again, if you’re a National Trust Member then your tickets are already paid for with your membership. You’ll just need to rock up and show your membership cards.
For all non-members, this is what you’ll be looking to pay.
Off peak prices:
| Ticket type | Standard |
|---|---|
| Adult | £12.00 |
| Child | £6.00 |
| Family | £30.00 |
| Family (1 adult) | £18.00 |
Peak prices:
| Ticket type | Standard |
|---|---|
| Adult | £13.00 |
| Child | £6.50 |
| Family | £32.50 |
| Family (1 adult) | £19.50 |
How long do you need at Corfe Castle?
We only spent 30ish minutes here as it was due to close not too long after we arrived. But even in our slightly fleeting half an hour or so, we still got to see it all and read all the information boards that were dotted about the place.
You could easily stretch your visit out longer though. Spending more time studying the remains of rooms and admiring all the old stonework. Plus it would be a lovely place to sit and tuck into a picnic whilst enjoying the scenic views that surround you.
During half term they are doing a ‘teddy zip-line’ at Corfe Castle, where children can send their favourite teddies on a wild, adrenaline fuelled adventure! Also, during the summer they put on various games for the children to play. Along with live demonstrations showing old techniques; like how the Tudors made bread and beer many moons ago.
Where in the world is Corfe Castle?
Corfe Castle is roughly half way between Swanage and Wareham on the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset.
The county of Dorset is in the south west region of England. A county which has some other stunning places to visit like the nearby Blue Pool, Old Harry Rocks, and my personal favourite; Durdle Door which can be found on the Jurassic Coast.
Places to stay near Corfe Castle
If you’re wanting to stay as close to Corfe Castle as possible, then of course your best option would be to stay in one of the charming hotels or B&B’s within the village of Corfe. Click here to see what accommodation options are available.
The nearby seaside town of Swanage has the most accommodation options, or you could try Wareham too.
Walks to do from Corfe Castle
Purbeck ridgeway to Swanage:
There are many scenic walks you can do which pass Corfe Castle. One of the best (and longest) sounds like the Purbeck Ridgeway walk. Which will have you strolling your way from in-land Corfe Castle, all the way to the coast!
Along the route you’ll pass the stunning white chalk cliffs of Old Harry Rocks, until you eventually reach the end point in the seaside town of Swanage.
This is a big walking route. We’re talking roughly 11 miles long and taking about 5.5 hours – one way! However, there is the option to grab a bus back to Corfe Castle. Or you could level up your return trip with a ride on the heritage steam train!
The walk sounds gorgeous, and its on our ‘to do list’ once this UK weather brightens up a little!
Short West Ridgeway walk:
As it was super chilly, we went for a shorter route which takes you on a loop through the fields near Corfe Castle. Its approximately 3 miles long (which can be made shorter) and treats you to some breath-taking views across the isle of Purbeck all the way to the sea.
If you do it the way I’ll explain below then I would class it as an easy walk in general, with only a couple gradual (but short) hills to walk up. If you did it in reverse, then you would have one exceptionally steep hill to trudge your way up right from the get-go!
Where to start the West Ridgeway Corfe Castle loop walk
From the national trust carpark you want to cross over the main road, and head along the path that runs along the bottom of the field (to your right). This path was under maintenance when we visited. So we walked along the road that runs parallel instead (past the free carpark).
Either way, you want to follow the sign for ‘Purbeck Way’.
If that path has re-opened and you’ve gone that way, you’ll come out in the field. If you’ve gone along the road (by the base of the castle) walk along the road, cross over a little bridge, past the lay-by I mentioned earlier, then turn off right into the field called ‘West Hill’ (you’ll see where the path joins)
Go through the metal gate and head up the grassy mound with Corfe Castle in the background behind you.
Continue walking up this gentle grassy hill. You’ll see a track on your right hand side, but don’t turn off. Carry on walking straight up the hill where a stone sign points you in the direction of ‘Knowle Hill & Cocknowle’ where you can see a wooden gate in the distance.
Just before the gate, you’ll come to a sign post which directs you on to ‘Church Knowle’. Head through the wooden gate and continue walking up.
Carry on walking and you’ll arrive at a little stone sign which marks a fork in the road. You can go right (Ridge Path/Knowle Hill) if you want to make the walk shorter. Or keep left (Underhill Path/Cocknowle) which is what we did, and head down the lower, narrower path.
Next you’ll discover the Church Hill Lime-kiln! Which we did go inside for a little look!
After a little nosey, continue walking and clamber over this stile.
It gets a little narrow and brambly through this short section!
You’ll come out from the brambles and notice a gate ahead, or a hair pin bend on your right taking you up the side of the hill. When you see a gate ahead and this trough. This is where you turn almost back on yourself (but going up the side of the hill)
My photo below I have turned around to face this part, to try and show it better. So we came out on that lower track and spun around heading up the hill.
Trudge up this fairly short but steep hill where you will come out in a big open field, providing amazing views of all the patchwork fields.
Follow the trodden path and you’ll see another stone sign down in the ground. Ignore that one which tells you to go right to Corfe (as this would take you back down the track where I said you could turn off to make the walk shorter) Instead walk over the mound and head over to the far left corner of the field.
You’ll see a trig point in the next field over. Go through the kissing gate near the trig.
Continue walking across the field where you will eventually gain this incredible view over Corfe Castle.
Turn right here and head down a very steep hill. Be careful!
The hill will eventually turn to proper steps which snake their way down the hill.
Go back through the gate where you started, and walk along the road crossing back over the bridge.
Just after the bridge, you’ll see a gate on the right and a sign pointing to Corfe Castle.
Go through there and follow the path that runs beside a gentle stream.
The path will bring you out right next to the National Trust cafe and ticket office.
Corfe castle makes for an exciting day out, and its a great place to bring the family for an historic adventure. Adding in the scenic west ridgeway walk certainly pads out your time here in Corfe. I hope this has been useful and aids you to get the most out of your Corfe castle trip.
We look forward to coming back and doing the long walk all the way to Swanage next time. Have you done it?
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