Castle · Knaresborough · North Yorkshire

Knaresborough Castle

Knaresborough Castle is a ruined fortress. You will find it inside Knaresborough’s built-up area. It is a scheduled monument.

Photo: Knaresborough Castle, Redvers (CC BY 2.0)

Where

In Knaresborough

inside the built-up area

Run by

North Yorkshire Council

the operator on record

How well known

Top 7%

#598 of 8,556 places we list

Warmest months

Jun–Sep

highs of 18–21°C

In brief

Castle in Knaresborough

One of the best-known places to visit in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

#598 of the 8,556 museums, castles, gardens and other attractions we list, by how widely it is covered (11 Wikipedias). About ↓

Inside Knaresborough

Knaresborough Castle is inside Knaresborough’s built-up area, with 7 more places to visit within 5 km. Towns near it ↓

Scheduled monument

On the official list of protected heritage; Knaresborough has 206 listed buildings in all, on its History page. About ↓

Written from OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, the ONS built-up areas and Met Office 1991–2020 averages.

When to go

The climate through the year

June to September are the warmest in Knaresborough, with afternoon highs of 18–21°C.

Jan7° / 1°63 mm

Feb8° / 1°65 mm

Mar10° / 2°56 mm

Apr13° / 4°50 mm

May16° / 6°55 mm

Jun19° / 9°68 mm

Jul21° / 11°60 mm

Aug20° / 11°79 mm

Sep18° / 9°67 mm

Oct14° / 6°75 mm

Nov10° / 4°80 mm

Dec7° / 1°69 mm

Green months are the warmest. Typical afternoon highs and night lows in Knaresborough, and rain in a month. Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for Knaresborough. Opening times change through the year: check before you go. Knaresborough’s full climate →

About

Knaresborough Castle

Running it is North Yorkshire Council. Articles on it exist in 11 languages. Around it, within 15 km, lie 32 more places, Old Mother Shipton's Cave Park (200 m) first on our list.

Knaresborough’s listed buildings and monuments →

Type: Castle
Run by: North Yorkshire Council
Listed: Scheduled monument
Wikipedias: Covered in 11 languages
Town: in Knaresborough
Official site: northyorks.gov.uk/leisure-tourism-and-culture/museums-and-galleries/museums-harrogate-area/knaresborough-castle-and-museum/knaresborough-castle-and-museum-opening-times-and-prices

Facts: Wikidata (CC0) and OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors).

Plan your visit

When it is open

Entrance fees

EntryA fee is charged

Hours and entry: OpenStreetMap contributors. They change through the year: check its site before you go.

The map

Knaresborough Castle at a glance

Knaresborough Castle sits at the orange dot; the numbered ones are listed below.

Towns near it

Towns within reach of Knaresborough Castle

By population, Harrogate leads the 8 with 75,522. The towns whose pages list it: the one it is in, those within 5 km of it, then larger towns further out.

1 · It’s in town

Knaresborough

15,781 people · 12 places to visit

2 · 1.2 km west of it

Harrogate

75,522 people · 14 places to visit

3 · 2.6 km northwest of it

Scotton

696 people · 8 places to visit

4 · 3.1 km east of it

Goldsborough

476 people · 8 places to visit

Compare the 8 towns

Town	Where Knaresborough Castle is	People	Places to visit
Knaresborough	It’s in town	15,781	12
Harrogate	1.2 km west of it	75,522	14
Scotton	2.6 km northwest of it	696	8
Goldsborough	3.1 km east of it	476	8
Follifoot	4.1 km south of it	645	10
Staveley	6.1 km north of it	452	2
Spofforth	6.1 km south of it	1,175	5
Killinghall	6.4 km west of it	1,476	4

Each has its own grades, prices and things to do.

Make a day of it

More to see nearby

A visit can add 2 gardens, 2 historic houses and an attraction, from 32 places within 15 km.

AttractionOld Mother Shipton's Cave Park200 m away 2

Abbey or priory · English HeritageFountains Abbey14 km away 3

Garden · National TrustStudley Royal Park14 km away 4

Castle · English HeritageSpofforth Castle5.9 km away 5

Historic houseHarewood House13 km away 6

CathedralRipon Cathedral15 km away 7

Historic houseRipley Castle7.5 km away 8

Garden · RHSRHS Garden Harlow Carr7.4 km away

Within 15 km, close and well known first. Numbers match the map.

Questions before you go

Where is Knaresborough Castle?

Knaresborough Castle is in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire, inside the town’s built-up area.

What is Knaresborough Castle?

Ruined fortress in North Yorkshire, England, UK.

Who runs Knaresborough Castle?

North Yorkshire Council.

When is the best time to visit Knaresborough Castle?

June to September are the warmest months in Knaresborough, with afternoon highs of 18–21°C (Met Office 1991–2020 averages).

Is Knaresborough Castle a listed building?

Yes: scheduled monument.

What else is there to see near Knaresborough Castle?

Within 15 km: Old Mother Shipton's Cave Park (200 m), Fountains Abbey (14 km), Studley Royal Park (14 km) and Spofforth Castle (5.9 km).

Places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database Licence) and Wikidata (CC0), placed in the ONS 2022 built-up area (Open Government Licence v3.0). Visitor counts are the latest Wikidata gives, with their year.

Photos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).

Photo credits (9)

Knaresborough Castle: Redvers, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Old Mother Shipton's Cave Park: Simon Cobb, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
Fountains Abbey: User:Klaus with K, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Studley Royal Park: silver_doctor. Iain Gilmour - www.silverexpressions.co.uk, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Spofforth Castle: TJBlackwell, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Harewood House: Sirenuk, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Ripon Cathedral: Diliff, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Ripley Castle: Dposte46, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
RHS Garden Harlow Carr: DS Pugh, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.