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Kendal Castle
Attractions in Kendal

Places to visit in Kendal, led by Kendal Castle

Most of what there is to see is museums or galleries: 5 of 9. The built-up area itself has 6 places on our list; 3 others are within 5 km of its edge. Of these, 2 are looked after by the National Trust. 6 of the places on the list are within 1 km of the middle of town. Beyond the town, Hill Top sits 15 km away.

Photo: Kendal Castle, Tom Richardson (CC BY-SA 2.0)
In Kendal
6
inside the built-up area
Within 5 km
3
of the town’s edge
Museums & galleries
5
in or near town
Castles & historic places
2
in or near town
Cared for
2
National Trust, English Heritage, Cadw and others
Best known

What Kendal is known for

After Kendal Castle come 3 museums and 2 art galleries.

CastleKendal Castlein townArt galleryAbbot Hall Art Galleryin townMuseumKendal Museumin townMuseumMuseum of Lakeland Life & Industryin townMuseumMuseumQuaker Tapestry Museumin townArt galleryArt galleryThe Wildman Galleryin town

Each has a page of its own: what it is, who runs it, the weather month by month and what else is near it.

The map

Plotted on the map

Leave town to the southwest for most of the 3 nearby.

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The dashed line is Kendal’s built-up area; orange marks its middle (where most people live). Numbers match the list below. © OpenStreetMap contributors · ONS built-up area 2022

By kind

What sort of places

The two biggest groups: museums or galleries (5) and castles or historic places (2).

Museums & galleries 3 museums · 2 art galleries5 in town
Castles & historic places 2 castles1 in town · 1 nearby
Gardens & estates 1 garden0 in town · 1 nearby
Other attractions 1 attraction0 in town · 1 nearby

Green: inside Kendal. Grey: within 5 km of its edge.

2 places are cared for by the National Trust (Sizergh Castle and Sizergh Garden).

Every place

Full list of places

9 places in all: 6 in town and 3 within 5 km of its edge.

The 6 inside Kendal come first, best known first; then the places within 5 km, close and well known first. Churches and listed buildings are on the History page, not here.

183 listed buildings and 6 scheduled monuments are on Kendal’s History page → · Parks, footpaths and green space in Kendal →

Big names nearby

Big names nearby

Hill Top, at 15 km, heads the 12 day trips.

Historic house · National TrustHill Top15 km westCastle · English HeritageBrougham Castle37 km northCastleLancaster Castle31 km southHistoric houseLevens Hall7.7 km southCastle · English HeritageBrough Castle35 km northeastCastleAppleby Castle32 km northeastCastlePendragon Castle28 km eastCastle · National TrustWray Castle17 km northwestCathedralLancaster Cathedral31 km southCastleThurland Castle21 km southeastHistoric houseRydal Mount21 km northwestHistoric house · National TrustTownend15 km northwest

Places well known beyond Kendal (Wikipedia articles in several languages, published visitor counts, or a National Trust, English Heritage or Cadw property), close and famous first. Distances are straight lines from the middle of the town.

Kendal, answered

What are the main attractions in Kendal?

The best known inside Kendal’s built-up area are Kendal Castle, Abbot Hall Art Gallery, Kendal Museum and Museum of Lakeland Life & Industry. In all, 6 places to visit are mapped inside the town, and 3 more within 5 km.

Does Kendal have a museum?

5 museums and galleries are in or within 5 km of Kendal: Abbot Hall Art Gallery, Kendal Museum, Museum of Lakeland Life & Industry and Quaker Tapestry Museum.

Is there a National Trust or English Heritage property near Kendal?

Yes. In or within 5 km of Kendal, 2 places are cared for by the National Trust (Sizergh Castle and Sizergh Garden).

What are the best-known days out near Kendal?

Within 40 km: Hill Top (15 km), Brougham Castle (37 km), Lancaster Castle (31 km), Levens Hall (7.7 km).

Where are Kendal’s historic buildings listed?

Kendal has 183 listed buildings, 3 of them Grade I. They are on its History page, from Historic England’s list, not repeated here.

How is this list made?

From OpenStreetMap (museums, galleries, zoos, theme parks and attractions, castles, forts and abbeys, and historic houses and gardens that are open to visitors) and Wikidata (what each place is, who runs it, its website and visitor counts). A place counts for Kendal when it is inside the ONS 2022 built-up area, and as nearby within 5 km of its edge. Opening times and prices are not shown: check the official site.

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 (17)

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.