St Briavels Castle is a pretty special place. Nestled in the middle of the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire it is an English Castle that oozes history and intrigue. That you can stay here, in rooms that could whisper hundreds of stories is incredible. That St Briavels is part of the YHA is almost unbelievable.
👩💻 About the author – Nichola is a family travel expert and has written for The Guardian, The Telegraph, Lonely Planet Magazine and Wanderlust, amongst many others. She’s spent over a decade travelling the world with her children, finding the best places for you to explore too.
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Table of Contents
St Briavels Castle – accommodation and location
Built as a hunting lodge for King John in the 12th century St Briavels is a truly impressive place. The moat that once surrounded it has all but drained away and the large banqueting halls have been divided now to make smaller rooms.
However there is certainly no mistaking the castle it is and the history it holds.
After falling into disrepair it later became a courthouse and for a number of years a prison. Now completely restored it is a fascinating building and an amazing place to have the opportunity to stay.
St Briavels Castle has played a surprisingly important role in English and Welsh border history. Its location near the River Wye meant it was strategically vital during medieval times, acting as both a defensive stronghold and an administrative centre for the Forest of Dean. The castle was closely linked to royal control of iron mining in the area, and its courtroom once oversaw disputes between foresters, miners and the Crown.
The Castle stands high up overlooking the beautiful Wye Valley and is perfect for springtime walks and summer picnics. We visited in winter and I absolutely loved hearing the rain driving down and hearing the wind howl – perfect castle weather.
If you are visiting the UK with kids or looking for a UK staycation that genuinely feels different, St Briavels Castle delivers something rare: the chance to sleep inside living history, rather than simply visit it for an afternoon.
Sleeps
As St Briavels YHA is a hostel the beds are all bunk beds or singles. Families can get in touch beforehand and be allocated a private room with your own key.
And this is where the fun really begins as many of the rooms have an impressive history.
Despite being a hostel, St Briavels never felt basic or impersonal to us. Instead, it felt like a shared adventure space, where everyone staying had chosen it because they wanted something memorable rather than ordinary.
State Apartments
We stayed in the ‘State Apartments’ which, in the 12th century, would have formed part of the main hall. Jutting out of our room, in the corner, was the remains of King John’s seat where he could have looked down on his courtiers and overseen proceedings.
It’s the sort of history I love, that you can feel those old stones, see how they had been placed together hundreds of years ago to make decorative arches and only imagine at the sights and sounds they looked down upon.
On the morning after our stay we also took a tour of the castle (they run these regularly and it’s worth enquiring about when you book or check in as this was one of the real highlights). The tour took us to some of the other bedrooms in the castle – including ours (top tip – make sure you pick up that pair of socks before going on the tour).
The guided tour adds a whole new layer to the experience and is particularly brilliant for children and teens. Hearing real stories about prisoners, judges and medieval life while standing in the actual rooms where it all happened makes history feel tangible and exciting rather than abstract.
So these were my favourite rooms that you can stay in.
St Briavels Prison
Yes, you can actually stay in the prison which held prisoners from hundreds of years ago. The graffiti here was fantastic. This is one of several windmills carved by Dutch prisoners captured and imprisoned here during the Anglo-Dutch wars in the 17th Century –
And this is graffiti including the lament – “For I have been here a great space; And I am weary of the place.” And the more sinister – “Robin Belcher. The Day will come that thou shalt answer for it for thou hast sworn against me, 1671”.
Seeing these messages scratched into the stone is incredibly moving. They are not museum replicas but real voices from the past, left behind by people who had no idea their words would still be read centuries later.
The Oubliette
There is also a very nice room with a big rug on the floor. The rug was pulled back to reveal a trap door which opened down to the scariest oubliette.
Oubliette, French for ‘to forget’ was a particularly horrendous form of punishment. A prisoner would have been pushed into this huge drop and the door slammed shut and they would literally be forgotten.
I’m not sure I would particularly like to sleep above this but what a place to say you have stayed. The photo below doesn’t show how deep it was…it was very deep.
Moments like this really underline just how dark parts of medieval justice were, and it sparked some surprisingly thoughtful conversations with our children about fairness, punishment and how society has changed.
St Briavels Castle Medieval banquet
Meals are offered in a downstairs banqueting hall and they have a great breakfast at St Briavels. On the day we visited, and on other days throughout the year, they had a Medieval style banquet.
If this is happening when you are visiting, book it. Quickly.
This was brilliant. They have huge boxes of costumes for adults and children you can choose from if you fancy dressing up (but you don’t have to – about half the people in our group did).
Our children loved dressing up – our 7 year old as an archer and our 4 year old in a maiden’s costume. And then came the food.
And oh my goodness, was it a feast. It started with an absolutely delicious pottage –
And then the main course was platter after platter which just kept on coming – baked potatoes, stuffing, red cabbage, a massive dish of meats, and a big mix of delicious vegetarian bakes and sausages for the non-meat eaters.
In true Medieval style there was no cutlery. Everyone got stuck in and it was really good fun and tasty.
We finished with some lovely honey cake. It was certainly a meal to remember and so much fun.
The banquet felt like immersive theatre meets family dining. It was really fun, and it worked just as well for adults as it did for children.
Exploring the Forest of Dean from St Briavels Castle
One of the biggest bonuses of staying at St Briavels Castle is its location within the Forest of Dean. This ancient woodland is packed with family-friendly walks, cycling trails and wildlife spotting opportunities. It’s ideal if you want to combine a historic stay with plenty of outdoor time.
Puzzlewood, Symonds Yat and the River Wye are all within easy driving distance, making St Briavels a great base for exploring this part of Gloucestershire.
The Best Bits of St Briavels Castle (YHA)
Well, it has to be staying in an 800-year-old castle, doesn’t it?! It felt like such an experience and one of those places to always remember.
Worth bearing in mind
While I didn’t find this in the communal rooms, in the middle of December I did find the bedroom a little on the chilly side. It was fine once I was tucked up in bed but I found it harder to just relax in the room.
I do feel the cold and I wished I’d brought an extra jumper…and my slippers. On a practical level, the YHA provide you with all bedding and the bathrooms were communal and along the hallway (and very clean and well looked after).
I would definitely recommend packing warm layers, slippers and a torch for late-night wanders along stone corridors – not essential, but very much part of the experience.
Child-friendly?
What child wouldn’t love to stay in a real castle? It was the perfect setting for childhood imaginations to go wild.
St Briavels also put on a range of other activities at other points throughout the year. When we stayed, in the run-up to Christmas there was colouring in the old courthouse.
You could also have a go at making Christingles –
You could even try your hand at candle dipping –
On top of this they run archery lessons which our seven-year-old absolutely loved.
All in all this is a really special place to stay…and the fact it’s part of the YHA is still amazing to me.
Ready to book St Briavels Castle (YHA)?
Find out more here.
very striking and cool place to stay! although I would be a bit scared to stay in the old prison!
It’s a really cool place to stay and actually the prison didn’t feel that scary. The only reason it might be hard to sleep in there is because the graffiti was so interesting…I would just be up all night reading that!!
how funny my parents have been talking about us going here for a while! They love youth hosteling and it’s pretty much the only places they stay, they are so good these days. The graffiti is chilling! x
Oh really?! You should definitely go…it’s so interesting 🙂 x
And this is why people should get out of the mindset of ‘chain hotel or B&B only’! Hostels can be amazing!
I am SO going to head down here! Awesome! (I can pretend to be a knight!)
You’re so right, they certainly can be amazing!! You should definitely go there…such an interesting place…and I’m sure they wouldn’t mind you pretending to be a knight, in fact you’d fit right in!!
What a really unique and great looking place to stay! I used to live in the Forest of Dean many years ago, such a lovely place to live and indeed ot visit – lots to do, and this looks like the perfect base x
It’s amazing isn’t it? And I totally agree, the Forest of Dean is lovely and such beautiful surroundings. Thank you for your comments!
Wow, what an interesting place and so good that it’s run by the YHA,so affordable. I think I might find it a bit spooky at night, I’m such a scaredy cat
I know, it’s brilliant isn’t it? I know it looks a bit spooky in the photos but honestly, it didn’t feel at all scary at night. There were lots of people around and it was such a cheerful, happy atmosphere that there was no room for feeling scared. Thank you for your comments!
Oh wow! I have always wanted to stay in a castle and this place looks amazing! x
If you want to stay in a castle then this place is definitely for you!! It really is incredible! Thank you for your comments 🙂
I would LOVE to stay at a castle and so would my ‘princesses’, I have bookmarked this post for One Day
I wanted to stay in a castle for the longest time! Really this one is amazing…it was all my castle dreams come true! Let me know if you visit. Thank you for your comments!
Wow that looks great – what an amazing adventure! My son (and husband!) would love something like this
It was an adventure from start to finish! You should definitely take your son (and husband!)…mine loved it – it was such a brilliant experience. Thank you for commenting!
The castle looks beautiful and I would love to have a go at archery one day.
Yes, I’m thinking I should have had a go at the archery, it looked so much fun…my 7 year old absolutely loved it. Thank you for your comments!
This is a Youth Hostel???! Wow! Forget the children – I’D love to stay there. I love your pictures, too – very moody and atmospheric.
I know, it’s ridiculous isn’t it?! And thank you, it was such an atmospheric place I loved photographing it! Thank you for your comments 🙂
As a mega history nerd I loved this post. I’m adding this to my places to go list! The graffiti is wicked, so much better than “I woz ere”
Thank you very much for your comments! I’m a bit of a crazy history nerd too so this place was right up my street! I could research the graffiti all day long! Hope you get to visit too…let me know if you do!
Wow, this sounds like such an amazing experience, great accommodation and activities. I must admit I find all that history kind of spooky when it comes to staying there though.
It really was the most amazing place. And honestly, it wasn’t scary in the slightest…there were always so many people around and a really jovial, happy atmosphere. If you get the chance definitely give it a try, I think you’d realise it’s a happy old place to stay in 🙂
Wow, what a brilliant idea! Would love to stay somewhere so unique. Agree with you that being cold was the first thing I thought of though! Would have to take a ‘hottie’ along 🙂
It’s an amazing place and I’d definitely recommend it if you get the chance. It was really strange because pretty much the whole rest of the castle was warm but our room was just a little on the chilly side. A hot water bottle would be perfect! As I said I do feel the cold and I am a big hot water bottle fan!! 🙂 Thank you for commenting!
What an incredible place to stay! My daughter would absolutely love St Briavels, I think, especially the archery. Thanks for sharing this little gem.
Thank you for the lovely comments! If you get a chance to stay I would definitely recommend it, it’s such a unique place and full of so many great experiences. Please come back and comment if you do stay there!
Oh wow, that looks fabulous!! I will have to add it to my long list of things to do. I remember staying in a yha castle in Wales many years ago. Wish we had old cool castles in Australia!
I stayed in an amazing YHA property in Scotland years ago…they really do have some incredible places to stay! Thank you for your comments 🙂
This looks amazing! I love history and to actually stay in one and think about what went on hundreds of years ago in that exact spot… really makes you think! I’ve yet to go to a castle in Europe but I hope to stay in one one day.
This is such a great place if you love history! I hope you get to stay in a castle on your next trip to Europe! Thank you for commenting 🙂
Wow!!! Those photos are amazing and I am positive JD would adore an experience like this. Thanks so much for sharing, I’m going to look in to how we could get htere.
Thank you so much! I would love to hear how you get on if you do go so please let me know. It’s such an amazing experience…living history! Happy planning and thank you again for your comments!
Let me start by saying that we LOVE exploring castles so as soon as I saw this post I knew I would love it!
This is one of the lesser known castles in England for sure. We have really enjoyed exploring Windsor Castle and recently (last week) we visited York Castle Museum!
The photos are amazing as others have indicated and I really enjoyed reading the content of this post.
Thanks for sharing such wonderful experiences and we will certainly look at checking this out when we head to Gloucs at some point when we next return to England.
Thank you so much for the lovely comments. This is definitely one of the lesser known castles and that really does add to its appeal – surrounded by the English forest and overlooking the Wye Valley it’s a really special place! I hope you make it there too…come back and let me know if you do! Thank you again for the comments 🙂
I would love to stay in a place with that much history – but I think the graffiti on the walls would get to me after a while! I would totally take the archery lessons, too.
The graffiti was so fascinating! It was amazing to see so much of it – I would have spent all night reading it if I’d been in that room 😉
What a brilliant idea! It looks like an awesome place to stay – so rich with history and character. It looks like you had an amazing time there, especially your children! The feast sounds amazing as well!!
Thank you for your comments, it really was a great place to stay and the feast was wonderful. Definitely recommended 🙂
Looks like you and your family had a great time there. We can image that it would be special to stay in a castle , such an atmosphere. Super! Cheers, Jempi & Nina
I don’t think you can beat the atmosphere of a castle…it really was a great place to stay. Thank you for your comments!
I love this! I want to stay in a castle and have archery lessons! I think it’s great that your kids are getting to do this 🙂
Thank you so much for your comments. You should do it!! It’s great fun…and not only for kids 😉
Oh my goodness, this is amazing! I would love to take my family here….were your kids scared? I wonder if mine might be. Will look into this, thank you for sharing 🙂
You should definitely do it! You can see my oldests face when we were walking into the castle, he was a little scared as there was a storm and it was getting dark! But once inside they weren’t scared at all…I think it helped because we were all in the room together too. Please come back and let me know if you visit!
OMG IT’S HOGWARTS. But seriously, the photo of the bunk beds just killed me. I recently read a buzzfeed article comparing prices of castles to prices of Manhattan apartments and I decided that when I’m rich I’m going to buy a castle. In the interim, maybe I’ll just stay at one…this looks amazing.
Ha ha!! I love your comment! I reckon I’d probably prefer to live in a castle than a Manhattan apartment…for most of the year anyway!! I hope your dream comes true!
I’ve stayed in a few castles, but none this old. Here I’d probably opt for the prison room. 🙂
The prison room I think was probably my favourite too…although the children loved staying in the one with King Johns seat in it. Too many interesting places!! Thank you for your comments 🙂
Good isn’t it. I stayed here just a few months ago, it was very quiet, hardly anyone in. I missed the banquet as I was in midweek and sat completely on my own in the dinning hall! I missed the graffiti and the oubliette (no one told me about them). Still, a most interesting and unusual place to stay. Would have liked to have seen one of the fires lit up but as there was only a few in I guess it wasn’t worth the effort and expense. Some very nice walking around about, a nice pub just a couple of hundred yards away and a really nice friendly community run cafe just slightly further away. YHA have a good many interesting buildings to stay in, this is certainly the oldest. Get exploring …. what’s not to like!!
You forgot to mention the dog-spit. Oooh, and the ghosts. Of course, if you have children, there aren’t any ghosts…
There’s also a Norman church directly opposite which is always open.
Wow, what an adventure. Seems like a truly unique vacation. I would love exploring all those old stone halls and I appreciate they have vegetarian options.