Camber Castle

Camber Castle is owned and maintained by English Heritage but it is in the Rye Harbour Nature Reserve and public access to the land is managed by the Sussex Wildlife Trust.

What to see at Camber Castle

Although Camber Castle is in ruins with little to see inside, it is a lovely walk to the castle and its unspoiled location with few other visitors means that a visit to this castle is always a special experience.

Because the castle is located inside a nature reserve visitors are able to view local wildlife, which includes a large variety of seabirds.

Visiting Camber Castle

Camber Castle lies 2km (1¼ miles) south of Rye and 2km (1¼ miles) northeast of Winchelsea. There is no access to Camber Castle by road and the closest parking is 1.6km (1 mile) away. It is around a half-hour walk from Rye.

You can see the exterior of the castle during reasonable daylight hours throughout the year; however, you can only only go inside the castle as part of a guided tour and these are only conducted three days per year. English Heritage run guided tours at 2pm on the first Saturday of August, September and October.

Tours meet at the castle so you will have to leave Rye by 1.20pm to allow enough time to get to the castle in time for the tour. The English Heritage guided tours cost £3 but are free for English Heritage members.

The Sussex Wildlife Trust also has a programme of guided walks around the Rye Harbour Nature Reserve. These walks don’t usually visit the castle but they sometimes take you to areas of the reserve that give you a better view of the castle that you couldn’t otherwise get on your own and are a good alternative if you’re not visiting Rye on one of the three days of the year that the English Heritage tours operate. These walks depart from the public toilets at Rye Harbour (which is around a 40-minute walk or a short bus ride from the centre of Rye) every Wednesday morning at 10.15am. The Wednesday Sussex Wildlife Trust walks are free of charge and bookings are not required.

The Sussex Wildlife Trust’s Wednesday morning walks are a regular fixture but the trust also has a programme of activities that run on other days and this includes a few other days each year when you can visit the castle; however, these walks focus mainly on the wildlife in the nature reserve rather than on the castle.

Because it is only open a few days a year, there are very few facilities on site. If you’re hungry or thirsty you will have to walk to either Rye or Winchelsea for something to eat or drink.

Taking into account time for the return walk from Rye, you should allow at least two hours to visit Camber Castle.