Food
Siop Pen Gwyn
Hand-made Welsh butter fudge from a workshop at Cei Llechi.
Known for: Welsh butter fudge
Plan Your Visit
Everything you need to know before you head out: weather, what to pack, the best seasons, and useful links.
Looking for a day plan?
Half-day highlights, full-day explorer, rainy day plan, and weekend escape: all mapped out step by step.
Weather & What to Bring
Weather
Caernarfon faces the Menai Strait with Anglesey across the water, and the harbour, the walls and the castle all stand on the water's edge, so whatever the weather is doing on the strait reaches the town first.
Packing Checklist
- ✓Waterproof jacket (essential year-round)
- ✓Layers: temperature can change quickly
- ✓Comfortable walking shoes
- ✓Camera: the views are worth it
- ✓Sunscreen: yes, even in United Kingdom
Bring Something Home
Local producers, markets, and makers worth a stop before you leave Caernarfon.
Jam, chutney and marmalade
Food
The Jam Lady
Jam, chutney and marmalade at Cei Llechi, since summer 2025.
Known for: Jam, chutney and marmalade
Best Time to Visit
Spring
March - May
Castle hours are 9:30 to 17:00 from 1 March, per Cadw. Railway running days are on festrail.co.uk.
From 1 March Cadw opens the castle 9:30 to 5pm, and the town is quiet enough to have the Maes to yourself early on. Spring is when the Welsh Highland Railway's season picks up from the station under the castle; check its running days before you plan round it.
Summer
June - August
July and August castle hours are 9:30 to 18:00, per Cadw. Segontium tours run on selected dates May to August.
July and August give the castle its longest day, 9:30 to 6pm on Cadw's hours, and the Black Boy's door-run waiting list at its longest; put your name down early. May to August is when Cadw runs its guided tours at Segontium. The harbour side of the walls, outside the Anglesey, is where to be on a fine evening.
Autumn
September - November
September and October castle hours are 9:30 to 17:00, per Cadw. The Friday-to-Sunday line on Cadw's page is the pop-up cafe's, not the castle's.
Cadw keeps the castle on 9:30 to 5pm through September and October, and the Halloween weekend brings its trick or treat trail, while the Welsh Highland Railway runs its Fright Express to Dinas in the evenings. The Porth Mawr tower key is lent until the end of October.
Winter
December - February
November to February castle hours are 10:00 to 16:00, closed 24 to 26 December and 1 January, per Cadw.
Winter shortens the castle to 10 to 4, and Cadw closes it on 24, 25 and 26 December and 1 January, and at short notice in extreme weather, which on the strait is a real possibility. Galeri's Christmas market is on Doc Victoria in late November, and Pen Deitsh faces the castle gate when a squall comes through.