Beeston Regis Priory

What it’s like

Wander round medieval church ruins with 14th century arcading still standing in the chancel, free to visit any daylight hour.

This is a set of ruins rather than a visitor attraction with a ticket desk, and that's most of the charm. The old priory church has stood since medieval times, and the chancel still shows off 14th century arcading if you know to look up and around rather than just at the crumbling walls. There's no set route, no signage telling you where to stand, just old stone to wander through and read at your own pace.

It's free and open during daylight hours, closed once dusk comes, so this suits an afternoon detour rather than a planned day out. Kids who like poking about old buildings will get something from it, though the site is upfront that ruins can be dangerous and children need supervising rather than let loose to scramble over anything. Climbing on the stonework isn't allowed anyway, along with metal detecting and camping, and they mention police patrol the site regularly because damaging the ruins is a criminal offence.

Dogs can come too, on leads, with the usual expectation you clear up after them. There's no food on site and nothing in the way of facilities, so treat it as a stop rather than a stay, maybe twenty minutes to half an hour if you're reading the information as you go.

Need to know

Dogs

Allowed on leads. All mess must be removed

• Climbing, camping and metal detecting are all banned on site
• Police patrol regularly as damaging the ruins is a criminal offence
• No food or facilities on site, so it works best as a short stop

Plan your visit

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