Norwich Castle — Attraction in Norwich

OK as a Norwich resident I wanted to be impressed with the keep renovation. Unfortunately that was not the case. The Great Hall and Royal Quarters give no sense of history or gravitas seeming more like a children's play/discovery area. Perhaps this was the intention but the pre opening hype (and current marketing) stress ed the medieval authenticity. The Keep video show adopts the same child centred approach with cartoon graphics and animations and a horrible histories style narration. The Medieval Gallery is well presented and contains some fabulous artifacts, however this could have been created within the existing keep and did not require the multi million £ restoration. we found the entry process to be painful as the numbers allowed into the entrance hall were limited (we were told) to 10 due to difficulty in evacuation in the event of an emergency. Was this not consider during the planning stages. There is no inclement weather protection o later on the morning of our visit, when there was heavy rain, those queuing were getting soaked. I honestly preferred the Keep prior to restoration with written explanations and videos to show how it would been, and allowing visitors to use their own imaginations. I humbly suggest that money spent of the restoration could been better used refurbishing some of exiting galleries which are now very tired but still have interest. Defiantly not the world class experience we had...

Visited here today and got here early for both the battlement tours and the dungeon tour. Each tour lasted about 25 minutes and were one after the other which made for an interesting hour. The battlements tour was good, the tour guide enthusiastic and funny and also knew his stuff. The second tour guide was quite dull and the dungeon tour consisted of only 4 small rooms. Some interesting stuff but not unmissable. The tours were £3.20 each on top of the adult entrance fee which was around £9.15.

The castle certainly has a lot to offer itself. History consisting off Romans/Boudicca, Anglo Saxon, Norman, medieval, Victorian, British empire and Egyptian. There was a fascinating room with a French ships colours flag captured by Nelson. There is also the natural history rooms and the art galleries with art from many periods and styles. There is also lots of interactive pieces for young children such as dress up, interactive stations, hands on pieces and areas for photo opportunities.

The main castle hall is quite a sight and with the balconies is quite different from other castles I've visited.

When we visited there was also a wedding going on so the castle does for hire events so that's another nice service/feature they offer.

Overall a great day. There isnt much to the outside grounds and the view over the city is spoilt by a lot of the taller shops which in my opinion ruins the picturesque quality of its...

As a Norfolk Museums pass holder, I was excited to visit the Castle after its long awaited refurbishment of the Castle Keep. My family and I visited last week and were somewhat disappointed unfortunately. Whilst the work is impressive, we felt that the Castle had become too 'artsy' in an attempt to compete with larger London museums. Not enough was done to display the history of the building itself, with the removal of the Gaol exhibit downstairs. Many of the exhibits were not related to the City or the castle itself and it seemed a shame not to capitalise on the rich history of the building itself. We went for lunch in the cafe upstairs and enjoyed our meal- the catering staff were horrendously understaffed and rushed off their feet and I was told that new staff members had failed to turn up for work, hence the delay in being served. The ladies were amazing though, so friendly and helpful (part of my side salad was missing and I broke a glass) but they dealt with it immediately. 10/10 to those ladies who were clearly struggling but held it together and prob 6/10 for the museum itself. Having said that, the Castle is still well worth a visit if you are visiting Norwich - the access to the roof with 360° views of the City is amazing and is something that you previously had to pay additionally to do and there are lots of things for young children to do, with interactive...