Jedburgh Abbey — Attraction in Scotland

The nave of the Abbey Church (St Mary) is the most preserved and impressive building but the foundations and remaining lower walls of the adjoining buildings are still comprehensive enough to provoke the imagination - also an active Herb Garden remains in the centre of the site which is a nice touch.

The site covers all physical aspects of the Abbey along with the historic, cultural and (of course) religious context. There is a good digital Audio Guide provided by a QR code in the Visitor Centre, it was engaging, thorough and overarching - it even had monastic music playing occasionally. Though, I would recommend to fully charge your phone and have enough data to use the Audio Guide as it provides much more in-depth experience, but the plaques do provide adequate explanations.

The Visitor Centre has stone fragments and artefacts from when the site has been excavated over the years, a scale model of what the Abbey would’ve looked like during its height of operations and an all-in composing Timeline of events and life from when the building was established in the 12th Century right through to Modern day – I was interested the most by the Canon Regular’s (Augustine Priest) daily routine and the famous Jedburgh Pears once produced in and still around the Abbey.

I most appreciated the interactive engineering devices, tools and architectural techniques used in construction of the Abbey which are located in a small stone building next to the West entrance. In addition, there are ruined fragments of the Cloister’s arches positioned along the wall there (West) as well.

The entrance Shop where you buy your tickets and leave the site is rather mediocre and ought to have more relevant and unique items to the Abbey itself instead of the whole of Scotland or the Borders which could be found in most local touristy shops anyway. However, I thoroughly enjoyed our visit and will likely return in...

The main body of the Abbey still stands at its original hight missing only it's roof and stain glass windows and very impressive it looks to. In its day it would've given Westminster Abbey a run for its money in my view. Most of the ruins are actually beyond the main body of the church. The Abbey floor is level,if a bit rough in places and there are several short but uneven stairs to negotiate. Wheelchair users should have no problem with these with a bit of care. You should note that non of these stairs have rails to help you but staff are always willing to help.

One of the questions that I am always asked is "Can I take my dog". Yes you can but it must be kept on a leash and you must take your dog's sack of poo poo home with you😉. Assistance dogs are allowed on roof areas but family dogs are not. The gardens are well kept and a good place to have a picnic on a warm day.

The Abbey is open daily from 9.30am until 5.30pm except during July when it closes at 8pm on Tuesday's and Thursday's. Enterance to the Visitor Centre ,Shop ,Café and Toilet facilities are up a set of stairs to the first floor. Wheelchair users have a separate enterance which the staff will ensure it's open and clear. Enterance fees are as follows :- Adults £6.00 Children 5 to 15 £3.60 (under 5's Free ) and concessions £4.80. There is a car park close by but I don't know what the fees are as I was taken to the site by friends.

This is a very good family day out and only a hop skip and a jump from the...

This is a spectacular and outstanding Abbey Ruins in the Scottish Borders town of Jedburgh and is one of the best ruins of Borders Abbeys. The site itself is of a decent size and there is plenty to keep entertained for at least an hour or so. There is a visitor centre just after you enter the place with an interesting exhibition about the Abbey and the Augustinian Order that was present here and there is some interesting mortar artefacts to see aswell. Once you get on the Ruins themselves it feels like a wonderful labyrinth to explore with The Cloister, Presbytery and The Walls of the Abbey Church the outstanding features. Once you get inside the Abbey Church you can stare in amazement at the wonderful and the full length of Abbey from one end to the other giving you a full idea of what life would have been like during the Medieval Period and the Ruins of the Abbey are probably some of the best and the condition of them is also outstanding compared to some of the Ruins of other Abbeys and Priories in the UK. Visitors can also enjoy an extremely informative audio guide at no extra charge which is a great way to get around to understand the different features of the Abbey and their uses along with their history. There is also a gift shop at the Abbey visitor centre with a range of souvenirs at reasonable prices. Overall this is a wonderful and lovely place to visit and makes for a decent and enjoyable day out. Well worth a visit whilst...