Walmer Castle and Gardens
Kingsdown Road, Walmer, CT14 7LJ, United Kingdom | 0870 333 1181 | WebsiteNice cafe and gardens, but a lot is hard to access
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This review is especially helpful for those who have or use the following: Wheelchair
Overview
Lots of the upstairs of the house is inaccessible, and it is not easy to get into the mostly accessible but lovely gardens - you have to ask the staff to let you in a side gate and they are not always easy to find or nearby - I had to abandon the wheelchair user by the gate to try and find someone to let us out. The cafe is accessible and very welcoming with very nice homemade cakes and scones and soups.
Transport & Parking
There is dedicated disabled parking near the entrance to the house, but if you are accessing the castle after walking there from Deal along the promenade (which is lovely and flat) then the path makes you navigate through a pot-holed gravel car park, along a tree-rooted path and over a road with no drop kerbs.
Access
The cafe is fully accessible (although you have to go over flagstones), and the paths through the gardens (which are very nice) are mostly accessible, although some are quite narrow with some protruding tree roots. However, to get into the gardens you have to go back out to the entrance and get staff to unlock a side gate. If you were on your own or with only one companion, it would be hard to get the staff's attention to let you back out again, as there is no intercom at the gate! There are two electric mobility scooters available for use. The interiors and roofs are not really accessible.
Toilets
Didn't use, but had a quick look in and they looked standard, albeit along a fairly narrow garden path. They are a long way from the house though, and involves having to get the side gate to the gardens unlocked by a staff member.
Staff
Entrance staff didn't rush to help, and when we arrived asking for information about accessibility before we went round our questions were ignored for the sake of trying to upsell us memberships to English Heritage. Cafe staff were very helpful though, moving furniture around happily to accommodate us!
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