Overview

I went not expecting the world's oldest continually inhabited castle to be very wheelchair accessible and was amazed to find it is very much the opposite! There's staff everywhere who are very attentive and approachable, all eager to assist, and everyone had open, friendly demeanour with nothing too much trouble. We didn't pre-book but turned up on spec and were told there was no queue and we could go straight in. I was in a powerchair and my friend on crutches, with my abled partner. There's a ramp off to the left by the ticket office steps (not immediately obvious so don't be deterred, just go through the gate and it's on the left for you). No tricky manouvering required anywhere. Free carer ticket with my disabled access ticket, and my ticket is valid for a whole year. Paths around the place are smooth and not too steep, although Windsor town itself is on a hill and has steep bits, so be aware of that, but the castle itself is fine inside and out. Photography is not allowed inside the castle itself, only in the grounds, so my photos are only exterior and accessible toilet. Inside, staff again were attentive and let me know to "go to X and my colleague there will show you to the lift" etc, everyone seemed ready and waiting to show any disabled visitors to accessible routes without delay. The chapel was closed that day but we went to see the doll's house and the state apartments which were wonderful, and again no pinch points for wheelchairs - everything was easy to navigate, and plenty of staff on hand to answer questions and assist if needed. My friend needed to pause and take meds with a bottle of water, but I was worried as most musuems or spaces like that won't allow food/drink inside, so I checked with a nearby staff member and she replied that of COURSE we were free to drink water to take meds even inside the great hall, it was no problem at all. Finally, the changing spaces bathroom in the courtyard was wonderfully constructed. There are THREE red cords (only one was tied up so I untied it and added a red cord card from Euan's guide) but the other two hung freely. Hoist, washing table, shower, the screen was even decorated in a theme to go with the historic location which is a nice touch. The toilet even had Japanese style built-in bidet function with option to wash/dry hands free, although I didn't test it. It also had a flush button on the remote in case you struggle to use the regular flush for any reason. There was even a sharps box in there which was a nice touch, in case any one needs to safely dispose of a needle after taking medication there. Definitely a 10/10 experience for me and now I know how welcoming it is, I will definitely be going back! Transport - we live locally so just drove over and parked in a town car park to explore the town first, although disabled bays were all full and at peak season, car parking spaces are hard to come by due to lots of tourists. I have also taken the train from Slough to there before, and a ramp can be provided by rail staff, although the train can be a bit hit and miss, as they tend to try to put you in the cargo area instead of letting you go in the proper wheelchair area - so make sure you tell station staff that you want to go in the wheelchair area, as the cargo area is not actually very accessible!

Transport & Parking

Access

Toilets

Staff

Photos