Day Trip from London to Windsor Castle
Every trip to London should include a day trip to Windsor to see the castle and visit the town. Windsor Castle is a royal residence, most often serving at the weekend residence for Queen Elizabeth.
You can walk the grounds, see the changing of the guard, tour the state apartments and visit St. George’s Chapel where Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were married.
We found Windsor to be incredible kid-friendly and gorgeous! It was definitely worth the trip!
Getting to Windsor
The best way to get to Windsor Castle is by train. There are two way to get there depending on where you are staying.
The first is to take a train from Paddington Station. This train will take you to Slough, where you transfer to a regional train to Windsor Central Station which is just a block from the castle.
You can also take a train from Waterloo Station if you are closer to that part of London, which will take you to Windsor Riverside Station, which is a 5-minute block from the castle.
We took the train from Paddington and it was quick and easy.
Visiting Windsor Castle
Changing of the Guard
If you are unfamiliar, Changing the Guard is a form of British pageantry performed by the military. It is the changing of duties from one group of military guards to another and usually involves music, horses and choreographed movements of each group. It’s a really fun thing to see!
As I mentioned in our London itinerary, we opted not to go to the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace because of the crowds and lengthy.
We had read that the changing of the guard at Windsor Castle was way less crowded but still had the horses and the band. We definitely were happy with our choice.
We were able to arrive at Windsor Castle and walk right up and see the change. We ended up at the top of a hill looking down on the guards.
The old guard passed right by us on their way out. Or perhaps they were the new guard, it was a little bit hard to follow because we missed the first few minutes.
Changing the Guard at Windsor Castle starts at 11 a.m. So make sure you arrive by 10:15 or so to see the ceremony. The guards march through the streets of Windsor and then into the castle grounds for the ceremony so you have to have purchased your tickets and made it through security before it starts.
Kid-Friendly Aspects
Windsor Castle was surprisingly kid-friendly! There were so many things geared toward children and just logistical things that really helped us manage the day with the kids.
First up, kids under 5 are free. Our kids are reaching ages where we usually have to pay for at least one of them at many museums and attractions. So when both of them are free, we jump for joy!
If visiting London, make sure you check out how we rented a stroller!
Secondly, the audio/visual guides that are included with the ticket price include videos particularly for kids! And yes, even if you don’t purchase a ticket for them, they can get their own audio phones.
The boys loved having their own “phones” and really enjoyed the videos, where a cute little dragon named Scorch (the boys still remembered his name, I didn’t!) tells them about every part of the castle in easily understandable terms.
Lastly, one of our favorite things for the kids was the craft room at the end of the State Apartments tour. The kids were able to work on some crafts and coloring pages. There is a new craft every few months.
When we visited, the castle was celebrating World Book Day, which occurs on April 23rd, and the boys were able to decorate bookmarks. It was perfect for the kids to get some time to just be a kid and color and create.
I hadn’t realized how much they missed that creative outlet until they a chance to do it!
In fact, that experience was part of the reason I looked up an art class in Barcelona the next week.
The Grounds
Spending time just walking around and taking it all in is such a highlight of Windsor. It’s so nice to get out of the city and have some more wide open space. It was beautiful!
How gorgeous are the gardens down around the main tower? It was so lush and green.
We also loved the open courtyard between the private apartments, visitor apartments and state apartments.
I only hope they let the royal children play here when they are in Windsor. How completely inviting is that lawn for running around? I know my kids wanted to!
It was super windy on the day we visited though, and at times I thought the boys and I might fly away.
Make sure and spend time just meandering and seeing the different areas and views around the fortress. The boys loved finding the various canons and lookout points.
St. George’s Chapel
Another highlight of visiting Windsor Castle is being able to enter and tour St. George’s Chapel. This is the chapel where Prince Harry married Meghan Markle. While I definitely didn’t wake up at 2 in the morning to watch the wedding, but I still love them and just how insanely beautiful everything is in a royal wedding!
The boys loved the chapel. Thank you Scorch for giving them the tour!
Some of the things you can see include the Garter Knight Stalls, which recognize all of the Knights and Ladies who become Companions of the Order with their own banner and decorative stall plate.
There are also some very beautiful stained glass windows throughout, the tombs of 10 British Kings, including Queen Elizabeth’s father and mother. And the boys’ favorite was King Edward III’s sword.
I loved seeing the altar and the main chapel!
Touring the State Apartments
The last thing that we did was to walk through the State Apartments. There are no photos in the State Apartments, but you can see some on the official website here.
We loved seeing all of the artwork and victorian decorations. You snake through many of the rooms on a self-guided tour.
There are two routes to go, the Ceremonial Route and the Historic Route. The Ceremonial Route shows you the main rooms that are used by the Queen and Royal Family today.
The Historic Route takes you through rooms filled with artwork and decorative ornaments from when the Castle was the main residence of King Charles II and Queen Catherine.
The artwork is astounding and these rooms contain some of the Royal Collection’s finest works.
There are also Semi-State Rooms that you can visit from the Autumn to the Spring. These rooms are currently used by the Queen for entertaining.
Visiting the Town of Windsor
After visiting the castle, make sure to spend a bit of time in the town as well. Grab lunch at one of the many restaurants near the castle. You will want to make a reservation, especially if you are visiting during peak tourist season.
We visited in March, before tourist season started and we had a bit of trouble being seated at a restaurant without a reservation. We ended up at Flaming Cow, which is a burger place. It was delicious, but I had hoped to eat at a more British restaurant. If that’s the case for you as well, make the reservation.
After lunch, we went for a walk along the Thames River. We came upon a flock of geese and a little shop that was selling geese food. The boys had a blast feeding the birds watching the water.
While feeding the geese, we noticed that the shop also served as the ticket office for a boat cruise of the Thames and we decided to hop on the next boat.
On the cruise, you can see Eton College, the Windsor Racecourse (you may even see some horses if you’re lucky) and the Brocas Meadows. The cruise includes an audio tour and history and you can purchase light refreshments.
Because it was early spring, the views were a bit muted for us and we had the plastic windows down the entire time to ward off the cold, but I can only imagine the beauty of the tour during greener months!
Other Things to Do In Windsor
The Castle, lunch and the boat cruise were a full day for us, but if you have a bit more time or want to move through more quickly here are some other things to do in Windsor:
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