Battle Abbey

My visit to Battle Abbey and the Battle of Hastings site exceeded my expectations, given it is a ruin and an empty field! What makes it come alive is the audio tour. You can choose to listen to the story of the battle of Hastings from different points of view, a Saxon, a Norman, knight or ordinary person. You’d have to go round several times to get the full picture, but my friend and I used different ones and swapped stories from them. You walk around the field and stop at different points, and somehow it is really atmospheric. Well done English Heritage. The Abbey is also interesting, and the town around the site good to wander round, but the audio tour of the 1066 site is what really stands out for me.

Before Battle Abbey was taken over by English Heritage it was owned by a local family. Battle Abbey School is one of the top Girls Schools in the country. Anybody who loves a bit of english history will be thrilled and entertained by the new layout within the Abbey and grounds. It is a great day out for all the family albeit fairly expensive for the average family but is really well worth a visit.

Good place to visit with the family. Friendly staff, plenty of space for the children to let off steam, refreshments, good signposts and information and handy car par and public conveniences. Warning on the car park — plenty of room but can get a bit puddly as you park under the trees plus the barrier operates with coins — there is no attendant. Last time I visited, a £1 coin and a 50p coin was needed to raise the barrier to leave. Also, the car park is not particularly well signposted. It’s just down the lttle lane to the right of the front of the abbey and then left where the metal barrier is. This will raise when you approach. Look out for special events and re-​enactments which happen throughout the year.

Beautiful scenery and if you like typical National Trust type monuments, you’ll love it. Anyone interested in 1066 history will be in their element. There’s not a lot of the authentic historical stuff left to see but the guides (and even better the reenactments at certain times of year) make it all come alive. Go for a wander along the High Street afterwards fr the Olde Worlde feel of the shops

A lovely property to wander round, we attended during the battle reinactment which made for a lovely day out (held in October).
As well as the Abbey there is also a small restaurant selling locally sourced produce, it can be a bit pricey however. Butyou can picnic in the grounds if it’s a nice day.
For the kids there’s plenty of room for them to run around, an interactive museum and a themed playground.

The centre of the battle of 1066, see the field where it happened. A few ruins, and a few almost complete building, i think an old monestry or something like that. Also have just built a new visitors centre which is supposed to be good. Although havent been in it myself as your not allowed to take dogs in there.

I used to go visit Battle Abbey at least once a year — it’s such a lovely place to visit and you could easily spend a day there — especially if the suns out.
The abbey itself is in ruins but its still easy to make mental pictures of what the place would have been like in its glory days. The signs everywhere are very informative — I like the fact that you know you’re standing in the kitchen area and where the cooking might have taken place.
There’s some interesting high walls and turrets to climb up making this esepcially fun for the kids.
The best part of youre day out at Battle Abbey though is the walk around the battle fields — the surroundings are beautiful and the audio guide (if you choose it) is very informative and well put together.

After William the Conqueror had invaded Great Britain and made it his home he built the Battle Abbey to commemorate his victory. The Abbey is a truly an interesting site to visit because he built it on the exact spot where he first set foot on British soil. I don’t want to go into much detail about the battle but if ancient history is a forte yours as it is mine then highlights of the visit include an interactive audio visual interpretation of the battle.