Visiting the Château de Castelnaud, explained

The Château de Castelnaud is a medieval fortress above the Dordogne at Castelnaud-la-Chapelle, in the Périgord Noir, about 9 km from Sarlat-la-Canéda, and it opens every day of the year. It is a restored ruin rather than a furnished house, and what fills it is the Musée de la guerre au Moyen Âge: 250-odd weapons, war machines on the bastion, and a model of the siege this castle lost in 1442.

Getting there, and the two car parks

The motorway exits the castle names are Souillac on the A20 and Sarlat-la-Canéda on the A89. Of the two car parks, the municipal one above the castle is paid and three minutes from the gate; the one along the Dordogne is free and fifteen. Line 338 from Sarlat runs in July and August only. Every way there and every car park.

The climb

The village climbs to the gate in lanes of pale stone: a short climb from the upper car park, a longer one from the river. No source gives a gradient or a step count, so nothing here invents either. Inside, the castle is direct about its layout — the many narrow staircases make the museum difficult for visitors with reduced mobility, though the viewpoint and the barbican are accessible, and a free 360° virtual visit is offered instead. A pram is very hard to use inside and can be left at the entrance or at the foot of the artillery tower. Visiting with children.

The ticket, and what it covers

Entry to Castelnaud is bought at the castle itself or on castelnaud.com, on any day of the year, with no timed slot and nothing to reserve. One ticket covers the whole site, the museum, the videos and whatever the season is running. There is no audio guide and none is needed: a printed tour booklet is free at the entrance in twelve languages and in Braille, with a games booklet for children aged 7 to 12. A combined ticket with the Jardins de Marqueyssac runs from 7 February to 11 November 2026, which is why so many people pair the two. The 2026 tariff in full, and the hours season by season.

The hour inside, room by room

The castle gives the unguided visit as about an hour; last admission is an hour before closing. The route runs from the barbican and the lower bailey through the upper bailey to the keep and the artillery tower, both of which lost their upper storeys when the ruin was quarried for stone after 1789. The living quarters carry a wall painting of the Nine Worthies, and six videos cover the building, the warfare, the equipment and the restoration. The piece most visitors remember is the lit and narrated model of the 1442 siege, which ends with the English garrison leaving after three weeks and a surrender bought for 400 gold coins. The rooms, in order and what happened in 1442.

The bastion, and which trebuchet is fired

Along the bastion stand full-scale reconstructed war machines in attack positions: trebuchet, mangonneau, pierrière, bombarde and bricole, pointed at the valley. They are not the machines used in the demonstration. The firing uses a separate trebuchet at a third of the size, takes about ten minutes, and runs several times a day from April to November, with the day’s times posted at the entrance. That distinction is the commonest misunderstanding about this castle. The firing, and what else runs in season.

The museum

The Musée de la guerre au Moyen Âge holds more than 250 authentic weapons and pieces of armour from across Europe, the castle’s own figure; French Wikipedia puts it near 300 pieces, 13th to 17th century, and ranks it second in France after the Musée de l’Armée. A room of scale models sets the siege engines out at 1:10 and 1:20. What is in the cases.

The view across to Beynac

From the ramparts the reason for the castle’s position is obvious. The Dordogne was the frontier between the French crown’s lands and English Guyenne: Castelnaud held for the English, Beynac for the French. The two are a real choice — Beynac preserved and furnished, Castelnaud the hands-on one — and no battle between them is documented. Which of the two, and in what order.

Which of the six listings suits your day

None is a Castelnaud ticket; all are the day around it. The three-hour canoe rental from Vitrac, around twenty-nine euros, has the deepest review base here and passes directly beneath the walls, shuttle back included. The 15 km châteaux route, around twenty-eight euros, is about two and a half hours past La Malartrie, Castelnaud and Fayrac. Both need paddlers over five who can swim 25 metres. The half-day tour from Sarlat, around a hundred and ten euros, solves the driving: four hours by van to Beynac village, a gabarre at La Roque-Gageac and Domme, though it does not come here. The private tour, around a hundred and sixty-three euros, is three and a half to four hours with a guided hour inside a castle — Beynac most of the year, Castelnaud from January to mid-February when Beynac is closed, which the operator notes as a substitution rather than a guarantee. The balloon from Cénac, around two hundred and sixty euros, is about an hour airborne over the valley, in French. The Beynac entry ticket, around seventeen euros, is the one castle interior anybody can fix a date for. All six, sorted by situation.

Give the castle an hour, catch a firing if the season allows, and spend the rest of the day on the river, in the air or on the far bank. The widget above has live dates.

Ready to plan the day?

Six listings work around this castle: two canoe routes that pass beneath the walls, a balloon over the valley, a half day and a private day out of Sarlat, and the entry ticket for Beynac on the far bank. All six, side by side sets out what each one is, and every option cancels free up to 24 hours before.

Frequently asked questions