Day trip close to Chichester
Arundel Castle is a 30 minute drive from Pagham Beach House, well worth a visit and should hold interest for the whole family.
Enjoy the ancient castle, stately home and gardens that has been the family home of the Dukes of Norfolk and their ancestors for nearly 1,000 years.
Set high on a hill in West Sussex, this great castle commands the landscape with magnificent views across the South Downs and the River Arun beyond. The original features such as the crenellated Norman keep, gatehouse and barbican and the lower part of Bevis Tower survive. In the 1870s and 1890s the house was rebuilt in the magnificent architecture of the Gothic style.
Within this finely preserved interior are fascinating furniture, tapestries and a rare collection of paintings by renowned artists including Van Dyck, Gainsborough and Canaletto.
Arundel Castle Gardens
We also recommend taking the time to visit the Arundel Castle gardens, originally built on a carpark but now an award winning tropical & English gardens, that is both beautiful and quirky. There is an abundant Kitchen Garden, warm glasshouses with chillis, grapes and lemons and a fragrant Rose Garden to enjoy. In April each year, the gardens hold a tulip festival which is well worth a visit for the spectacular colour and varieties on show.
It's best to treat this as a day trip as there is much to see in the castle and gardens. There is a cafe in the castle or there are many eateries on the High Street in Arundel.
For more information visit the Arundel Castle website.