Things to Do in Windsor

About Windsor

The Thames glides past Windsor Castle with the same medieval patience it granted Henry VIII, yet step onto Peascod Street after dark and the soundtrack shifts from tourist-camera clicks to the clink of glasses at the Two Brewers, where locals have argued football since 1834. This is a town built for walking: cobblestones polished by 950 years of footsteps between the castle's Round Tower and the crooked half-timbered buildings along Thames Street, past the croquet lawns of Eton College where future prime ministers learned to bend rules. The Queen's swans still belong to the monarch (yes, ), floating regally past riverside restaurants where a Sunday roast runs £16 ($20) and feels worth every penny when the castle floodlights ignite at dusk. Windsor's magic isn't subtle; it sits in the weight of history pressing on every pub ceiling beam, the scent of Thames mud mixing with woodsmoke from riverside chimneys, the way locals weave through Peascod Street's crowds like water around stones. Tourist buses queue by 9 AM, yet the town wakes earlier: delivery vans at 6:30, the smell of bacon from cafes on Church Street, the castle's flag already flying if the monarch's in residence. Skip the tourist traps near the castle gates. The better pubs hide down side streets where you'll sit beside off-duty Beefeaters and realize Windsor's greatest trick is feeling like a small town that just happens to have a royal residence attached.

Travel Tips

Transportation: Windsor & Eton Central station drops you two minutes from the castle gates. But the real move is the 702 Green Line bus from London Victoria. £11 ($14) gets you here in 45 minutes and drops you at the Theatre Royal instead of the tourist scrum. Once here, everything's walkable. The £2.50 park-and-ride from Windsor Racecourse saves your sanity on summer weekends when central parking hits £8 ($10) for three hours.

Money: Cards work everywhere except the independent food trucks by the river. The Turkish coffee guy near Alexandra Gardens only takes cash, and his £2 ($2.50) flat whites beat the castle café's £4 ($5) disappointment. Most pubs give better exchange rates than the currency shops on Thames Street, oddly enough. ATMs cluster around the central train stations. The one inside the Tesco Express charges £1.50 ($1.90) less than the standalone machines.

Cultural Respect: Don't photograph the Changing of the Guard. It's a working military ceremony, not a photo op. The guards will shout at you. In pubs, wait at the bar to order. Table service is for restaurants. When locals say "You alright?" they expect "Yeah, you?" not your actual problems. The castle's St. George's Chapel isn't a tourist site during services. Sunday mornings belong to worshippers. Visitors are welcome but sit quietly in the back rows.

Food Safety: The riverside food trucks are safe. They're inspected more thoroughly than most restaurants because tourists complain. The best fish and chips comes from the van near Eton Bridge. £8 ($10) gets you cod that flakes like snow and chips fried in beef fat. Avoid the ice cream shop opposite the castle gates. It's a chain disguised as local, and the £4 ($5) cones melt faster than you can eat them. Sunday roast at the Duchess of Cambridge pub on Sheet Street includes Yorkshire pudding the size of your face for £16 ($20). They still make proper gravy from meat drippings.

When to Visit

Windsor's weather plays by English rules. Expect rain in every month except possibly August, which locals call "summer" with a straight face. January hits 5-7°C (41-45°F) and hotel prices drop 35%. Good for castle tours without the crowds. But bring waterproof everything. April-May brings 15-18°C (59-64°F) and the castle gardens explode with tulips. Hotel rates jump 25% during Easter when Londoners escape the city. June-August peaks at 20-24°C (68-75°F) and prices spike 40% above winter rates. The castle's State Apartments stay open later but you'll queue 90 minutes for entry. September offers the sweet spot at 18-21°C (64-70°F) with 20% lower prices and smaller crowds. The Royal Windsor Horse Show fills the town with liveried staff and horses that smell like leather and hay. October turns moody at 12-15°C (54-59°F). Castle floodlights reflect off rain-slicked cobblestones while hotel prices drop 30%. Photographers' month. November-February gets properly cold at 3-8°C (37-46°F), but Christmas lights along Thames Street make up for it. You can book castle tickets for half the summer price. The Royal Ascot race days in June push prices up another 20% on top of summer rates. Where else will you see men in top hats drinking £5 ($6.50) pints at 11 AM? For families, July-August offers the longest castle opening hours. Expect to share every viewfinder with 500 other people. Solo travelers should target September or October. Pub conversations flow easier and the Thames path stays walkable without summer crowds.